April 27th - May 1st (Music Week 28)

 UPCOMING DATES

Performing Arts Club: Thursday, May 7th

Grade 5/6 and Performing Arts Dress Rehearsal: Wednesday, May 27th @ 1:15 pm

Volunteer Tea featuring Grade 5/6 and Performing Arts Collaboration: Thursday, May 28th

EMBRACE MUSIC WHILE SWIRLING AROUND IN YOUR LIVES WITH KIDS:

Think about the mood evoked by a piece of music. Or you could do this with several pieces of music. This has been a theme across grades this week and has led to some thought provoking conversations - thought provoking for me, anyway, and I hope for kids as well. They are starting to connect what they hear to other pieces of music that they have heard, which is excellent because it tells several things: one, that they are listening to the music that I am playing for them and also, that they hear patterns in the music that represent something they have already experienced. In the midst of these music-y conversations,  I get very excited and think to myself, "This is why I love music so much." Then I get into playing and performing music and remember, "Right! THIS is why I love music so much!" Exceptionally multifaceted, which is why we need it - music can enrich our lives in so many wonderful ways. 

LEARNING INTENTION LEGEND (Blue = Kindergarten, Green = 1 / 2, Purple = 3 / 4, Red = 5 / 6, Pink = ALP) 

-I can distinguish voice sounds; develop tuneful and accurate singing voice.

-I can play steady beat using shakers, boomwhackers, shape drums and sticks to accompany singing.

Kindergarten students performed snippets of what they do in class for our school community this week, demonstrating in tune singing, steady beat with small percussion instruments and movement to represent form and mood. The students adapted well to using space in the gym to simulate the types of activities that happen in a regular music class. Every performance is an opportunity to appreciate new aspects of who we are - we learn that we can be brave, we learn that we can access muscle memory to do things we have done before and most importantly, we are reminded that music creates energy that is most powerful when it is shared because it helps us to create connections with other people. 

-I can listen while playing to create unison sound with other voices and instruments.

-I can play steady beat on boomwhackers to accompany singing.

Grade 1/2 classes continued creation of silly warm up songs this week. We also started to learn a series of 'Sevens' patterns using combinations of body percussion. Grade 5 and 6 students were very helpful in demonstrating leadership during the 'Sevens' warm ups, reminding the Grade 1s and 2s about the value of ongoing practice to get really, really good at performing these patterns. We also had tons of fun playing some new hand clapping games and steady beat on boomwhackers to accompany singing. We are beginning to look for the silents beats or 'rests' as the boomwhackers or claps are passed around the circle. 

-I can explore songs in major and minor keys.

-I can create movement to represent expressive qualities of music in major and minor keys. 

Students continued to experience major and minor song tonalities through singing, playing and movement this week. I had planned to provide lots of time for practice with playing melody and ostinato patterns on instruments but in all of the classes, there was lots of music conversation, most of it based on comparing pieces of music and listening to modal qualities of songs suggested by the kids. Here are a couple that were very popular with all classes. I have been told that I need to listen to Rush E over the weekend so that I can play it better - my attempts this week were not up to peoples' standards but kids have assured me that if I practice, I will improve. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fox_5DQ8Hz8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-V3zqvtbCM

We also talked about the fact that many pieces of the music from the Classical period actually incorporated the name of the key in the title (eg. Waltz in C# Minor: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMmkdt6e1aM). The kids decided that this is because people weren't as good at naming songs in the 1700s and 1800s. This is probably true - modern technologies have freed up our brains to think about so many important things, like creating interesting song titles. 

-I can develop musical interpretation; use vocal interpretation to enhance a song's meaning.

-I can sing as part of a group; I can listen to play with appropriate expression (tempo and dynamics) to create effective group sound. 

Students continue to practice unison singing as part of a group. In the midst of working through some song repertoire, we also attempted to piece together parts of our script for our presentation. To this point, students have made suggestions about song segues and plot points. Students have also had an opportunity to think about how their Troll character will fit into the production - many have communicated a desire to sing, dance or speak, which is excellent because we are putting together a musical. Moving forward, there will be pockets of time allotted for smaller group work. 

-I can keep a steady beat.

-I can sing while performing body percussion such as patting and clapping.

ALP students continued with a variety of movement activities to reinforce beat awareness this week, including singing with body percussion (patting on legs or clapping). More students engaged in 'drumming' with buckets this week. We have 4 or 5 songs that are familiar to all of the kids and many are singing along while keeping the beat on their buckets. This week, I tried to phase out 'The Muffin Man' - this did not go over well so I will keep it in the set list for bucket druming for now. Maybe we'll have some success with new songs next week. 

Best wishes for a beautiful weekend.

Mrs. M.











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