When it comes to children’s books, The Snowy Day is one of the best. Since I loved a themed lesson, I decided to incorporate this picture book in my elementary music classroom for my kindergarten and first grade music lessons. Learn how to use The Snowy Day music lesson in your elementary music lessons for… Continue reading The Snowy Day Music Lesson for Ta and Titi
Category: K-2
The Best Halloween Listening Lessons for Elementary Music
Why, hello there October! October is a fun time in the music room, because this is when things get spooky. Even though I don’t typically do “Halloween” lessons, this time of year, I tend to pull out some pieces in minor keys, and just more spooky ones. Here are some of my favorite Halloween listening… Continue reading The Best Halloween Listening Lessons for Elementary Music
Teaching In the Hall of the Mountain King in Elementary Music
It’s spooky season, and that means….. In the Hall of the Mountain King! This is one of my favorite listening selections of the year, and I use it in almost every grade level in my elementary music classroom. In this blog post, I’m sharing some of my favorite ways to teach In the Hall of… Continue reading Teaching In the Hall of the Mountain King in Elementary Music
Teaching Quarter Rest with Beethoven’s 7th Symphony
If you’re looking to spice up your quarter rest lessons, then add some listening lessons! We tend to focus on singing when it comes to teaching new concepts, but there are also classical pieces that include elements that we teach in elementary music. This lesson, quarter rest with Beethoven, includes movement, instruments, and introducing quarter… Continue reading Teaching Quarter Rest with Beethoven’s 7th Symphony
Using The Wolf Singing Game (We Are Dancing) in Elementary Music
Wolf (AKA We are Dancing) is one of my third graders’ all time favorite singing games. The Wolf singing game is simple, it is fun, and it can be used to practice quarter and eighth notes or la. This song has an official game, and also a way-that-we-play the game that is much less chaotic. We'll… Continue reading Using The Wolf Singing Game (We Are Dancing) in Elementary Music
Best Sol Mi Songs for the Elementary Music Classroom
When it comes to teaching solfa, sol and mi is where we start. The best way to get these notes engrained in students’ heads is with sol mi songs– especially sol mi songs. Using sol mi songs allows students to have authentic musical experiences while learning their first two melodic notes. Now, by the time… Continue reading Best Sol Mi Songs for the Elementary Music Classroom
Best Games And Lessons To Teach Kids Solfege
Coming up with games and lessons for solfege can seem daunting. You may feel like the only thing to do is to have students read flashcards on the screen. And while I do think there is value in that-- especially before an independent activity-- it’s not all there is to teaching solfege or melody. After… Continue reading Best Games And Lessons To Teach Kids Solfege
The 6 Best Folk Songs for La in Elementary Music
I don’t know about you, but when my first or second graders learn la, we spend a really long time on it. It’s like they understand sol and mi quickly because there’s only two options, but when we add a third option, it takes a long time for them to have a solid understanding of… Continue reading The 6 Best Folk Songs for La in Elementary Music
The Best Drum Dream Girl Elementary Music Lessons
I am always looking for books to incorporate into my elementary music classes. I found Drum Dream Girl by Margarita Engle by accident one day-- I think that it was on display in our library. As soon as I picked it up, I knew it was a gem. Since then, I’ve used it many different… Continue reading The Best Drum Dream Girl Elementary Music Lessons
Favorite Folk Songs for Hispanic Heritage Month
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