"Penta" Means "5"

We've been reviewing the pentatonic scale in 4th grade! We learned all about it when we were in 3rd grade (remember "Cumberland Gap"?), so we are now reviewing this concept with a song called "L'il Liza Jane," and we have been busy!

We're practicing writing the pentatonic scale ("pentatonic" means "5 tones"), which includes the pitches do, re, mi, so, and la. We watched a video of the musician Bobby McFerrin speaking/singing at a science festival about how the brain is basically wired for a pentatonic scale (to see the video, click here- it's pretty amazing that he can make a room full of scientists sing the pentatonic scale by jumping around the stage!).

We talked about folk songs, and we learned a patterned movement to the song. We'll be adding instruments to this song, including Orff instruments (xylophones, metallophones, glockenspiels) and even recorders. We've even composed some pentatonic melodies!

They're heeeere!

The drums are here! 5th graders have been anxiously awaiting the start of our world drumming unit, and now we're ready to get started! The drums were dropped off during the week of Halloween, so last week, we were introduced to the types of hand drums we'll be playing (tubanos, congas, djembes, and bongos), learned how to play high and low tones, and talked about rhythm complements (ask your 5th grader what that means!). We played our first rhythm complement as an ensemble!

Here is Mrs. Salach's class playing a rhythm complement about 10 minutes into our first drumming class!

Patriotic Songs for Veterans' Day

This Friday, 11/9, students will attend an all-school assembly to honor our veterans. The 5th grade ambassadors will be hosting this assembly, reading poems and interviewing our veterans, and the whole school will participate in a patriotic sing-along. We've been practicing these songs in class. Here are some links to other versions of a few of the songs we've been learning in class (these are not the same arrangements we've been learning, but it's always good to listen to variations!).

This Land is Your Land

The Star-Spangled Banner (performed by Whitney Houston- great performance!)

You're a Grand Old Flag

Yankee Doodle

High and Low ("Faeries and Giants")

9/2/15***See information on this post on my new website at AT https://artsintersection.wordpress.com/2015/09/02/teaching-high-and-low-faeries-and-giants/***

Kindergartners have been learning to identify high and low musical sounds and instruments, and will soon be working on performing high and low musical sounds with both our voices and instruments. We started by reading "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" (see below) and I did my very best Papa Bear, Mama Bear, and Little Wee Bear impressions to introduce the students to the idea of high, middle, and low voices. We learned a song called "I'm Stretching Very Tall," where we used our high and low voices, we identified high and low bars on the bass xylophone, and finally we listened to a piece of music called "Faeries and Giants" from Wand of Youth Suite No. 1 by Edward Elgar. Best of all, we got to dance around! We listened for high and low sections of music- during the high sections, the girls flitted around like fairies, and during the low sections, the boys stomped around like giants. Lots of fun!

"Faeries and Giants"

Fairies

Great giant faces!

Meeting So and Mi

9/16/15 ***See information on this post on my new website at https://artsintersection.wordpress.com/2015/09/16/floor-staff-strategy-for-teaching-sol-and-mi/

These 1st graders have been working hard to listen for and perform high and low pitches, called so (high) and mi (low). Soon we'll be not just identifying and singing, but we'll be writing and composing with these pitches! We began by singing "Rain, Rain, Go Away" (which turned out to be quite appropriate for the weather we had the last couple weeks of October!). We tried to identify which pitches were high and which were low, and moved to show the difference by putting our hands on our heads during the high notes and on our shoulders during the low notes. Then we moved onto putting these pitches on a 2-line staff using umbrella die cuts, and finally we named them so and mi. We'll be working with these pitches quite a bit still, so there will be more to come!

Moving to show so and mi.

Putting so and mi on the staff.

Recorder Time!

The 3rd graders were introduced to their recorders this past week! We reviewed the basics of notation by doing an activity where we created a staff and other musical notation out of yarn, and then we met our recorders! So far, we have just learned the basics of playing the recorder, which are...
     1. Left hand on top
     2. Cover the holes completely
     3. Blow gently
     4. Think "too"

Once we get a little further into playing recorders, students will be able to bring them home to practice once in awhile (I'll bet you can't wait for that, parents!). For now, students, keep practicing those line and space note names (click HERE for a video that will help you)!