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Transcript of AStory,ASongandWe’reMovingAlong ... · • Dalcroze"story." " " " •...
A Story, A Song and We’re Moving Along: Theme-‐based Learning in Early Childhood
Roger Sams
Friday, January 11, 2013. 7:45 – 8:45 am
Sponsored by Music Is Elementary www.MusicIsElementary.com
Small choices for small children: Because I want to teach my children to use their power of artistic choice well, I start giving them opportunities to make choices from the beginning. But the choices are small and controlled. If you give them more choice than they are ready for it doesn’t produce very satisfying results. Most of the time things are very teacher directed with small children. They are not yet capable of working together in groups to solve musical problems. They still need the teacher to provide the structure with small spaces for choice. Sings songs that allow the students to create new verses or variations: I am totally committed to folk literature. That doesn’t mean that I don’t write songs or sometimes use contemporary songs, but I am always looking for ways to engage children with the folk tradition. These songs have stood the test of time for a reason. Use them!
Keeping the Beat Individual students determine where we tap the beat on our bodies as we sing their name.
Basic Locomotor Movement At the beginning of the year I set up all of our movement games with this simple song.
Introduce basic locomotor movement in the following sequence.
• Marching
• Galloping
• Tiptoe
• Giant Steps
• Running
• Skipping
Going to the Farm With my very youngest students I use “Old MacDonald.” With older students I replace it with “Grandpa’s Farm.”
Down on the Farm by Merrily Kutner. Holiday House
• In Dalcroze Eurhythmics fashion, every student plays every role in the story.
Two Little Apples. A Traditional Fingerplay Two little apples hanging on a tree. (Two fists in air.) Two little apples smiled at me. (Turn you head to look at the “apples.” I shook that tree as hard as I could. (Shaking motion.) Down cam the apples. Mmmmmm they were good. (Hands pat lap on “down.” Rub belly.)
• Add hand drum on “down” and shakers when appropriate.
Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins. Simon & Schuster.
• Create an obstacle course.
Up, Down and Around by Katherine Ayres. Candlewick Press • Dalcroze Eurhythmics story
I Went Walking by Sue Williams. Gulliver Books
• Act out using Dalcroze Eurhythmics.
• Turn into a rhythm/unturned percussion lesson.
• Prepare by having the teacher say, “I went walking,” and having the students
answer with “What did you see?”
• Students transfer “What did you see?” to hand drums.
• Half of the students take over “I went walking” on rhythm sticks.
• You could take this on to rhythmic literacy with first graders by notating the
rhythms.
• With older students you may also want to use shakers to fill in the spaces (the
third portion of each grouping).
Old Mother Hobble Cobble. A Traditional Rhyme, adapted as beat keeping game. Perform in call and response form. Students echo teacher and keep the beat in various ways (determined by teacher in the call). Old Mother Hobble Gobble. Sent me to you. What can you do? What can you do? Pat you legs just as I do. (Note that the final phrase is twice as long as the others.)
Bears
• Pat the steady beat. We’re searching for the long note.
We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen. Margaret K. Elderry Books • Dalcroze story.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear A Classic Action Rhyme Illustrated by Michael Hague. Scholastic Books
• Do the traditional dance.
• Transfer “Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear” to rhythm sticks and the actions to hand drums.
Peace At Last by Jill Murphy. Dial Books for Young Readers • Tell the story and have the students join you on the sound effects. This is ensemble
work.
• Dalcroze story.
• Play eight quarter notes on the triangle to accompany eight tiptoe steps as the students
look for the bears.
• Have one student take over the triangle job.
Resources that Roger recommends for early childhood: Musical Games, Fingerplays and Rhythmic Activities for Early Childhood by Miran Wirth, Verna Stassevitch, Rita Shotwell and Patricia Stemmler. Parker Publishing. The Book of Fingerplays & Action Songs compiled by John Feierabend. GIA. The Book of Beginning Circle Games compiled by John Feierabend. GIA. The Book of Children’s Songtales compiled by John Feierabend. GIA. The Book of Call & Response compiled by John Feierabend. GIA. The Book of Songs & rhymes with Beat Motions compiled by John Feierabend. GIA. The Book of Echo Songs compiled by John Feierabend. GIA. The Book of Pitch Exploration compiled by John Feierabend. GIA. The Raffi Singable Songbook. Crown Publishers. The 2nd Raffi Songbook. Crown Publishers.