This is a short video I made to use in my elementary music classroom to introduce the recorder. It has been very effective and my students seem to really get into it! This video makes the recorder “cool” and makes the students excited to play! I use it at the beginning of the first recorder classContinue reading “Introduction to Soprano Recorder Music Video”
Tag Archives: Instruments
Beginning Recorder Method Book: "Recorders Rock"
Presenting my original Recorder Method book, “Recorders Rock” (enter trumpet fanfare)! Just kidding. But seriously, I have finally completed my recorder method, “Recorders Rock.” The title reflects me and my students’ sentiments about playing recorder. It’s fun, awesome, and it “rocks!”This project started small and has over time taken on a life of its own.Continue reading “Beginning Recorder Method Book: "Recorders Rock"”
Thanksgiving Song: Ten Days of Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving Song – Ten Days of Thanksgiving Day 1 Looking for a Thanksgiving song to use for fun in your classes? Look no further than one of my go-to blogs and websites, ListenLearnMusic.com. Rachel Rambach, a music therapist, produces a huge range of original music for all settings, themes, and holidays to use in herContinue reading “Thanksgiving Song: Ten Days of Thanksgiving”
Halloween Song for Recorder: Minor Tonality and Composing Original Lyrics
Simple Halloween Song for Soprano Recorder – in Em Not sure if anyone else has discovered this, but there exist very few Halloween-themed or even minor tonality songs for soprano recorder. In my quest to find a simple Halloween song for soprano recorder, I ended up writing my own simple melody. As you can seeContinue reading “Halloween Song for Recorder: Minor Tonality and Composing Original Lyrics”
Pitch Lesson with Boomwhackers®: Five Little Pumpkins
October is by far my favorite month of the year! And Halloween ranks up there with Christmas and Thanksgiving as my favorite holidays! In my Kindergarten and First Grade classes this week, we are using the song/fingerplay/story “Five Little Pumpkins” to learn about pitch. I use the version made famous by Raffi. Visit thisContinue reading “Pitch Lesson with Boomwhackers®: Five Little Pumpkins”
Free Lesson Ideas Using BrainPop and BrainPopJr
Need a new idea for great music lessons? My go-to lesson “fun-maker” is BrainPop Jr and its big brother, BrainPop. These two sites are subscription based for full-access, but there are a number of free resources, lessons, and movies available for use as well! My school district has a site-wide subscription of both sitesContinue reading “Free Lesson Ideas Using BrainPop and BrainPopJr”
Music Video With A Message: Black Eyed Peas Project – Part 3
Using the poetry we wrote in response to listening to “One Tribe” by the Black Eyed Peas, my students and I used GarageBand on our classroom iMac with a Yamaha MIDI keyboard to compose beats and loops and to record our poetry as a rap. Each of my 6 classes composed a verse to theContinue reading “Music Video With A Message: Black Eyed Peas Project – Part 3”
Composition Inspiration: Black Eyed Peas Project – Part 1
Pangea? Passion? Tribe? Poseidon? Amnesia? Can you define these terms? My fourth graders did last week. Immediately following that we listened to/watched the following video…. What a powerful message! My students were amazed that we listened to Black Eyed Peas in music class. And I was amazed at their response to this song. We hadContinue reading “Composition Inspiration: Black Eyed Peas Project – Part 1”
Shamrockin’ Songs
So I ran out of copies of our St. Patrick’s Day worksheet I posted about last week; I ran to the copy room only to find the copier broken. Moments of desperation often prove to be chances for innovation. I grabbed some green construction paper and the shamrock die-cut. Taking them back to my 2ndContinue reading “Shamrockin’ Songs”
iPhone Finds the Best Gas Prices
Although this has nothing to do with music or education, it is geeky enough that it has to be shared. I am on my 3rd iPhone and the more I use it the more I love it. The number of apps available for download is growing exponentially and if you have a need, you canContinue reading “iPhone Finds the Best Gas Prices”
