It's important to give students of all ages the opportunity to create their own music. Even before students know how to read and write musical notation, they can create simple compositions using speech rhythms. In today's newsletter, I'm going to use Song #9, Follow Follow Me, from Musicplay for Kindergarten as the idea for creative activities. In this song, the children make up new movements as they follow the line. It's perfect to use as a "line-up" song at the end of music class, or any time you want students to line up. These visuals come from the Musicplay Digital Resources.
There is already a creative aspect as the children create new movements. However, you could create a speech rhythm and use it.
1. as an introduction to the song
2. as an ostinato to perform with the song
3. as B C D sections between repetitions of the song
Create picture/word cards. You could use a variety of movement words that are one sound or two sounds on a beat. Or, you could use just two words - one that is one sound on a beat and a second word that is two sounds on a beat.
With student assistance, choose 2-4 of the cards to create a speech rhythm. For example: walk walk tiptoe walk (if choosing from 2 cards)
or
wiggle wave clap crawl (if choosing from 6)
or
walk tiptoe walk (If 3 cards are chosen, one beat will be silent, or a rest)
Say the rhythm. Choose body percussion or non-pitched percussion and play the rhythm. If you used walk walk tiptoe walk, you'd play ta ta ti-ti ta.
To use as an introduction, do your rhythm twice so it's 8 beats long. Decide whether to say the rhythm, say and play, or say it once, then play and say it. When you've chosen how to perform, say/play the rhythm pattern, then sing the song.
To use this rhythm as an ostinato, decide how to perform it:
say, say and play on body percussion or instruments. Do the ostinato twice, then sing the song with the ostinato.
These visuals will be available at www.musicplayonline.com when our new online resources are completed. The activity with multiple choices will look something like this and will be interactive - drag the chosen words to the boxes:
The activity with just two words to choose from would look like this - again, interactive - drag the chosen word to the box:
In this activity you could have the students decide how fast or slow (tempo) to perform and how loud or quiet (dynamics) it should be.
The teacher should model the process several times before asking students to try this - in kindergarten, this might always be a class composition, rather than individual ones.
Eventually, you'll want your students to be able to do this on their own or with a partner. (Or try the activity with grade 1-2 students). The online resources will include the printables needed to do this as an individual activity. This would be the printable if 6 choices were given.
This would be the printable if you chose to give the students just two words to pick from.
I'll post the printables in the Music play Teachers Group on Facebook. Comm ents and suggestions for the activity will be welcomed! Have a great last week of school!
Happy Father's Day to any of the dads on our newsletter list!
Denise Gagne
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