December Means NUTCRACKER!!

Happy December everyone - well it is almost December!  This is Karla from CMajorLearning and I hope that everyone has had a few days of rest, too much good food and great company of family and friends.  I know I did and it was just what I needed to begin my dash through December at Indian Trial Elementary!

This month will go by so quickly as there is much going on for everyone!  I spend a great deal of time during this month preparing my second grade students for our field trip to the Ohio Theater in downtown Columbus, OH where we go to see the Balletmet performance of The Nutcracker Ballet.

Inside the historic Ohio Theater

This has become an annual field trip for our second graders, one that everyone always looks forward to, teacher, administration, and the students!   My preparation began this year in creating a Wonder Wheel for each of my classes.  This is a strategy that I learned from a second grade teacher at my school…..it is quite simple really.  Take any image of a wheel that has room to write between the spokes, write or type what you are wondering about in the center of the wheel and fill in the spokes will all the questions the students have about your topic - what do they wonder or want to learn more about?  Click here is a link to a free download of a pdf file in my TpT store. 

After we have done some “wondering”, we move right into reading the story.  I have several favorites, but my top two are The Nutcracker Ballet Vladimir Vagin 

My other favorite is  The Nutcracker by Susan Jeffers 

I read each story on a different music day and then we compare/contrast the versions.  I then bring out the original book by E.T.A Hoffman.  I do not read this one but show them that the original is MUCH longer than these picture book versions.  

After each reading, I introduce the students to one of the pieces of music from the ballet.  I usually start with the Trepak or March of the Toy Soldiers because they recognize them almost immediately.  This year I was delighted to be introduced to a new listening resource book titled Active Listening Lessons:  The Nutcracker Suite by David Bretzius.  

I love that this resource has clear directions, body percussion, unhitched percussion and Orff instruments.  So far, the kids have been loving it!

The other “new” resource I have found this year is GradeCam - grading with a camera.  

This is a FREE program that can be accessed from your computer, Pad or tablet.  The idea is that you create a test that has multiple choice answers, create student answer sheets (that have the students name already assigned!), and grade the tests by using your devices camera or document camera.  Really - how cool is this!  I am super excited to try this new technology with my second graders on their listening assessment.  In the past I have used clickers (individual remote controls that work through my SmartBoard), pluckers (which Jamie Parker just blogged about last weekend here on the KodalyKorner) or just paper pencil…..all have worked great but required a lot of set up time (entering names and creating student id’s) or grading (I have 277 second grade students right now!).  Because my district subscribes to the GradeCam service, my classless came pre-populated with the students names and unique id numbers so all I have to do is create the test, print the grade sheets and grade them by placing them in front of my camera!  I can’t wait to try it out!!!  Here is the link to the GradeCam website - there are link on that page to the App store and Google play for use on your devices.  http://www.gradecam.com/  

We have also been reviewing rhythms along with our field trip prep work and you can find several activities incorporating The Nutcracker Ballet available through my TeacherPayTeachers store. 

There are many many great resources available on TpT and I encourage you to search for what is best for your students but here is the link to my TpT store’s nutcracker files.  Also - there is a big sale going on December 1 and 2 ONLY - don't miss out on some great deals.  

What activities do you use with your students when learning about The Nutcracker Ballet?  I would love to hear form you!!! Have a great December!

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Composer Books for a Sub

I am so excited to post my first entry today! I have already gained a lot of new ideas from the other contributors, and I hope you have, too.

I have recently been out of the classroom for a few professional development days, and I had to do what most teachers dread: write sub plans.

When I have a substitute in my classroom, I have to assume that he/she has no musical experience. I try to keep my plans as simple as possible. I love to incorporate children’s literature into the music room, and I have found that composer storybooks work great for days when I am gone.

Listed below are a few of my favorites. They are all wonderfully written and have beautiful illustrations. If you click on the picture, you will be directed to Amazon where you can view the book more closely.

You can certainly use these books as an extension of a listening lesson or with a composer study. I just like to save them for those times when I know I will be out of the classroom.

1.    Ballet for Martha: Making Appalachian Spring by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan 

I found this book when I was in the gift shop after a Chicago Symphony Orchestra concert. I took one look at it and had to buy it. It has beautiful watercolor illustrations and tells the story of creating the ballet, Appalachian Spring. I love how the story shares the importance of collaboration. Aaron Copland (one of my favorite composers), Martha Graham (the choreographer), and Isamu Noguchi (the set designer), had to work together to create their masterpiece. When I was looking at the book online, I also noticed that there is an audio version of the book available. I listened to the sample and noticed that they intertwined the music into the text, which I thought was a fantastic way of presenting the story.

2.    I, Vivaldi by Janice Shefelman

This biography is told as if written by Antonio Vivaldi himself. He tells how his love of music helps carry him through his struggles. The author and illustrator both do a wonderful job of representing the historical and social atmosphere of the Baroque period. Pair the book with Spring from The Four Seasons for a great listening lesson.

3.    Strange Mr. Satie by M.T. Anderson

The text and illustrations in this book are just as quirky and entertaining as the music of Erik Satie. Written poetically, the story tells of Satie’s struggle to fit in in a “world of black top hats and stiff, starched collars and gloves and bows and curtsies.” In addition to the great introduction to French culture, I loved how the book mentioned the collaboration of Satie and Picasso during the making of Parade. What a great starting point in discussing the relationship between the arts!

4.    What Charlie Heard by Mordicai Gerstein

This book introduces another one of my favorite composers: Charlies Ives. It is a detailed biography of his entire life, and the author does a fantastic job of explaining how Ives received inspiration for some of his most famous pieces. The illustrations in this book are simply outstanding!  Each page is colored from top to bottom with different sound effects. My favorite part is when Charlie hears two marching bands playing different tunes during a parade—perfect opportunity to listen to Country Band March (one of my favorites from Wind Ensemble). Again, this book can be purchased with an audio version containing the music of Charles Ives mixed with the text of the book.

5.    When Stravinsky Met Nijinsky by Lauren Stringer

I’ve been looking for a good children’s book on Igor Stravinsky for a while, and I was so happy to find this one. Like Ballet for Martha, this book tells of a great collaboration between a composer and choreographer. I just love when books make it easy for me to be cross-curricular! The book is a very tasteful representation of the Rite of Spring, from its creation to the riot that occurred on opening night.

I hope you found some new composer books to use in your classroom! Do you have any other favorites? I would love to hear about them. Please share in the comments below.

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