Weekly Review 3/20 - 3/24

This week in music, the first grade students reinforced the scale tone "do" through echoes and warm-up activities.  They then finished their Leprechaun song and game from last week.  It was so much fun to play the glissando on the glockenspiel!  They also started a new song called "Walk to the House."  There are 2 moments in the song where two students each select a hand percussion instrument and play a special rhythm.  The rest of the class gets to guess which instruments were played based on the sound!  It is a great opportunity for them to review the timbre and names of each instrument!

The second graders have started to rehearse for their Memorial Day Assembly, which will be in May.  We discussed the importance of the holiday, then learned "Grand Old Flag."  We sang it then added fun hand movements which we will do while we perform!  The students also learned the history and meaning behind the song "Pop Goes the Weasel." Then, they did a great circle dance along with that song.

The third graders have been progressing wonderfully on the recorder!  We reviewed the green belt song (Lucy Locket), and practiced switching between the G and E.  Then, they learned a new note- low D! It's located right beneath the staff, and is played by adding one more finger to the note E.  Please encourage your child to practice at home, as this will help them to be successful on the recorder!

The fourth and fifth grade students learned about improvisation this week.  First, we reviewed the proper technique for the xylophones, metallophones, and glockenspiels. Then, students removed the F and B bars to put them into C pentatonic - The pentatonic scale has 5 pitches, and we were using C, D, E, G, and A.  We first improvised on a four quarter note rhythm pattern as a group, then encouraged the students to experiment with their rhythms. We discussed question and answer phrases, and asked students to end their pattern on "do" (C) when improvising an answer phrase.  Students took turns improvising questions and answers with teachers and classmates.  It was so much fun!

Below is a video of fourth graders improvising their own four beat patterns:

In chorus, we announced the students who will have a special part in our spring concert.  This Tuesday, we will do a "table read" with the speakers/actors.  Practices for singers, dancers, and instrumentalists will be soon as well.  During our chorus rehearsal, the students worked on polishing up their grade level pieces.  They also rehearsed "Galop" - an exciting piece consisting only of solfege syllables!

We hope you had a fantastic weekend!