17-04-02  Spring Dynamics Lesson
ARTIE AND DENISE Summer Symposium Las Vegas! July 25-26, 2017
Registration now open!   Information -  USA teachers .         Canadian Teachers - Info
 
International Kodaly Symposium - Aug. 8-13, 2013 in Camrose, Alberta!
This is going to be an amazing conference, with beautiful choir performances and many internationally renowned Kodaly speakers, including Lois Choksy, Dr. Laurel Trainer, Jill Trinka, and many more.
 
 
Spring Dynamics Lesson
 
Grade Level
PreK-5
 
Materials:  
Song #75 Musicplay 2 - Find the Easter Basket
 
Objectives: 
1. The students will identify when the music is quiet and when the music is loud
2.  The students will define crescendo and decrescendo
 
Choose the best method for teaching your students and teach the song and play the game.  The best method of teaching will depend on the age and musical abilities of the students.  Songs can be taught in one of three ways:  rote, reading, or immersion.
 
 
ROTE: When teaching by rote, you teach the song phrase by phrase.  You sing a phrase - the children echo.  You sing the next phrase, the children echo.  Then you combine phrases:  you sing two phrases - the children echo.  Finally, you sing the entire song, the children echo.
 
IMMERSION:  When teaching very young children, teaching by immersion is effective.  You have the children listen while you sing the song several times.  They might listen and pat the beat, listen and move like you do, listen to answer a question you’ve asked.  
 
READING:  When children are able to read rhythms and/or solfege, you can begin having them sight-read a song.  What a great skill for them to have!  Many adults can’t look at a piece of music and sing how it goes, but if taught carefully, our children can do this.
  1. Have the children read the rhythms using whatever rhythm names you use. 
  2. Sometimes after reading the rhythms I divide the class into two groups and have one group read the rhythms while the other groups reads the words of the song.  This helps some children “connect” that rhythm in music is the way the words go.
  3. In Musicplay, reading songs are indicated by a small staff on the upper right hand corner of the song.  In the song “Find the Easter Basket” the pitches indicated are s, m, l that stand for so (or sol), mi and la.  If children have learned these solfa notes, do some solfa warmups that use so, mi and la.  On musicplayonline.com, you can use the Solfa Practice Section and have kids echo patterns, play poison melody, Read and Sing, or Listen and Sing so-mi-la patterns.  If you don't use the online site, you can use melody flashcards to warm up your students. Melody Cards - USA Site            Melody Cards - Canada Site
  4. Give the students a starting pitch for the song and have them sing the song.
Whether you use reading, rote, or immersion to teach your students a song depends on If you’ve labelled the rhythms and solfa with your students.  If you haven’t taught so-mi-la yet, you’ll introduce the song as a rote song.  If you have labelled so-mi-la, then you can have the students sight-sing the song.
 

1. Teach the song and play the game.
 
Game Directions:  One student is the “hider” and one is the “finder.”  he “finder” closes eyes while the “hider hides the Easter Basket in plain sight. (not under or in something). The “finder” opens eyes and is guided to the basket by the dynamics in the singing.  If children sing quietly he is far away. If the children sing loudly, he’s closer.
 
2.  After playing the song, discuss the dynamics that were used in the song.  There is an excellent interactive activity attached to song #11. John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt in Musicplay Grade 2  Sort the rhythms from quietest to loudest.  You can also play the Pop Quiz activities on Dynamics to teach or practice dynamics terms.
 
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3.  Talk about what it’s called when the singing starts quietly but gets louder. (crescendo) or when the music starts loud and gets quieter. (decrescendo)
 
Follow this activity with a listening activity that has students listen and point to the dynamic level they hear in the music.  #29 Contradance in Musicplay 1 is a good example.  The listening map shows how the dynamic level change.  The Listening examples are found in the left hand menu at www.musicplayonline.com.  Kits 1-5 plus extras are found there.  Select Kit 1, then scroll down to select 29. Contradance II Listening Log.  Play the movie and it will show the soft (quiet) sections and the loud sections.

 
 
There are dynamic symbols printables with song #11. John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt in the teacher’s guide and online that you can print out and package for your students to use.  I make class sets of these, packaging them in paper CD holders.  It’s quick and easy to make a class set of them, and then I can use them for assessments of dynamic awareness with Gr. 2-6.  Give out a set of cards to each child. 
 

  1. Have them sort them from quietest to loudest.  Check answers.
  2. Quiz them on the dynamics shown. 
For Example:
  • hold up the card that means quiet
  • hold up the card that means very loud
  • hold up the card that is the symbol for mezzo forte
Have the students be leaders, and come up with questions for the class.
 
Play a piece of recorded music, and have the students point to the dynamic level that they hear.  Good examples to use would include Listen 2 - #26 Summer, Vivaldi or #24 - Hornpipe. Listen 3 - #5 Entry March of the Boyars or #10 Bouree is very good or #17 Intrada, Listen 4 -  #20 Hungarian Rhapsody #2 in D Minor,  or #21,Piano Concerto,  Listen 5 - #16 Contradance III or #19 March of the Dwarfs.
 
The online resource is www.musicplayonline.com  
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Current subscribers - To thank you for subscribing, we are going to give you a 25% discount coupon for you to use on a one year subscription!  (online renewals only)  When you're ready to renew your yearly subscription, email denise@musicplay.ca for your discount code.
  
New at www.musicplayonline.com .  Beat/Rhythm Activities for Gr. K-1-2!   Coming soon, beat/rhythm for Gr. 3.  
 
Did you know we have an EXTRA Listening section?  Go to Listening on the left menu.  Select the Extra tab.  There are instrument demo movies, So-me Storybook movies (all 12 stories!) and for band teacher, movies explaining how to care for your instrument.
 
 
How to assemble the clarinet


An introduction to the flute
 
 
On the right:  So-me story book
 
Denise Gagne
denise@musicplay.ca
(blog) www.denisegagne.com
 
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K Graduation
We Did it!
Do you need a very cute song for kindergarten graduation?


Single Song Kits include piano/vocal score, vocal reproducible and mp3s of performance and accompaniment.  The Single song kit for We Did It! also includes a class book to use for early literacy.
Link to Canadian site
Link for USA teachers
 
Artie & Denise 8th Annual
Artie and Denise Vegas 
 July 25-26, 2017  Chicago 
Join Artie Almeida, Thom Borden, and Denise Gagne for a 2 day elementary music conference that will give you ideas and inspiration for teaching your elementary music classes.  
Join Artie and Denise for the 8th annual summer symposium!  Two days of fabulous workshops and a day of sightseeing.   Canada - Click to Register Online .   USA Teachers - Link
 
Musicplayonline.com
More is being added each week to our online resource.  This week, look for new beat and rhythm activities for ALL the reading songs in Grade 2.  Teach ties and half notes with these wonderful interactive lessons.

http://musicplayonline.com/
Apps and Digital Resources
Apps
We've created SIX great apps for iPad or Google devices.  If you have a class set of iPads, volume purchasing is available for these apps.  LINK INFO
 

Note Name Smash!  New note naming app!  Only .99 USD
In this app, you choose the notes to practice.  Each note correctly named breaks a hole in the wall.  Name them all and the wall breaks!
 
Link to Note Name Smash in iTunes
 

Rain Rain Story -  is a sound story book that uses the Rain Rain Go Away song, and a poem for students to accompany.  This app includes ear training activities and instrument exploration.  

 
Rain Rain Story - iTunes                Rain Rain Story - Google   
 

Note Name Match Game
 -  10 levels of Memory to match notes with their letter names.  Great for recorder students, piano lessons, beginning band.
Note Name Match Game - iTunes            
 Note Name Memory Game - Google   
 
Vocal Warm-ups for Singers or Choir
This app is based on the warmups book, "Strictly Warmups" by Kerry Heisler. The warm-ups in this collection are organized into five sets.  Each set includes a physical warm-up, breath awareness, then five minutes of a variety of mid-range warm-ups.
 
Vocal Warmups for Singers or Choir - iTunes  
Vocal Warmups for Singers or Choir - Google 
 

Learn and Play Recorder
 has everything that you need for your beginning recorder classes.  
 Learn and Play Recorder - iTunes       Learn and Play Recorder - Google   
 

Learn and Play Recorder 2
is now available for iTunes and Android devices!
This app gives your recorder players 24 songs for two part soprano with optional alto. Naming notes is reviewed, now with interactive practice!  Counting music is reviewed, with an interactive name the note value activity. The full score with both regular alto and transposed alto for teachers to project is included.  
Learn and Play Recorder 2 - iTunes    Learn and Play Recorder 2 - Google 
 
Workshops
ARTIE AND DENISE Summer Symposium Las Vegas! July 25-26, 2017
Registration now open!   Information -  USA teachers .         Canadian Teachers - Info
 
International Kodaly Symposium - Aug. 8-13, 2013 in Camrose, Alberta!
This is going to be an amazing conference, with beautiful choir performances and many internationally renowned Kodaly speakers, including Lois Choksy, Dr. Laurel Trainer, Jill Trinka, and many more.

Themes & Variations  •  #2-4664 Riverside Drive  •  Red Deer, AB T4N6Y5

https://musicplay.ca

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