One of my favorite things about music is that it can transport you all around the world and help you to learn about different cultures. We are always striving to do this in my elementary music classroom. Although I use songs from different cultures all year round, I love any excuse to highlight a culture!… Continue reading Favorite Folk Songs for Hispanic Heritage Month
Tag: free music lesson
Feed the Monster Rhythm Game (for Centers!)
Rhythms centers can be really fun.. or really boring, depending on how you handle them. My kids always love them, because I try to include at least one game. Now, I love to stick to crowd favorites, like Kaboom! (seriously, they are disappointed it we don't play this one!) or Go Fish (yes, even my… Continue reading Feed the Monster Rhythm Game (for Centers!)
Free K-1 Music Lesson: The Tick Tock Song
You know those songs that you find and you are not sure if your kids will like it, then they love it? That’s how the Tick Tock song was for my classes. I thought it looked/sounded cute, but it was a HUGE hit! My kids wanted to keep doing this song over and over and… Continue reading Free K-1 Music Lesson: The Tick Tock Song
Elementary Music Lesson: Treble Clef Dice
Are you looking for a new way to practice the treble clef? I was too. I am always looking for new ways to practice, preferably with little to no set up. This treble clef dice activity checked all of those boxes, and the students loved it. If you have been reading my blog, then you… Continue reading Elementary Music Lesson: Treble Clef Dice
Christmas Rhythm Composition with K-1
When it comes to rhythm, especially in the younger grades, some things are easier to teach than others. Making rhythms that match songs-- easy. Repeating rhythms-- easy. Even reading rhythms-- easy. But what about improvisation and composition? That's a little harder. I talked about improvisation and how I set that up in my Rain v.… Continue reading Christmas Rhythm Composition with K-1
Christmas Music Lesson: 12 Days of Christmas
Ah, Christmas. So many songs, so little time. Every year I feel like I cannot narrow down how many songs I want to do. How do you get to them all? Anyway, my fourth and fifth graders are in the middle of a huge recorder unit, and I did not want to put that on… Continue reading Christmas Music Lesson: 12 Days of Christmas
Music Christmas Game: Oh Christmas Tree
Are you looking for some really fun Christmas lessons? I feel like I am always looking for ideas, and I have a hard time narrowing down the amount of songs that are available for the holidays. I was looking for a song that was common enough that I wanted all of my students to know,… Continue reading Music Christmas Game: Oh Christmas Tree
Free K-1 Music Lesson: Beat v. Rhythm with Soul Music
If you have been reading my blog for any amount of time, you will know that I love to teach students about different kind of music. We do tons of listening activities with music from all different places. This is partially because of my personal teaching philosophy, and aided by the program that my students… Continue reading Free K-1 Music Lesson: Beat v. Rhythm with Soul Music
Free Music Lesson: Brown Bear Brown Bear
We all love to use books in the music classroom. Brown Bear Brown Bear is one of my favorites—and it has so many extensions! I am planning to do a bear themed unit in January, so I am trying to find some fun things to do. If you have some ideas for bear themed lessons,… Continue reading Free Music Lesson: Brown Bear Brown Bear
What do I do with Fifth Graders? Lessons and Tips
If you are a brand-new elementary music teacher, you might be thinking—what do I do with fifth graders? Well, even if you are not brand new, you may be thinking-- what do i do with fifth graders? If you haven’t started teaching yet, you may be confused. Let me explain. We all know that the… Continue reading What do I do with Fifth Graders? Lessons and Tips