Welcome Back!

September has come and gone and our music classes are in full swing! Kindergarteners and first graders are working on keeping a steady beat while singing, moving and playing instruments. They love to play on the instruments and are always excited to explore music on the barred xylophones. Sounds our voices can make and thinking about music changing speed (tempo) are common goals each week, as well as connecting to the weekly theme in their homerooms. The Tree Song, by Peter and Mary Alice Amidon and Andy Davis, is a favorite and provides wonderful space for peaceful movement, stretching and thinking about the change of seasons. In second grade third grades we are focusing on melody, pitch, melodic direction and reading notated music. Second graders are working collaboratively to create rhythmic speech patterns to perform on un-pitched percussion instruments; third graders are improvising using notes in the C pentatonic scale and the rhythm of the nursery rhyme Jack and Jill. Singing and sight-reading pitches on the staff are also among our goals each week. Fourth and Fifth graders are exploring music and how it relates to them in their daily lives. Defining music, the power of music and ways music connects people in communities have engaged students in thoughtful conversations with one another. All students in upper elementary are beginning small group composition projects to be written, rehearsed and performed for their classes at the end of Unit 1. Students will begin using GarageBand to create unique arrangements and compositions for this creative unit project.