January 12 - 16 (Music week 14)

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 = 5 / 6)

-I can move to beat in music through walking, running and jumping.

-I can play steady beat to accompany singing on barred instruments.

Kindergarten students participated in many movement activities this week to experience musical pulse and to strengthen beat awareness. These kids are now demonstrating excellent appreciation of self and others as they move through the music room space. As they explore pathways around the room while skipping, jumping and running, they move into spaces that do not have other people of instruments in them - it's safer this way! We also did our first instrument circle with xylophones and metallophones. Students played steady beat accompaniment while singing the 'Hello Friends' song. 

-I can represent like and unlike patterns in music through movement.

-I can play rhythm patterns (subdivisions of beat) on rhythm instruments.

Grade 1 and 2 students continue to experience phrase form through singing and movement while learning new songs. This week's silly song selections - 'Bow Wow Wow' and 'Wishy Washy Wee'. Students perform actions to represent phrases while connecting with a partner. In addition to supporting kinesthetic awareness of musical form, these activities also help us to build connections with others, facilitating a sense of belonging in our classroom communities. 

We also played rhythm patterns on xylophones, working on alternating our mallets to play with improved accuracy. Students continue to create opportunities to differentiate rhythm (the way the words go) from beat. Like a heart beat, musical pulse is consistently steady and ongoing throughout the song. Like your heart beat, it doesn't stop because, as one student noted, that would be really bad. 

-I can sing and play rhythm patterns including quarter notes, eighth notes and sixteenth notes.

-I can play patterns to represent musical form (cups). 

Students continue to take on leadership during warm ups. Students demonstrate excellent courage and authenticity while leading the group. Classmates are increasingly supportive of their peers in these roles of leadership; the kids really do pick each other up when they sense that someone is nervous after having volunteered to lead. There is never pressure to get up in front of everybody but I am noticing that more students are wanting an opportunity to try.

Students also performed a series of patterns on plastic cups to accompany musical listening. Musical patterns easily help us to solidify understanding of musical form as we play different combinations of tapping and clapping to show the different sections of the music. Everyone automatically goes into 'Cup Song' mode when the cups are passed out around the circle so we did that too. A challenge for home: use a plastic cup (not a glass!) to learn the sequence of 'Cup Song' moves. This cup percussion can then be used to accompany any song that you sing - you just might have to adjust the rhythm cadence to suit the off beat (syncopated) rhythm of the cup pattern.

-I can read and sing rhythm patterns including 'syncopa' (eighth, quarter, eighth note).

-I can play patterns (including syncopation) to represent musical form (cups). 

Students continue to take on leadership during warm ups and exit activities. Students demonstrate excellent courage and authenticity while leading or performing for the group. One increasingly popular activity is one that we have named 'Make an Entrance'. This week during 'Make an Entrance', I learned a song about Coco Chanel and saw one our students do the worm. 

Students also performed a series of patterns on plastic cups to accompany musical listening. Musical patterns easily help us to solidify understanding of musical form as we play different combinations of tapping and clapping to show the different sections of the music. Everyone automatically goes into 'Cup Song' mode when the cups are passed out around the circle so we did that too. A challenge for home: use a plastic cup (not a glass!) to learn the sequence of 'Cup Song' moves. This cup percussion can then be used to accompany any song that you sing - you just might have to adjust the word cadence to suit the off beat (syncopated) rhythm of the cup pattern.

Best wishes to everyone for a beautiful weekend!

Mrs. McMillan















 

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