Happy Spring! Springtime in the music room means all the fun Spring songs– of which I have a lot– and one of my favorite Spring folk songs is the chant Bee Bee Bumblebee. I use this chant to teach rhythm with quarter and eighth notes, as well as steady beat, and I’ve also used it… Continue reading Different Ways to Use Bee Bee Bumblebee in Elementary Music
Tag: folk songs
6 Simple Ways to Add Instruments to Folk Songs
So you taught a folk song…. Now what? There’s many ways you can add instruments folk songs to make them more fun and help your elementary music students learn different musical concepts, and today we’re talking all about how to add instruments to folk songs. If you’re looking to engage your students, instruments are one… Continue reading 6 Simple Ways to Add Instruments to Folk Songs
The Best Halloween Folk Songs for Elementary Music
Halloween is coming up, so let’s sing some Halloween folk songs in your elementary music room! Now, full disclosure, I am not huge into Halloween, so most of these just dance around the topics of Halloween, with pumpkins, cats, and more. This is perfect, though, in case you want to add a tiny bit of… Continue reading The Best Halloween Folk Songs for Elementary Music
Ocean Themed Folk Songs and Ocean Animal Composition Activities
Maybe it's because I live in Savannah, Georgia (on the coast), but I love including ocean themed folk songs, listening activities, and lessons in my elementary music classroom. Every culture around the world has water-themed songs, and most also have ocean songs, which make it a great place to start including pieces from around the… Continue reading Ocean Themed Folk Songs and Ocean Animal Composition Activities
Little Silver Moon : a Chinese Folk Song Lesson for Quarter Rest
Do you ever find a folk song that you didn’t know existed, but once you did, you couldn’t believe you hadn’t ALWAYS had it? That is how Little Silver Moon is for me. I discovered it at the beginning of this year, and I am now obsessed-- and so are my second graders! Little Silver… Continue reading Little Silver Moon : a Chinese Folk Song Lesson for Quarter Rest
How to Use Ickle Ockle Singing Game in Elementary Music for Rest
Have you heard of the song Ickle Ockle? It is a really fun singing game... with like 20 different versions of it in cyberspace. I have seen it as Bickle Bockle, with do, without do, different wording.... yeah. But, no matter how you sing it, it is a really fun folk song and my students… Continue reading How to Use Ickle Ockle Singing Game in Elementary Music for Rest
Elementary Music Lesson: Breezes are Blowing
Breezes are Blowing is a Luiseno Indian Rain song that I used with my second and third graders. The rhythms are very simple, but the melody is a bit complex for those grades-- it includes low la, do, re, sol, and la-- but it was really great to talk about form and improvisation, so that's… Continue reading Elementary Music Lesson: Breezes are Blowing