Valentine's Day - a little late!

Sorry I'm a little late posting!

Right now, we're finishing up our STOMP projects, but I thought we would take a break for Valentine's Day.  I saw this great idea mentioned on the Music Teacher's Facebook group and just had to try it out! In a few weeks, they will be learning about the science of sound in their general classroom. I love collaborating and reinforcing things they are learning through music. 

So here's what we did:

The students each have their own laptop, as we're a 1:1 school. They also each have the recording program Audacity installed. After watching a brief "Bill Nye, the Science Guy" clip, we talked about sound waves and frequencies. From there, I did some demonstrations by projecting my Audacity program on the board for them to see. We did many different voices and watched the pictures change.

From there, I told them that we were making a "musical valentine" for them to take home to someone they care about. I asked each of them to record the words "I Love You" into Audacity however they wanted. Here's my photo: 

Next, we printed, cut and pasted their words onto red cardstock. 

From here, they could decorate it however they liked. Some used markers, crayons, hole punches, etc. On the back, we attached this paragraph so families could read about our introduction to the science of sound:

Happy Valentine's Day from the music classroom!
Today, the 4th graders had an introduction to the science of sound.
We used the program Audacity to learn about sound waves and frequencies.
Next, the students each recorded their own version of "I Love You" into the program. 

From there, the students printed a picture of their recording and created a special musical valentine just for you! Enjoy!

Of course, this can be tweaked, but it really was a cute and informative idea! It also works great for common core and collaborating with general classrooms. Again, I can't take credit for this awesome idea, but if you'd like my formats, let me know. Happy Valentine's Day (late)!

Hour of Code

Hour of Code - what is this?

I saw numerous tweets, emails, tutorials, etc. talking about the mystical "Hour of Code." In the end, it's really simple! Basically, we are introducing students to computer science and showing them how easy coding can be. 

So, this can't be done in music....right? WRONG!

Our elementary tech integrationist really encouraged each classroom to jump on board. Well, I don't like being left out of the loop, so I did some researching. I found a wonderful website and picture from a friend during our weekly elementary music chat on Twitter. He said it was SO EASY that I had to try it out.

Now, HourofCode.com has a ton of different activities, but none were really "music" related. However, the Google website MadewithCode has two really great activities for students to do. 

One is "Yeti" and the other is "Beats."

Basically, coding is putting different pieces together to create sequences. With these activities, the students put the pieces together and then customize what they would like their dance or beat sequence to be. There are many more activities for students wanting to learn - these are just basic or beginning ones. It even gives you a blue pop up window to guide your process. Here are some screen shots:

I also showed my students the video of Miral Kotb and her dance/code creation iLuminate. It is a glow in the dark light show that works with music via code. It was really cool! You can find the video here: Danced w/ Code



I did this with 2nd and 3rd graders, but it is easily accessible for younger and older kids. Check it out this week if you have time - help your students earn their own "Hour of Code" certificate!

Five Favorite Pins of September

I have been seeing all these awesome Linky Party buttons on the music education blogs I follow. Since I teach during the day and have a piano studio in the evening, I rarely get to participate in these because I'm too late! But, it's Friday! I actually have time to blog and link up.

http://www.mrsmiraclesmusicroom.com/2013/09/linky-party-five-favorite-pins-of.html

I am linking up to Aileen Miracle from "Mrs. Miracle's Music Room." I LOVE her resources. I seriously use one every week, if not more often. So, here are my 5 favorite pins of September!


#1  Data Tracking in the Music Room (K-5)

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Data-Tracking-in-the-Music-Room-K-5-Bundled-Set-855204

Our district is really focusing on data tracking, project-based learning and student centered classrooms. I constantly evaluate my students and my teaching, but there is a push for more concrete data. This bundle has awesome resources and ideas for getting concrete evidence through progress goals, levels, and personal assessment for the kids.

#2 Wee Willie Winkie

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Wee-Willie-Winkie-856082

This song is so awesome! It has steady beat, rhythms, solfege, a fun game and instruments! Perfect for my K-2 students. I love songs that have interesting games to hook the students, plus a lot of elements to review or introduce AND a fun ending activity (instruments). 

#3 Choral Singing Word Wall

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Word-Wall-Choral-Singing-851418

I am so bad at emphasizing vocabulary in music. It's something I definitely struggle with! These choral words, though, are great to display. They hit the key words that beginning singers need to know and I can quickly point them out by color, word or stripes/chevron. I already used 2 of them on the first day. 

#4 Rig A Jig Jig

             http://vimeo.com/27466682

I constantly struggle with finding dances that are fun for my K-1 students. I like to hit on several things during music, so I find that a lot of dances are difficult for them to learn in a short amount of time or retain if we don't learn it all at once. I tend to do more movement activities with them because of this. However, I found this great video of a dance that starts in a circle and moves to partners. I love having the students partner with lots of people.

#5 A Soup Opera

http://www.amazon.com/A-Soup-Opera-Jim-Gill/dp/0981572103/?qid=1337258104&ref=sr_1_1&ie=UTF8&sr=8-1

Reading is something I'm focusing on a lot this year. Whether it's song stories, nonfiction, movement books or acting things out, I want to do more reading in my class. I've heard wonderful things about "A Soup Opera" and I'm really excited to try it out soon. It even comes with a CD, so it's great for sick voice days or substitutes. I'm hoping to read it, sing along and eventually have some classes act it out. We'll see what happens :)

It's finished - I have completed my first Linky Party blog post. Have a great weekend - woot woot!

Back to school!

Wheww, I am exhausted! I went to bed at 9 pm most nights and still slept from 10pm until noon on Saturday. Those first few days are so exciting, chaotic and tiring at the same time! So far, I have a pretty great group of kids this year. There will be some behavior issues here and there, but I think the classes are divided better, so the students are more even-tempered this year. You really don't realize the impact of personalities until you have a really crazy class for an entire year. Love them, but boy, do they wear me out!

I thought I would post my first week lesson plans. The first week is hard, as most classes are still figuring out the schedules and with early outs, I don't really see everyone until the next week. I focus on some review activities for my primary students, while I try to start with a "bang" for the intermediate students. Here's an overview:

Kindergarten, 1st Grade

• Beanbag Boogie
       I got this idea from:
  
       http://highshoalsmusic.blogspot.com/2013/03/beanbag-boogie.html
   The kids loved moving around, balancing their bean bag and dancing with their new classmates - so fun!
• The Music Teacher from the Black Lagoon
        I use books as much as I can in the music room. I love song stories, biographies, Orff, solfege, etc. Basically, if I can discover or create a lesson for it, I will use a story. This one is a great beginner because it's about a scared boy the rumors of music class. The students kept saying how I was "nothing like her" and "she's so mean - you're nice!" Makes my day when I get that feedback from my students!
• Freeze Dance
         Let's face it - freeze dance is a staple in music class. I love watching the kids show off their dance moves and have a little crazy fun. The teachers have started using it in their classrooms for brain breaks and indoor recess. Can't end a first day without freeze dance!

2nd Grade    

• "Sasha" partner dance
         As a former student of Simpson College, I had the opportunity to attend awesome MusicEd workshops every year. One of my favorites was given by Sanna Longden with the title "No Child Left on His or Her Behind." So fun and some awesome dances to boot! "Sasha" is a personal favorite of mine because the students are learning beat, rhythm, and dancing techniques, while also partnering with lots of students and working on hand-eye coordination. Win-win!
• The Music Teacher from the Black Lagoon
         This was a new book for me this year, so I decided to share it with the 2nd graders. They loved it just as much as the younger students.
• Freeze Dance
          I hate seeing a new class come in and leave without playing freeze dance. They get jealous and I'm a wimp at saying "no."

Intermediate (grades 3-5)  : I only saw 1-3 classes out of the 5 for each grade. I like to keep them altogether, so here was my "kick-off" activity for those that were able to come to their special.

• Ida Red
         I learned this great song & game from one of my college friends and fellow teachers, Lydia. It sounded so fun and a great first day activity! We learn the song "Ida Red" and create a circle. After the song, I cut between two students. These students must race around the circle while doing something funny that I have placed in a letter. I could pull out anything from "hop" to "crabwalk." The kids race around the circle in opposite directions and the first one to get back and touch my hand wins. So funny! Here's a link to a great powerpoint on "Ida Red."
  http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Ida-Red-Slides-for-teaching-tika-ti-and-singing-games-672873

• Oobleck & the differences in Sound
       This was the most fun (and most mess) I've had in music class. I saw this idea on The Big Bang Theory and new it was a perfect "first day" activity. Here is a link to the experiment:
  http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/search/experiment?q=the-force-of-sound-sick-science
  
  We tested several different tones from high to low. I also played "The Cupid Shuffle" which was perfect for the oobleck to move and bounce around. The kids loved it! I also created a little note & recipe from our activity, so the students could take it home and try it out with their families. It was messing and a lot of clean-up, but I hope it sparked interest in the wild world of music for this year. 
  

I promise to get pictures of the room up soon! I just want everything to look perfect and it's not quite there yet. What are your first day ideas & activities? Do you have full days or the half day chaos of trying to come up with filler lessons?