Weekly Review 2/10- 2/14

It's the week before February break and we accomplished so much in music this week!

Our first grade students celebrated Valentine's Day by learning a fun song called, "Tony Chestnut." This song involved pointing to various parts of our body and using sign language for a few words. After we learned the song, we sang it in different tempos- slow, medium and fast.  We also learned a fun dance called, "Heel, Toe, on the Line."  There were two words that the students did not recognize- "Ja" and "Nein." These words mean "Yes" and "No" in German. Each student dances with a partner in a circle and on the word "Nein," the partners turns their back against each other and ends up with a new partner. It was so much fun!

The second graders finished the Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra activity and are experts to the four instrument families. Feel free to name an instrument and see if you child can guess correctly which family that instrument belongs too. Next week, we will test their knowledge of instruments further by playing, "Instrument Bingo."

Some of our Third grade students had the opportunity to test for their white belt song and they did very well. Your students should know the notes B, A and G. 

Here are a few important things to keep in mind:

• The students need to bring their recorders to class each music day.  
• Mrs. Rzasa and I will be taking "recorder attendance," and three or more unprepared days will result in a call home.  The students will learn best when they have their instrument in school!
• Recorders are only allowed to be played in music and outside of school.  Please remind your child not to play on the bus or in their regular classroom.
• To help students succeed, home practice is necessary.  Please have your child aim for 5 minutes each day.  Of course, more is always good too!  Since the recorders are new, they will likely practice a lot- but this may fade in the coming weeks.  Ask your child to play for you to help encourage them!
• To clean the recorders, you may wash them with warm soapy water, or place them in the TOP RACK of the dishwasher. 
• Thank you- we appreciate your patience and support as your child learns a new instrument!

Our fourth and fifth grade students are continuing to learn the Ukulele. This week, they mastered the notes C, F, Am and G by playing familiar folk songs. Students were asked to partner up with another student to help each other. Here are some pictures of our students having fun!

We hope you all have a fun and relaxing week with your family!

Weekly Review 11/18-11/22

First grade students are beginning to prepare for their Winter Showcase on Wednesday, December 18th at 1:30pm. Mark your calendars! Students reviewed various rhythm notations- du, du-de, and rest. We played a Turkey Tango game which reinforced rhythm reading.

The second grade students learned a song called, "Five Fat Turkeys." This song reinforced the musical terms- melody and ostinato.  A melody is a "sweet succession of arrangement of sounds" and an ostinato is a repeated musical phrase.  We used Boomwhackers as a percussion accompaniment. 
Students also performed the Tango.

Third grade students learned about verse and refrain form while singing a hilarious song called "The Turkey Shot Out of the Oven"(to the tune of "My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean").  There are 5 verses in this song, and each was assigned to a different group of students. Here are performances from Mrs. Kip and Mrs. Ferullo's class:




Our fourth and fifth grade students are in full concert rehearsal mode now. We took a little break and performed songs on the Boomwhacker. The students had so much fun!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Weekly Review 11/4-11/8

Congratulations to our 4th grade students who sang beautifully at our Veteran's Day Assembly on Thursday.

First grade students learned about high and low sounds. The students learned that they are constantly surrounded by varying pitches. In order to reinforce high and low sounds in music, we played a fun game called, "Bluebird." Students were instructed to stand in a circle, holding hands with their hands up. One student was the bird and would fly in and out of the windows (represented by the students) during the song. On the words, "Oh Johnny aren't you tired," students would put their hand down (closing the windows) and demonstrating that they understood high to low pitch. The goal of the game was to trap the bird inside the house.

Our second grade students performed an obstinate accompaniment to the song Bony Legs. Students played the notes E and B separately, the two notes together, then learned a challenging accompaniment- E-B-E-B. 

Third grade students also practiced their Orff instrument skills by playing an accompaniment to a fall song called, "Pumpkins Are Ripe." This song also reinforced hearing songs in minor, which we learned in the month of October. 

Our fourth grade students were busy practicing for the Veteran's Day Assembly. Now that is it over, we will finish up Black and Gold next week.

Fifth grade students learned about the Danse Macabre by Camille Saint Saens. It is a tone poem for orchestra but in 1874, Saint Saens replaced the vocal line with a solo violin line. We listened to Mrs. Rzasa perform the violin solo part and followed a listening map.

Thank you to all our Veteran's for serving our country! Have a wonderful LONG weekend! See you all on Thursday!

Weekly Review 10/28 - 11/1

We had an amazing week in music!

The first graders learned a song and played a game called "Flap and Fly." Bats are nocturnal mammals, which means they sleep in the daytime and are awake at night. The students decorated bats while listening to music, then played the game! The bats were asleep while the lights were on, then a student (the Sun) turned off the lights so the bats could dance and sing!  When the sun came up, the lights were turned back on and the bats fell asleep.

The second graders had a D.A.R.E presentation with Officer Shepard for their first music class. In their send class this week, they learned a fun song called "Witches' Brew!" The song features a fun refrain with silly dance moves, and they loved singing it over and over during the song! The verses included lyrics with gross "ingredients" to put into the witches' brew!

The third grade students read a story called The 13 Days of Halloween...suspiciously similar to the 12 Days of Christmas - only spooky!  We sang the song in minor tonality, and some students helped us out by holding up posters for each day.  Our favorite parts: 5 cooked worms, and the evil laugh at the end!

The fourth graders continued to rehearse for their Veterans Day Assembly. We hope to see the family and friends of the fourth grade students on Thursday, November 7th at 1:30! They also sang the partner songs "Black and Gold" and "Trick or Treat."  They sounded SO cool when sung at the same time! Then, they played a short ostinato to accompany the songs on the metallophones and xylophones.

The fifth graders completed the fun song, "Halloween Night," which they started last week. Everyone had a chance to play the Orff instruments, the hand percussion instruments, and act out a graveyard scene. They also listened to an interesting piece of music by a composer named Henry Cowell. It is called "The Banshee," and the students tried to guess what instrument/s was/were featured. Ask your child to teach you about this piece...it has a surprising answer!

We hope you had a fantastic weekend!

Weekly Review 10/15 - 10/18

This week in music, the first graders sang a spooky song in minor tonality called "Ghost of John." The students danced around the room pretending they were ghosts as they sang. Next week, we will try singing this as a round! They also sang a call and response song, "The Bats are All Asleep," which helped demonstrate dynamics: piano, forte, crescendo, and decrescendo. In their second music class, they learned another call and response song called "Skin and Bones." It was funny AND spooky!

The second graders learned a fun October activity called, "A Funny Little Lady." After students learned the song, they played a game where one student closed their eyes and sat in front of an imaginary door. Their job was to guess who the soloist was when a particular part of the song was sung. They also sang "Skeleton John" in unison, then as a round. Practicing simple part singing like this will help them when they get to chorus in fourth grade! In their second music class, they learned a song called "Witches' Stew," then added an activity with hand percussion sound effects. Students got a chance to pick various funny percussion instruments and played them on the words "Ew," "Ick," "Ugh," and "Yuck." The students really enjoyed it!

 

The 3rd grade students had a great time using the Orff instruments this week.  They first sang the minor scale (based on "la"), then learned "Nine Lives."  Of course, the song is about a cat so we had pictures of black cats all over our music!  They played an ostinato pattern on the instruments (xylophones, metallophones, and glockenspiels) to accompany the tune. They also played a game to go with the song "Ghost of John" which was taught to them by a fellow student! Thanks for teaching it to us, Dylan!

The fourth graders have started to prepare for their Veterans Day assembly.  They will be singing an Armed Forces medley, which goes through the songs for each of the five branches of the military.  Fourth grade parents: please mark your calendars for Thursday, November 7th at 1:30pm - we can't wait to see you there!

The fifth graders reviewed the Bridge of Athlone dance from last week. Here is a video of some of the students dancing! 

Then, they learned a new folk dance called The Boston Tea Party. It is a tricky dance inspired by the time of the Boston Tea Party, which took place in 1773. It was interesting to compare and contrast the Irish dance with the American one.

In chorus, the students continued to rehearse their music for the winter concert. Hope everyone had a great week and weekend! 

Weekly Review 10/7-10/11

This week, the first graders reviewed the Loose Tooth chant, then switched their body percussion movement to hand percussion accompaniment!

• "Loose Tooth" clapping = hand drum
• "Wiggly Jiggly" patting = guiro
• "Thread," Bed," "Head" snapping = triangle

Here is Mrs. Felton and Mrs. Burnham's class performing Loose Tooth:

We also played a fun moving activity called, "Looking for Dracula." Ask your first grader about this fun activity!

Our second grade students did many variations of Come and Follow Me including body percussion and singing the song in a two and three part round.

Students also continued listening and moving to the song: The Night on Bald Mountain.  Here is a video and pictures of students performing their dance:

We learned a fun October activity called, "A Funny Little Lady." After students learned the song, they played a game where one student closed their eyes and sat in front of an imaginary door. Their job was to guess who the soloist was when a particular part of the song was sung.

The third graders completed their "Ding Dong" activity from last week, reinforcing our new rhythm (du-ta-de-ta, or sixteenth notes) on our classroom percussion instruments.

Students also learned another song about a cat called "9 Lives."  Before we sang the lyrics, we sang the song with solfege syllables, starting on "la" - since the song is in minor tonality!  Then, we reviewed proper mallet technique for the Orff instruments.  Students had the opportunity to play a simple ostinato on the xylophone, metallophone, or glockenspiel. Next week, students will learn to play the melody on the Orff instruments.


The fourth graders started learning a new folk dance called "Bridge of Athlone."  They first found Ireland on the map, then talked about the history of that famous bridge.We will continue this dance next week.

Fifth grade students reviewed the "Bridge of Athlone" dance from last year. Next week, they will learn the Boston Tea Party Dance. 

Have a wonderful three day weekend!