February 17 - 20 (Music Week 19)

 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 then used kid suggested movement to represent the contrasting sections. These kids are very good at doing squats to the beat of several songs. Thank you, parents - some excellent inspiration from home making it's way into our kindergarten music environment. Students then played patterns on sticks to represent different parts of a binary AB song.

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

-I can read rhythmic and melodic patterns while singing.

Grade 1 and 2 students sight read and sang variations of a 3 syllable valentine song this week, putting beats on legs and then rhythm in clapping while singing. We continued to experience the half note rhythm while singing so students needed to sustain singing over 2 beats. We extended our awareness of sustained sounds to singing on the vowel - an excellent opportunity to review vowels and their corresponding sounds.  

Students also suggested and created new versions of the 'Valentine' song. For the first time ever, I facilitated the creation of a song about paper cuts. We decided this theme was very relatable to lots of people. It was a hit in all 1/2 classes. Maybe you will hear it on the radio one day. 

-I can play steady beat on rhythm sticks, drum and barred instruments while singing.

-I can sight read and sing melodic patterns. 

We sight read a new song. Students are quickly and confidently identifying highest and lowest pitches on a musical score. It really is as simple as locating the black blobs on the staff that are lowest on the set of 5 lines and the black blobs that are highest. One of the students suggested it was like graphing. They seemed excited to experience that reading music is simpler than reading temperature graphs.

Students created stick game patterns to represent the AB form of the song. We played these patterns on drums, sticks and barred instruments to accompany singing. 

-I can read and sing an 8 beat ostinato pattern.

-I can read and play a 16 beat ostinato pattern. 

Students are in groups and practicing one of three 3 layers of sound - kazoo, wooden bar ostinato (repeating pattern) or metal bars (melody). Students were encouraged to persevere through the seemingly daunting task of decoding written notation. My favourite exclamation of the week when I started to hear the melodic line emerge through the practicing sounds: 'Mrs. McMillan! I can do it!' Yes, you really can.

We also have some REALLY talented kazoo players. One of the kids liked that the kazoo 'let's you really let go - you don't have to be polite like when you play a recorder.' Yelling into the kazoo was a suggested strategy that seemed to make things happen for lots of people. 

Lots of good listening was happening in this environment, even while students were focused on separate tasks. 

Best wishes to everyone for a beautiful weekend!

Mrs. McMillan


















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