Miss Mary Mack is Back!

Have you noticed your 3rd grader playing some hand clapping games?  We have been working on learning some of these in Music class.  I have been able to not only teach the kids some of my old favorites but also learn some of their favorites!  I learn a new hand clapping game almost every day from the students.

Since we started learning these games, we've started to wonder how many kids are playing these on the playground during lunch recess.  So far, we have found ZERO!!!  So now we are wondering how we can get students on our playground to play these fantastic games and keep oral tradition alive here at Lincoln.  We watched this Sesame Street video as to how to teach one another how to play and then went out to give it a try!  We'll do more research in the coming weeks and will report it on our website missmarymackisback.weebly.com.

Things are getting Spooky!

October is a spooky month, so why not celebrate with some spooky songs in music!  First grade is currently working with a song called "Mrs. White had a Fright" to learn about music syllables (rhythm).  We are working with this adorable set of ghost pictures made by Emily at The Sweetest Melody (click here to link to the TPT store).

Level 3 is working on reviewing sixteenth notes and sixteenth/eighth note combinations with Aileen Miracle's Ghost Rhythms (click here to link to the TPT store).

On the less spooky side, Second grade is singing a song about Columbus and adding in the notes they know on the xylophones (so, la and mi) while singing the song.

I'm hoping to post some pictures and video of the fun soon.

Roller Coasters in Music?

Who doesn't like a roller coaster?  Even if you don't like to ride them, looking at them and following their track is super fun.  So, when it came time to start listening for High and Low sounds, the 1st graders and I began with vocal roller coasters!  These roller coasters are visuals with curvy, curly lines for us to sing.  Each one has a sound, word, or series of words to sing while following the track of the roller coaster.  My favorite is the "Oh YEAH" roller coaster!  We will continue to explore the vocal roller coasters while the 1st Graders are learning to listen for high and low sounds in songs they know.

3rd Grade becomes composers!

The 3rd graders are transforming themselves into composers this week.  Their assignment is to create a rhythm composition using prescribed rhythms with a partner and be prepared to perform it for the class.  Once their rhythms have been written, the students began to work with our new "Composition Menu" to make their piece more interesting.  It is like adding adjectives to a writing project to make it more pleasing to the ear.  Choices on the menu included dynamics (loud or quiet) and expressions (choppy or smooth).  Students will be performing their compositions for their classes starting today!  By the middle of next week, all students will have performed their compositions for the class.  Be sure to ask how it went!

Have a great weekend everyone!

What is a beat buddy?

I bet many of the K-1 parents are wondering what beat buddies are.  Every class in K and 1 used beat buddies this week to keep the steady beat.  In short, beat buddies are beanie babies!  We use them to keep the beat on our knees, toes, nose, hands...  The students love the beat buddies and love seeing which beat buddy will be theirs for the day.

My favorite is the orange bear :)

Welcome Back to Music!

Welcome back to Music at Lincoln! I hope you all had a musical summer.  My family and I sure did!  We went to WDW for the first time with our kids (ages 9 and 6) and they are still singing the songs from the "Festival of Fantasy" parade and from "The Carousel Of Progress" (believe it or not, that was one of their favorite things there).  It was a great time with my family and I satisfied my Olaf cravings with a few new souvenirs for my classroom and closet!

Now that we are back to school, I can tell you that the blog is easily accessible this year!  Simply go to the Lincoln School webpage, click on Staff Directory, scroll down to find my name, and click the word "WEB" to be instantly linked to the blog!  It's that simple.  Once you've done that, bookmark the blog to your browser's toolbar and you can check it anytime!

Our concert and open house schedule should be coming my way soon.  As soon as I have that, you will have your program dates for 1st grade, 3rd grade, and Level 3 (Kindergarten and 2nd grade do not have music programs).  Please contact me anytime with questions or comments!

Happy Tuesday!

Ta, Ta-ti and the Mystery

Since 1st grade is done with their music program, it's time to review our known music concepts so we can discover something new!  Yes, we are currently looking and listening for not one, but two mystery notes.  One mystery note is a rhythm that goes along with Ta and Ta-ti (quarter and eighth notes) while the other is a melody name that goes along with So and Mi (minor 3rd).  We reviewed by playing Tic Tac Toe with one another.  Check out the work of the students in Ms. Conrad's and Mrs. Sandoz's classes!

 One student clapped one of the rhythms for the other.  If the listener guessed the correct rhythm, he or she placed a chip on that rhythm.  If the listener guessed incorrectly, the clapper placed a chip on the correct rhythm!

 Our boards quickly filled up!  There were many cat's games because we are so good at listening 

for Ta and Ta-Ti!