Ms. McMillan's Music Class

  UPCOMING DATES Thursday, February 26th: Performing Arts Club EMBRACE MUSIC WHILE SWIRLING AROUND IN YOUR LIVES WITH KIDS: Keep singing, keep moving, keep listening to music together. We continue conversations in all classes about the essence of organized group sound. Listen for sound texture of instruments and singing voices while listening to music at home.  Here is the top requested song for 2026...an instrumental version for your listening pleasure. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4BUX-z2h30 LEARNING INTENTION LEGEND ( Blue  =  Kindergarten ,  Green  =  1 / 2 ,  Purple  =  3 / 4 ,  Red  =  5 / 6 ) -I can move to beat in music through walking, running,  jumping and skipping. -I can play steady beat using rhythm sticks. Kindergarten students continued participation in movement activities this week to experience musical pulse and to strengthen beat awareness. We listened to a piece organized in A and B sections and...

  UPCOMING DATES Thursday, February 19th: Performing Arts Club EMBRACE MUSIC WHILE SWIRLING AROUND IN YOUR LIVES WITH KIDS: Keep singing, keep moving, keep listening to music together. We continue conversations in all classes about the essence of organized group sound. Listen for sound texture of instruments and singing voices while listening to music at home. Sometimes its easier to hear instrument layers when no vocal component is present. If you're not up for searching, here's a good one. The melodic line is beautiful. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjWsIjTnFZY LEARNING INTENTION LEGEND ( Blue  =  Kindergarten ,  Green  =  1 / 2 ,  Purple  =  3 / 4 ,  Red  =  5 / 6 ) -I can move to beat in music through walking, running,  jumping and skipping. -I can play steady beat to accompany singing on barred instruments. Kindergarten students continued participation in movement activities this week to experience musical pulse and...

  UPCOMING DATES Teachers' Convention - February 12th and 13th EMBRACE MUSIC WHILE SWIRLING AROUND IN YOUR LIVES WITH KIDS: Keep singing, keep moving, keep listening to music together. The theme of conversation in many classes this week was attention to organized sound. We have established in class that we have a wonderful capacity to make lots of noise. Our goal is to harness the noise and to create sound that is cooperative and accessible for everyone. One way we do this at school is by listening to one another while playing and singing. We also listen for patterns in the music that we hear - we pay attention to repetition of phrases and sections. Listen for patterns while you experience music at home. For an extra challenge, try listening for the duration of a song before commenting on what you hear.  LEARNING INTENTION LEGEND ( Blue  =  Kindergarten ,  Green  =  1 / 2 ,  Purple  =  3 / 4 ,  Red  =  5 / 6 ) -I can move ...

  UPCOMING DATES Performing Arts Club @ Lunch - Thursday, February 5th EMBRACE MUSIC WHILE SWIRLING AROUND IN YOUR LIVES WITH KIDS: Keep singing, keep moving, keep listening to music together. Have conversations about what you hear. What voices are present? Not just human voices but instruments. There is an abundance of music available to us where the lyrical line is not conveyed to us through words and human voice but by a melody line played on a flute or a violin or a cello or a guitar or...endless possibilities here. Listen to music together and have conversations about layers of sounds that you hear in the music. If there is a human voice, what qualities of that voice are interesting or unique to you? Is it a grown up voice, a kid's voice? Is the voice pitched in a low range or does it sound higher compared to other voices that you hear? What other instruments do you hear? What musical patterns do these instruments play? We are fortunate to live in an age where information abou...

UPCOMING DATES Performing Arts Club @ Lunch - Thursday, January 29th EMBRACE MUSIC WHILE SWIRLING AROUND IN YOUR LIVES WITH KIDS: Experience music together through spontaneous and uninhibited movement. We come into this world with a natural propensity to move to music. We tend to lose that innate sense as we become self aware and conscious of our actions around others. By encouraging kids to move while listening to different styles of music, we are supporting their developing awareness of the beautifully nuanced expressive elements that are present in the overwhelming range of musical selections available to us. These beginning experiences encourage a musical way of being that supports all learning through music as kids move forward. Movement also activates a myriad of systems in our bodies to enhance good mental and physical health. LEARNING INTENTION LEGEND ( Blue  =  Kindergarten ,  Green  =  1 / 2 ,  Purple  =  3 / 4 ,  Red  =  ...

UPCOMING DATES Performing Arts Club @ Lunch - Thursday, January 22nd EMBRACE MUSIC WHILE SWIRLING AROUND IN YOUR LIVES WITH KIDS: Experience music together through spontaneous and uninhibited movement. We come into this world with a natural propensity to move to music. We tend to lose that innate sense as we become self aware and conscious of our actions around others. By encouraging kids to move while listening to different styles of music, we are supporting their developing awareness of the beautifully nuanced expressive elements that are present in the overwhelming range of musical selections available to us. These beginning experiences encourage a musical way of being that supports all learning through music as kids move forward. Movement also activates a myriad of systems in our bodies to enhance good mental and physical health. LEARNING INTENTION LEGEND ( Blue  =  Kindergarten ,  Green  =  1 / 2 ,  Purple  =  3 / 4 ,  Red  =  ...