For the past few weeks, the fifth-grade students have been composing music to accompany the book, "Where the Wild Things Are." We invited first grade and kindergarten classes to watch their performances. Check them out below!
Mrs. Olshaw's class, performing for Mrs. Farrell's class:
The students selected a hand percussion instrument for each character, then composed a short rhythm to be played when that character is mentioned in the story.
They also learned a new solfege syllable: "la." This was perfect for our new song "Apple Tree," which uses so, mi, and la solfege. Once they learned the song, we played the Apple Tree game! As a movement activity, the first graders did mirror movement with a partner to Beethoven's Für Elise.
The second grade students sang a song called "Alligator Pie." The lyrics are so funny, and the students loved singing in aminor tonality. They also helped us come up with new lyrics for the third verse. To help reinforce our composer of the month, the students listened to Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata. They closed their eyes and imagined a story. Then, they wrote down a sentence about what the piece made them think of, and drew a picture of it. They did a great job with this activity!
In third grade, the students sang a song from Uganda called Dipidu. There is an A section and a B section, each with a different meter! The A section is in 3, and the B section is in 2. To help feel this change, we added movement. Then, we played an elimination game along with the song - it was awesome! The third graders also completed Venn Diagram to compare and contrast two pieces by Beethoven: Sonata in G and Moonlight Sonata.
I wrote a post about it yesterday, so you can read more about the activity and check out the photos HERE!
The fourth graders finished the folk dance they started last week - they did a fantastic job! Then, they started a new song "It's a Day to Honor Those Who Served." This will be their featured song during Memorial School's Veteran's Day celebration.
The fifth graders finished their Boston Tea Party dance. The "under - over" section was tricky, but they all got the hang of it! Then, they watched the Beethoven biography movie.
In chorus this week, all students finished "Jingle, Jingle Jazz." It feels good to have one song completed for our December concert! Then, everyone worked on their grade level featured song. Fifth grade sang "Cool Yule," and fourth grade rehearsed "Once Upon a Wintertime."
It was a great week, and we hope you have an amazing weekend!
Today was PERFORMANCE DAY for the 3rd Graders!! (4th Graders are working on their challenging concert music). This is an opportunity for each student to play a piece that represents their best. Below are some of the benefits of Performance Day:
Students play for, and inspire, their peers
Students gain independence playing alone
The more frequently they perform, the less nerves there will be come concert time
I can more accurately assess each student, and help them one-on-one
Each student becomes a teaching tool for the others in class, and students may offer suggestions to help their peers.
The assignment for next week: D Scale (ascending/descending) with bow, pages 15-16 in the book.
I love performance days! As a reminder, the first lesson of each month will be a "Performance Day," and students will have the opportunity to play a song of their choice! I remind students to play something that represents their best work, however it should be a fun experience - nothing to get stressed over! (I would rather them have fun playing a simple song then to have anxiety over playing something more difficult). Mistakes are always okay :)
My goal is for all students to play confidently with others AND alone. I think they have been doing an amazing job! Check out some highlights below:
Today's lessons were fantastic! Here is the assignment for the week, and please also check out the important information below!!
Bow Exercises
Bow tube practice (just a few minutes each day)
Pages 8 and 9, pizzicato
To Hold the Bow:
Start by making your little "shadow puppet," making sure to place the middle fingers over the thumb.
Following the steps I taught in class, hold the bow as shown below- the trickiest part will be that pinky!
In addition to the windshield wiper exercise we practiced today, please watch these videos and give them a try:
These exercises should be fun, and also count towards your minutes of practicing! :)
When using the bow tube, please be sure to hold it firmly with your left hand on your left shoulder, and to place the bow inside carefully. Keeping the proper position of your right hand on the bow, pretend to play the violin through your tube. Your right hand wrist should be flexible to bend up and down as you bow. To make it more fun, you can listen to some music while you practice!
