Crow Rooster!

I went to an awesome workshop this summer all about singing games. Today, I'm going to share one of my favorites with you: Crow Rooster! I can't wait to bring this out for the first week of school. It's great for the older students to refresh their head voice.

I like to add a fun twist on it with beanie baby roosters. You can find them on eBay, at garage sales, or you might still have some in your house. I use the bigger ones, but the mini ones work well, too. I have ended up with 15 because I (hopefully) won't have more than 15 pairs in my classroom at once.

 With all singing games, there are variations from teacher to teacher. The original game directions are listed above, but I'm going to share with you my variation.

Crow Rooster

1. Divide class into partners, putting one across from the other about two feet apart. This should make 2 straight lines down your classroom. Give one partner the rooster to start.
2. Leader (teacher) starts the song, with students taking four steps backward on the beat. On the echo, students take four steps forward to their original position.
3. On the first "crow rooster," the first partner tosses the rooster to the other partner. On the echo, the rooster is tossed back to the original partner.
4. The last line should be clapped and patted. Clap the rhythm of "ku ku ri ku, ku ku ri ku" and pat the beat for "work for everyone." Repeat. (Students with the rooster should do their best at clapping and patting). 
5. If the rooster was dropped during the "crow rooster" part, that pair is eliminated. They sit out, still singing, clapping and patting.
6. All pairs that are still in the game take a step back. Repeat the song. 
7. After each time, the gap gets bigger and bigger. More pairs are eliminated until there is a winner. The kids love to see how far they can get and still catch the rooster!

The "crow rooster" part is a great way to get kids into their head voice at the beginning of the year. The tossing of the rooster is also great for kinesthetic learning. Sometimes my lower voiced students need that tossing motion to reach higher notes. It's also a nice reminder of the difference between clapping the rhythm and keeping the beat. Finally, the kids LOVE a competition! My room is quite large, so I'm excited to see how far they get - especially those athletic kids that have been at sports camps over the summer. 

Hope you enjoy this fun lesson for the first few weeks of school!

Wish and Dish!

It's here! It's here! It's here!

I am so excited for the Teachers Pay Teachers "Back to School" sale! It's a great time to stock up on resources for fall, especially that stuff on your wish list. If you need some suggestions, check out the linky party I'm participating in. Each teacher is sharing a resource of theirs and a few things on their wishlists. You can't go wrong!

First, I thought I'd share a product I'm super excited about from my classroom. 

Vocal Explorations with Children's Literature BUNDLE

I love using children's literature in my classroom. My students know that they will be read to at least once every six day cycle. I have many products in my store for using children's books with instruments, writing, singing games, etc. This bundle is particularly meant to use with vocal explorations. 

The three stories in this bundle (also available separately) are How To Speak Moo, The Squiggle, and Little Green. Each of the files includes directions on how to use the stories with the product (the stories aren't included but are available at most book stores) and different ways to use it in your classroom. 

First, the explorations are already created: 

Some are straight, some loop, curve or are jagged. There's a great variety of high and low!

Next, there are blank slides for students to create their own pathways on the file (via smartboard) or demonstrate in front of the class:

The picture changes spots around the screen for some change in pitch.

Last, there are worksheets for students to create their own pathway to use for partner sharing, small group collaboration or assessment:

Each has their own pathways, pictures and worksheets to fit the story. My students love them and they are a great way to warm-up voices, create and assess!

Now, I'll share with you a few things from my wishlist!

Educlips Pirate Clip Art Bundle
I'm hoping to do more with Gilbert & Sullivan in my classroom this year. One of my favorites is "The Pirates of Penzance." These little pirate buddies will be great to create an overview, worksheets, etc.

The Silent Instrument Game

I have been eyeing this game from Allison Cabello for months! It's a great game to introduce, review or have QUIET fun with instruments. It's also nice for subs or early out days.

Speaking of Allison, she posted a wonderful image to refresh everyone on leaving feedback. Did you know you can get money towards future purchases, just by leaving feedback? It's also a helpful way for teacher authors to get a feel for what is working for buyers. PLEASE leave feedback - it's a win, win! If you're unsure, here's Allison's graphic to help you out:

Five Favorite Pins of October

Hello all! Sorry it's been awhile. We just finished up the first quarter and conferences are next week. Wow, time flies!

I'm linking up with Mrs. Miracle's Music Room for her monthly linky party. Here are my favorite pins of October!

#1: Music Gifts

I had a couple of students who just finished up auditioning for Opus Honor Choir. Unfortunately, none of them were selected. They worked really hard, though, so I wanted to reward them for their dedication to becoming a better singer and all around musician. I can't wait to make these and leave them in the office next week!

#2: Drummer Pete

I just LOVE this video! My husband is sick of hearing it already. However, it is a great review for my students and we can break out the new drums.

#3: Amusement Park Mallet Exploration

I adore all of Cori Bloom's resources. This one is a great exploration for mallet instruments. It has a wonderful lesson plan attached to it, complete with standards, skills and a composition. I snatched it up right after I pinned it. Check it out!

#4: Pete the Cat bundle

My primary students love Pete the Cat. I usually bring him out in the spring or with a sub. However, our book fair has the Christmas story available this year AND I just received my Pete the Cat puppet from our DonorsChoose.org project. How happy was I when I stumbled upon this new blogger/TPT seller's page! There's a section for steady beat buttons and prereading rhythms with colored shoes. 

#5: Dancin' Scarf Blues

Jazz and scarves? Win win! Can't wait to get the recording.

Christopher Kazoo and Bongo Boo - Review!

It happened and way too early in the school year. What is this occurrence, you ask? 

The dreaded SICK DAY!

I really hoped it wouldn't happen this early in the year, but it did. Our secretary was sick at school, and I was in the vicinity right after she was. Also, I started studio lessons this week, so I'm getting a double case of germs. Either way, I had a 24 hour bug and left before school started Friday morning.

Cue scrambling to get sub plans together for the morning. My afternoon was empty, as the 4th graders were on a field trip, so I just needed lesson plans for kindergarten and 1st grade. My subs are rarely music subs and most of the time, the recommendation is to "throw in a movie." This bugs me, but I understand. Subs are few and far between, plus many don't feel comfortable because they believe music class is difficult to teach. Anyways, I have an extensive supply of educational music videos to choose from. Yesterday, though, my substitute was a retired kindergarten teacher who loved music. AWESOME! She actually passed along her CD set of rhythm sticks and activities. I love using these with my primary students! They are great to review beat, rhythm and making music in a small group. 

This was also a great chance to test out the resources I received from my first DonorsChoose.org project. I had requested resources for "Christopher Kazoo and Bongo Boo" from Little Schoolhouse Books. The video looked great for interactive learning and introducing instruments to my little ones throughout the year. 

I have both sets that the company has put out. Each set is around $40, but comes with the story book, teacher's supplemental lessons and DVD. The DVD has the telling of the story, along with extra mini lessons to teach or reinforce concepts. My kindergarteners are beginning to learn about steady beat and the first two lessons on the DVD are all about steady beat. Win win! The kids had to clap, jump, pat, march, etc. to the steady beat to help the characters on the screen. Eventually, we can add instruments and other things to these mini lessons. 

With both grades, the students were able to see the book come alive, review steady beat and then use the rhythm stick activities to add a little extra to it. I heard wonderful things from the substitute about the lessons being fun and interactive. I'm really happy that these resources are a part of the music classroom! Yes, it is a video (I know, I know), but it is soooo much better than many of the choices I've had in the past. I'm also very excited about using this as a jumping off platform to begin integrating the mini lessons and teacher supplement lessons into my own teaching and lesson planning. I bet the students were super excited when they saw the bongos and kazoos. There's also a mini-musical that came out last year! Hmmm...the possibilities :)

Have any of you heard of Christopher Kazoo and Bongo Boo? If you have, what do your students think of it? How are you implementing it in your classroom? I'd love new ideas!

Let's Talk About Books Linky (Little Green)

I LOVE books in the music classroom! When I saw other music teachers linking up, I had to join and share one of my favorite books for the elementary music classroom.

We Love Books!

The summer after my first year of teaching, I went to our state-wide choral symposium. Normally, these are really set up for middle and high school directors. However, they had an amazing teacher named Aaron Hansen present. He still teaches in Iowa, I believe, but does clinics and performances throughout the United States. He is primarily an Orff teacher, but his ideas can be used in any classroom. All of Aaron's sessions were so fun and approachable for any teacher at any level. My favorite was his "Telling the Story" session, featuring folktales and children's stories. That is where I discovered the awesome book, "Little Green" by Keith Baker. It's all about a child watching a hummingbird he names Little Green.

I really enjoy using this book with my kindergarteners in the spring, but it's also fun for 1st grade, too. The first thing we do is read the story - the ending is super cute! The students really love finding where Little Green is in each page and discover what happens at the end. 

Next, we find our own space in the room and act out the story. Little Green goes up, down, in circles, zip zags, etc. It's nice for them to move around in their own space with the story and use their imagination. I also add in the finger play Five Little Hummingbirds for the kindergarteners:

Five humming birds flying in the air (Hold up five fingers)
The first one landed in my hair (Grab little finger)
The second and third were a pair. (Touch index finger and thunb together.)
The fourth humming bird didn't care. (grab ring finger.)
The fifth humming bird hummed everywhere (Touch middle finger and hum loudly)Five humming birds flying in the air (Hold up five fingers)

The last thing we do is talk about vocal exploration. I really enjoy doing these more and more in all of my classes. I introduce vocal explorations with slide whistles, but this book is also a great review of all different ways we move our voice. First, we draw with our finger and sing the lines that Little Green makes. I usually demonstrate and then sometimes call up student leaders to do a few. 

The next part is up to you and your classroom resources. I like to let each student have a long piece of yarn, but I've seen other teachers use jump ropes, ribbons, etc. for vocal exploration practice. I have each student create their own exploration shape and practice following it with their voice. We share some as a class, but they also get into partners or small groups to share and vocalize together. This is also a fun way to demonstrate student centered learning and do a quick assessment of how the student's voices are changing. Here's an example from another vocal exploration story lesson from Stay Tuned!

I'm sure there are so many more ideas for this cute little book. It's only $6.95 on Amazon...I actually think I got mine used from an old public library, but it is a gem. So bright and colorful - perfect for spring! Please link up and check out all of the great books to use in your classroom!

Read Me a Story, Sing Me a Song

I love using literature in the music classroom! It is a great way to make connections with students, as well as bring the story alive using songs and instruments. Here are a few of my favorites I've been using lately in the classroom.

Knick Knack Paddy Whack

I love this book! I forgot I had received it earlier in the school year. It brings the song to life with beautiful pictures and a fun, jazzy style. The book comes with a CD that has the story as well as just the background music if you'd like to sing it yourself. It also introduces instruments of the orchestra. Love!

Grandma's Feather Bed

Another gem! This song story is so fun! It comes with a CD featuring John Denver singing his classic song. Plus, the pictures are hilarious!

Thump, Bump: Tiny, the Dancing Hippo

This is one of my treasures. I was looking through books at the Salvation Army and stumbled upon this. As I was reading along, I realized the words "thump" and "bump" keep repeating in the story. This got me thinking - hmm, what a great introduction for my primary students! They could choose instruments to use and play on their specific word, either thump or bump. Winner! It's such a simple book, but a great introduction or review at the beginning of the year. 

Carnival of the Animals

I will be ending the school year with Carnival of the Animals for my 1st graders. This book has wonderful pictures of the animals and the instruments in it. There are several great books out there for Carnival of the Animals, but this one features the CD and story all in one spot for a quick grab.

Finally, our primary building had a "Dr. Seuss" theme this year. To tie that in with our building goal of increasing reading skills, my kindergarteners are having their program be "Dr. Seuss is on the Loose!" The kids LOVE these songs. I used several from Seussical, as well as a few I picked up here and there. I'll have a post next week with more details and pictures. However, we read each story and sang it's song afterwards as we were starting to learn them. This program has really strengthened my love for Dr. Seuss!

Are you interested in more children's literature in the music classroom? Be sure to search "literature" on the sidebar of my blog. It will give you quick access to all my blog posts with children's stories (there are a TON!). Also, I definitely recommend checking out my Teachers Pay Teachers store. I have several products for using literature with instruments, vocal explorations, jazz, etc.