Picture Books for Upper Elementary

Hi everyone! This is Aileen from Mrs. Miracle's Music Room. I've blogged quite a bit about picture books for the music room (see those posts here), but today I thought I'd focus on picture books that can be used with upper elementary, since they can be harder to come by!

Here are some of my favorites...I'm planning on posting about some more soon! Click on each picture to view it on Amazon or Alibis.

"If you find a Rock"

by Lember and Christian

I found this picture book a few years ago, and immediately thought that it would work really well with "Obwisana," which you can find here. It is such a beautiful book, with poetic language and higher level prose.

"Before John as a Jazz Giant"

 by Weatherford and Qualls

I'm a big jazz fan, so was super excited to find this book! What a great way to incorporate jazz into your lessons and teach a little history! I plan on using this soon, and am thinking of playing John Coltrane as I read the book.

"The Drums of Noto Hanto" 

by James and Tsukushi

Based on a true story in ancient Japan, this book is a wonderful way to introduce taiko drumming to your students. I've read this book to my 4th graders (and even created a program based off the book and had them act it out) and they were actively engaged and excited! You could read it before a taiko or bucket drumming unit, or before a taiko drumming listening lesson.

"Marching to the Civil War: Drummer Boy" 

by Turner and Hess

I really love this book as a way to delve into the song "Fire in the mountain," which you can see below:

To play the game, one student stands in the middle, playing the drum to the beat. Half of the students stand, and half of the students sit. As the drummer plays, the standing students walk around the circle. Whenever the drummer stops (halfway through the song, at the end of the song, halfway through the second time...whenever!) all the standing students have to find someone to stand behind. The drummer also has to find someone, so one person is left without someone to stand behind (much like musical chairs.) Then, that person becomes the drummer, and the sitting students stand, the standing students sit, and the game continues.

The song is actually about the Revolutionary War, but the book is a great connection about what drummer boys had to do. I will warn you...it is a sad book with very real sentiments, as the drummer boy laments about the sounds of war, and about his friends who have died. I have had to be careful to not get choked up as a I read it to students. That being said, I think it is a great book for students to read, as it gives them perspective about how much life has changed over the years, and gives them some historical context behind a song they love.

Looking for more picture book ideas? Here is one of my Pinterest boards, focused on picture books:

What are your favorite picture books for upper elementary? Feel free to comment below!

Put Your Hands Together!

I all! This is Amy from Music a la Abbott.  I hope you all enjoyed the previous two posts from Karla and Kate: I love Karla's ideas for surviving the end of the school year (proud to say, I'm one week into summer vacation) and Kate's ideas for reflecting on the year and looking forward.  I debated many different things to blog about today.  Some of my ideas were on pacing, transitions, engagement rates, scaffolding but like I said, I'm on summer vacation!  So, I decided to focus on something fun: Hand clapping games.

Before I share a few of my favorite hand clapping games, let's talk about why hand clapping games are important.  We know that hand clapping games are important for their musical purposes but also for all their non-musical reasons as well.  Hand clapping games have been researched and proven to help with motor skills and motor planning, crossing the mid line, bilateral coordination, visual tracking and socialization.  {My O.T. (occupational therapists) love it when I teach the students hand clapping games because it's working their gross motor skills and that directly impacts their fine motor skills.  The classroom teachers love it because they see an impact in their phonemic awareness, rhyming, and tracking skills.}  Two other things that it's been confirmed to help with, and as music teachers is important to us is, sequencing & patterns and beat & rhythm.

Now, here are a three of my favorites:

RONALD McDONALD

This one I learned during my Level 4 Kodály from Sean Diebler at Portland State University in 2002:

Said with a steady beat at the end:
Two big kids, sitting on a fence.
Trying to make a dollar out of 85 cents.
They missed, they missed, they missed like this!

Here's the pattern, it's an 8 beat repeating pattern with beats 7 & 8 of the pattern changing.:
Beats 1 & 2:  Left hand facing up, right hand facing down (with a partner or in a large circle), the left hand "swishes" up to the partner's right hand (or the person next to you in the circle) and the right hand "swishes" down to the partner's left hand (or the person next to you in a circle)

Beats 3 & 4: pat both partners hands (or the hands of the people on each side of you in a circle)

Beat 5 & 6: clap your own hands

Beat 7 & 8: "hitch hike" hand (hands in a first with thumbs up) over your shoulder, pointing your thumbs backwards on beat 7 and rest there on beat 8

This pattern continues through the song and then changes for the next few phrases after "Ice cream soda"
**Ice cream soda, beats 1-6 the same as above
Beats 7 & 8, with fists, and thumbs out, point the thumb down in front of you with the back of your hands facing you on beat 7, rest there on beat 8

**Down, down baby, beats 1-6 the same as above:
On "Roller coaster," with one arm, "wave" your hand in front of you like it's going up and down a roller coaster

** Sweet Sweet baby, beats 1-6 the same as above:
On "let you go," give yourself a hug and twist

** Shimmy, Shimmy, beats 1-6 the same as above:
On "round" do the "cabbage patch" motion

** Two big kids, , beats 1-6 the same as above:
Same motions as the Ice Cream soda

On "they missed, they missed, they missed like this!:
Jump out, with feet apart on the first "missed"
Jump, crossing legs, on the second "missed"
Jump out, with feet apart on the third "missed"

**  Kodály cops please do not judge me: Sean taught it "Shimmy, shimmy, cocoa puff, shimmy, shimmy, pow!" with a punching motion.  That caused some classroom management issues.  So, "Down Down Baby" is in the Amidon's collection and I used their version of that for the ending.

Say, Say O' Playmate

This one I learned from my dad who learned it from his mom.  I remember her singing it, but I don't remember the clapping game from her since she passed away when I was 9. (it's the Ice Cream Truck song, lol!!!)

The directions for this one are written below the text.

Four White Horses

This one I learned from Ann Kay when I was in college in 1997.  That year the local Orff chapter did a whole theme on "Orff and Kodály".  Ann actually presented a wonderful Orff arrangement that she wrote for this song.  I wish she'd publish some of her "stuff," it's pretty amazing!

The pattern is a 6-beat pattern, with a group of 4.
Formation: two sets of partners, facing each other, as shown below:

Beat 1: clap own hands

Beat 2: pat partner's hands (one set of partners will go up, the other will go down)

Beat 3: clap own hands

Beat 4: pat partner's hands (switch, the set that went up will go down and vice verse)

Beat 5: clap own hands

Beat 6: pat corner's hands (people on each side of you that are not your partner, one hand for each corner)

You can also try having the students make up their own clapping pattern within their group of four!

I hope you all have a wonderful start to your summer.  For those of you in Australia, carry on!  When we're in the midst of winter don't forget to remind us that you're enjoying your summer vacations!

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Choosing Song Material

Hi, everyone!  This is Jamie Parker. As the school year drags on, I find that I need to remind myself about the reasons I choose song material for my students. I sometimes find myself looking at certain songs in my folk song collection and thinking, “If I have to teach this one more time...”  Then the next thought is, “But it’s so good for teaching sixteenth notes!”

As soon as those two thoughts cross my mind, I know I need a reset. We should not be teaching songs for the concepts alone!

The best reminder I need comes from Zoltán Kodály himself:

But....what does the best look like?

I. Joy

The best songs bring joy to our students. They have some sort of “hook” to engage children including:

• Fun Game: After you teach a new song, have you ever had your students say, “Is there a game that goes with this?” Probably too many times to count, right? Children certainly find joy in playing games. If the game includes multiple levels or variations, even better!

• Connection to Culture: Finding material from your students’ own backgrounds will help them connect to the music they are performing. Try sending out a survey asking your students and families about musical preferences within their homes.

• Connection to Children’s Literature: Using children’s literature when teaching new songs to your students will give them a connection to the music. After presenting a song with a storybook, you can continue to refer back to the book as you use the song in your lessons.

•  Interesting Historical Information: My students love to know the history behind the songs that they perform. Discovering the historical/social connection to music makes a piece more intriguing and engaging.

• Interesting Melody/Tone Set: Naturally, many of the folk songs I use with my students have a pentatonic tone set. However, it’s also important to expand our students’ musical palette. My students love when I bring in a song set in a minor key or mode. Often times, they are so interested in the melody of these songs that they are able to perform quite tricky passages.

•  Creativity Possibilities: The opportunities for our folk songs are only limited by our own imaginations. Try to brainstorm ways for your students to improvise, create, and compose while using folk material. In my experience, students “own” and find joy in material they have a hand in creating.

II. Authenticity

Finding authenticity in folk songs is tricky! There are so many variants and differences of opinion in this area. Here is what I think about when I’m looking at my folk song collection:

• Is the song from a reputable source?: This source could be a primary or secondary folk song collection, a trusted colleague, or even something I learned from my mother as a child.

• Does the song fit the climate and culture of my students?: Every school is different and every teacher is different. That is why we each have different living and breathing folk song collections! I teach in the Chicago area, so my students come from quite a mixed background. When I’m searching for material to use with them, I try to consider their family and culture musical preferences. In addition, I also seek to expand their musical taste.

• Is the material age-appropriate for my students?: My students are kindergarten through fourth graders, so, of course, I must choose the content of my folk song material carefully.

III. Literacy

Lastly, we must consider the rhythmic and melodic literacy components that each folk song offers when teaching. If a song offers us more than one literacy component, great!

• Reading

• Writing

• Inner Hearing

• Listening

• Solos

• Form

• Improvisation

• Part-Work

• Instruments

Choosing song material can sometimes be an overwhelming process. If you’re looking for some resources, check out some of my favorites in the links below:

• My Little Rooster by Jill Trinka
• Bought Me a Cat by Jill Trinka
• John the Rabbit by Jill Trinka
• Little Black Bull by Jill Trinka
• Music in Preschool by Katalin Forrai
• American Methodology by Ann Eisen and Lamar Robertson
• 150 American Folk Songs to Sing, Read, and Play by Peter Erdei and Katalin Komlos
• How Can I Keep from Singing! by Celia Waterhouse, Lucy Allen, Elspeth Compton, and Nandita Hollins
• Roots and Branches by Patricia Shehan Campbell, Ellen McCullough-Brabson, and Judith Cook Tucker
• Vamos a Cantar by Faith Knowles
• Hot Peas and Barley-O by Susan Brumfield
• Over the Garden Wall by Susan Brumfield

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Stretching Your Song Literature

Happy Wednesday everyone!  This is Amy from Music a la Abbott.  I hope that you're having a WONDERFUL fall!

I'm finding myself in a little uncharted water this year.  You see, in my district we have a rotational specials schedule.  I have been fortunate for the past 13 years to have a 3 day rotation.  This means I see my students every third day.  When I opened my current school, 4 years ago, all classes were on that rotation, with the exception of 1st grade which had four rounds and was at a 4-day rotation.  While not ideal, I've been able to get most of my concepts into my 4-day rotation classes. Last year we had FIVE 2nd grade classes.  I was able to talk my teammates into spliting one of the classes into fourths so we could stay on a 4-day rotation.  This year?  Not so lucky, both my 1st and 3rd grade classes are on a 5-day rotation.  UGH!  And everyone else is now on a 4 day rotation.  Double UGH! So, essentially my kids get music once a week.  I know many of you have dealt with this or are living this too.

So, this has made me really challenge my song choices to teach different concepts.  There are certain songs that are gems that are very specific to a concept or grade level, for example "See Saw".

This is the ideal first grade song, perfect for teaching ta ti-ti and so-mi.

What I'm finding I really need to look at are songs that I can bring back in later years to teach another concept that is too hard for the current grade level that they are in.  The folks in my level 2 Kodály class at CSU last summer learned that I call this "double dipping".

Let me give a few examples:

Miss, Miss:

Looking at this song, rhythmically it's great for first grade because it's just ta ti-ti and rest.
Melodically, if we look at just the first two measures it's only so-mi, so again, GREAT for first grade. When we look at the third and fourth measures melodically there is do, re, mi & so.   For this reason, I'm going to use it in first grade to read the entire song rhythmically (no solfége) and then isolate the first two measures to practice so-mi in a new song.  Then in second grade I can bring it back again when we learn re in one of two ways: as a mystery song in the practice stage or as a preparation song.  But when I bring it back in second grade I'm elimating a step that is sometimes time consuming: teaching new song literature.  Furthermore, this is a great choice to bring back because it has a game that is always a "hit" and a favorite with my students.  The more memorable of a game the better the chance that the students will remember it.  You can find the game direction on my blog by clicking here.

Let's look at another example, "Land of the Silver Birch"

While this song doesn't have a game the kids (or at least mine) LOVE it.  It's great for low la and ti-tika, which I teach in 3rd grade.  And I love that the ending, which can also be used as a vocal ostinato (or an ostinato on an instrument) uses both low la and ti-tika.  Then I bring it back in 4th grade for syncopa.  I know some people teach syncopa earlier, in second grade.  Which, if that is the case, it would still work for multiple grade levels.  This is also great in 3rd grade to use with The Canoe Song, as a partner song.

And, for me, the Canoe song is another one that I bring back in 4th grade.  I use it in 3rd grade for low la (first two measures) and low sol (last two measures) but then it's so great for syncopa because of how that rhythmic element happens the first two beats of every measure.

Let's look at one more example: Cross Town

This I use in 4th grade when we look at anacrusis, especially ones that last longer than one beat.  Then I bring it back in 5th grade when we learn ti.  The game is super easy: concentric circles, facing a partner.  When you sing "Cross town" you cross your arms on your chest on the word "cross" then pat your legs on the word "town".  After that it's basically patty-cack with clap own hands-clap right hands with partner-clap own hands-clap left hands with partner.  Now, once your students have that you add stepping to the left everytime you sing "Cross Town". Also, make up additional verses that rhythm with numbers. ..  so the second time it would be "when Billy was two, he learned to tie his shoe," etc. until the number "ten" when you sing "cross town, when Billy was ten, he did it all again. Hey, olley, olley, hey olley, olley, half past ten, the end!"  (the end= sol,-do)

So this is a little way that I'm looking at my song literature: what can I bring back the following year to teach the next year's concept so that I save class time not teaching all new song literature. I would like to say, however, that I think it's important to have a balance of recycled/stretched song literature and new song choices.  Students love the new songs! :)

Have a great week!

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A Bushel of Apple Songs and Chants

Happy September everyone!  This is Amy from Music a la Abbott.  If you're like me, this is the time of year when your kindergarten teachers come to you and ask you to teach their children some apple songs!  So, without further adieu:

There are actually quite a few quality apple songs and chants that can fit in nicely with the Kodály curriculum in kindergarten at this time of year.  For me, kindergarten is all about exploration, experience, developing a singing voice (getting into that lovely head register) and learning about comparatives.   

One favorite chant of mine and the students is this one:

I love chants because they are so versatile and you can change them easily to suit your needs.  My kinders have been practicing their "4 voices": singing, speaking, whisper and calling.  With "I Climbed Up the Apple Tree", you can easily add a simple tune or use "arioso" singing (a la J. Feierabend).  It's also a GREAT chant for steady beat, which can also lead into fast and slow.  Depending on how far you want to go into it you can have students say it in high voices and low voices.  It's great for vocal exploration: on the first phrase have them get higher as they say "I climbed up the apple tree".  You can even add some vocalize of going up or down on syllables. ..  and you could also add making "dropping" sounds of apples falling from the tree.

 I've always seen "Apples, Peaches, Pears and Plums" as a chant but in looking through my Kodály resources that my district colleagues and I collected I found this version (the downfall being that I don't have a source for the melodic notation.  I can trust though, that the melodic line is contrived.):

As a chant you can also use this for "4 voices" and vocal exploration.  Non-musically speaking, it reinforces students birth months (is anyone else always astonished at the number of kindergartners that don't know their birth month?)  Simply have the students stand up or sit down when they hear their birth month.  With this little melody you could  have the students play a pitched instrument, such as the xylophone on an open 5th, for a simple accompaniment.

Here's a fun finger play that I learned from the Amidon's:

I've got a basket of apples picked from the tree,

Rosy red for you, shiny green for me.

Some of them are big and some of them are small,

Some are like an oval and some are like a ball.

Some of them are sour and some of them are sweet,

Lots of lovely apples for you and me to eat.

As with all finger plays, you act out the motions described in the poem.

This little chant I learned from my mom:

Two Little Apples

Two little apples hanging from the tree, (extend arms to the side and cup each hand to make apples)

Two little apples smiling at me, (turn cupped hands forward)

I shook that tree as hard as I could, (shake body and arms)

Down came the apples, (squat down on the ground)

Mm! Were they good! (rub stomach)

Wind up the Apple Tree is always a favorite of my students and has a game that's similar to one of my Snail, Snail Games.

Game: line game with a leader (I always am the first leader to model the game).  Everyone follows the person in front of them, holding hands.  The leader leads the group around in a spiral shape so that eventually the leader is caught in the middle.  This is all the while singing the first verse.  During the second verse the leader leads in the opposite direction in order to unwind yourself.

Here are a couple other variations you could play:
*  One of the children could be the leader and go around in any direction with the children following
*  In a circle, walk in one direction.  At the end of the song, all jump and sing verse two walking in the opposite direction.
*  In a circle, ask the students to walk to the right as they sing but when they hear a signal, such as a drum played by the teacher, they should change directions and go the other way.
*  This little song, too, works well with an open 5th bordon on the xylophone.

Now, if you've been around the Kodály world long enough I'm sure you've run across this gem quite a few times:

There are MANY ways to play this but my favorite is playing it like "London Bridge".  A student and I join hands to make an arch.  The rest of the students are holding hands in a circle.  As the song is sung, the students walk around.  On the word "out" the student and I lower our arms and catch someone.  This person becomes the tree with us.  As the song progresses the tree gets larger and larger.  I have many extensions that I do with this song in second grade, including an apple picking PowerPoint, a disappearing song and a teaching PowerPoint. Just this year I found apples at Oriental Trading that are like Easter eggs in that they open up and you can put things in them.  I'm going to use my scrambled egg cards with them to use as a song sort.  But I'm also going to use some "4 voices" cards and comparative cards that I'll be making to use with the chants listed above.  I use to not teach this singing game in kindergarten but with a 4 day rotation I'm finding that I need to build song literature in kindergarten that I'll bring back in 1st and 2nd grade as a way to make the most of my time with the students.

"Applesauce Rock" is also a fun song that you can find in the Amidon's book, "I'm Growing Up."  It's sung to the tune of "Peanut Butter and Jelly" and was made up by Andy Davis.  For copyright reasons I'm not including it in this post, but do check out that book by the Amidons and Andy Davis. It's a fabulous early childhood resource!

I hope you all have a fruitful and fun fall!

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Setting Procedures for Success

Hi everyone! It's Jamie. Each year, I am reminded about the importance of setting expectations for my students. It is so easy to assume that my kids know how to get supplies, transition to different activities, and interact with each other peacefully. I can tell immediately when I have not done a good enough job setting an activity for success—we’ve all been there! I try my hardest to predict possible opportunities for students to become disengaged, and I’d like to share some ways to set procedures so that this does not happen:

(Thanks to Creative Clips for the graphics.)

 

1.   How to Make a Circle:

·      My students sit in rows when they come into music class, but we often have to transition to circles for singing games, folk dances, and other activities. It is my goal that students make their circle quickly and efficiently, without wasting class time. Here are some steps I take:

o   At the beginning of the year, have students practice making a circle. Remind students to use walking feet. See how quickly each class can make a circle in an appropriate way.

o   Use non-verbal cues to let the students know it is time to make a circle. For example, after singing through a song that has a circle game, put your hands up and make a circle motion. Teach the students that this means, “Stand up and go to your circle.” Then, once the students are at a circle, either show them to stand or sit with hand motions.

o   When transitioning back to row spots, keep the students engaged. Give them a job to do:

•  Step the beat as they sing the song 
•  Step the beat and clap the rhythm at the same time
• Inner hear the song as they march the beat. At a given signal, have them sing the song out loud.

2. “Connecting”

·      In my class, we connect (hold hands) all of the time. I never use the term “hold hands.” Instead, I say, “connect.” Teach the students how to connect with each other:

o   Connect lightly without squeezing

o   Connect with the whole hand (no pinky or sleeve connecting)

·      When teaching the older students how to connect hands, I start with a game in which their connections are a vital part of the game. One game I like to use is Dance Josey:

·      In this game, if students don’t connect, the farmers can get through multiple places in the circle. The game is literally ruined if all students aren’t connecting appropriately.

3. Turns:

·      In my class, we don’t have time to play a game until everyone gets a turn. I have to teach my students from the earliest age that you might get a turn today, but you might also have to wait until the next time to get a turn.

·      One way I choose “it” is through this simple chant:

Acka  backa soda cracker, acka backa boo

Acka backa soda cracker, out goes you!

·      I also tell the students before we start, “Today, we have time for 5 rounds of this game.”

·      Before the last round, I will always tell the students, “This is our final time.”

·      While some students have a hard time with turns at the beginning of the year, they will get used to it if you use the same process each time!

4. Choosing a Partner:

·      There are many times in my class that students need a partner to work/play with. Before we do any partner work, we always practice the steps of getting a partner:

o   Walk up to a friend you’d like to have as a partner. Ask, “Will you be my partner?”

o   The answer to this question in my classroom is always, “OK.”

o   At a given cue (I will normally play an instrument to get the students’ attention), raise your hand if you don’t have a partner. Find another kid with his/her hand in the air.

o   If the class has an odd number of students, you (the teacher) should be partners with the last student if doing a partner game. If working with manipulatives/doing other small group work, have the student join another pair to make a group of three.

5. Transitioning to get Supplies/Instruments:

·      Again, I want any transition to be quick and effective. Teach the students how to get instruments out, how to put instruments in rest position, and how to wait for directions. If using papers and pencils, have a routine for passing out supplies.

·      As the students are getting any supplies out, keep them engaged by continuing to sing:

o   Continue singing the song they are working on

o   Echo melodic/rhythmic patterns

o   Have the students decode patterns as they get supplies out (tap/hum a pattern and the students respond back with solfége or rhythm language)

 

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