Learn Me Music

Recorder Rewards Organizer Labels

2020-03-04T19:30:00.000-05:00

Years ago, I developed my own Beginning Recorder method written specifically for my students. It has been widely used and loved by many teachers and students, including myself and my students. I took ideas from Recorder Karate by Music K-8 but adapted it to fit my teaching style and classroom needs.

I highly encourage you check it out. The reviews on my Teachers Pay Teachers store speak for themselves and I am proud of the feedback I have gotten. I am so grateful to know this method has helped so many other teachers for many years!

(disclaimer: this post contains paid affiliate links - these are the items I recommend and if you purchase via the link, I could get a small commission from the sale of that product. Thanks!!)

Preview and Purchase Recorders Rock Beginning Recorder Method

The History of Recorders Rock....

I developed the Recorders Rock method by filling a classroom need over many years of teaching in the music classroom. It has been a labor of love and has gone through a number of edits and revisions since I originally published it in 2012. You can see my original blog post about it here - Beginning Recorder Method Book: Recorders Rock

I also posted about a number of great recorder resources in two other past posts...check them out below....

Recorder Resources from 2013

Recorder (and Other Resources) from 2014

How I Implement Recorders Rock...

The Recorders Rock method book contains 30+ songs presented in a scaffolded progression. The first songs only use two notes - E and G. Gradually notes are added and the progression of songs makes learning the recorder accessible and achievable for all.
Throughout the progression of songs, certain ones are featured as color leveled songs. The color leveled songs (ie. red level is Pease Porridge, orange level is Apple Tree, etc) are the required songs for students to test or "pass off" individually for the teacher.
In my classroom, when it is time to "pass off" songs, I bring a small group of 3-5 students up at a time to test (one student plays at a time though while the others wait). The rest of the class is independently practicing from their books; they are scattered around the room, and yes, it is borderline cacophony in here but we manage. The beauty of this method is they can start working through the method book at their own pace once I have given them the foundation of the basics of playing with good tone and reading music notation. So the students are working, practicing, and even testing at self-directed pace

My students are moving right along in the method book this spring semester. Being at a new school this year, I knew I needed to get my Recorder Reward system organized and prepared for when they start earning the leveled songs!

Recorders Rock is structured so the teacher can decide how the levels are rewarded. Some ideas could include coloring in a square on a chart, adding a bead to the neck strap or case, tying a colored piece of yarn or string around the neckstrap, or getting a sticker or charm. The possibilities are limited only by the colors. Since the colors are in rainbow order, this reward system lends itself to many ideas I haven't even thought of!

Recorders Rock Reward Bands

The rewards I give for the leveled songs in recorder karate are the colored rainbow loom bands that kids make those woven bracelets out of. They've been super popular for years and are thankfully easy to find and super affordable. Most come in packs of 300 or 600 for a couple dollars. Super cost effective! Each song corresponds to a colored band that the students can add to neck of their recorder. I find that, despite it being so simple, these bands are highly motivating.

You can find these bands at most craft or big box stores and you can get most of the colors in a large set for $10-20 or so. Depending on your class sizes, the quantities you can get at this price could last you years!

This set below is a great deal and comes with all the basic colors!

For the levels beyond black in this system, I ordered some specialty bands directly from RainbowLoom.com.

I choose the following...
Master - Silver
Expert - Gold
Virtuoso - Chameleon Color Change!
Rock Star - Rainbow Tie Dye

To keep them organized, I used a small 16-drawer tool box organizer meant for small notions or hardware. Here is the link to the one I ordered on Amazon....

I created labels to add to each drawer for some added color coding. Below the next few pictures will be a link to download a PDF for FREE of the labels I created! They will fit perfectly with the organizer above!

Recorder Reward Organizer Labels - Print in Color and Cut Apart

Add labels to drawers with clear contact paper or clear packing tape

Making progress!

Completed Recorder Reward Labels on the drawers!

All filled with bands ready for students!!

To create the same system that I am using, download a copy of these labels for FREE below!

FREE RECORDER REWARD ORGANIZER LABELING SYSTEM!!

MIOSM: Music in Our School Month Resources

2015-03-06T14:58:00.001-05:00

Happy March and MIOSM, everyone! This year in particular seems to be an important Music In Our Schools Month, as it is the 30th Anniversary of celebrating music education in the schools across our country. Music In Our Schools Month is a music advocacy initiative supported by NAfME (the National Association for Music Education). To read more about the initiative and ways you can celebrate MIOSM in your school and community, visit NAfME's MIOSM page here.
To celebrate MIOSM here at my school, Clark Creek Elementary STEM Academy in Cherokee County, Georgia, we created our own music advocacy posters to hang in the main hallway of our school. Here are some pictures of the installation:

I traced some large letters for "MIOSM" on butcher paper (TIP: If you're not an all-star freehand letter drawer, no worries! Project a word document using a projector onto your board, covered with some butchers paper, and trace!! Perfect letters everytime!). Then I hand wrote the words "Music In Our Schools Month" on each letter, cut out, and laminated.
The student posters are a variety of colored pages from some templates I created:

An acrostic with the letters MUSIC that students can add their own words for the 5 letters in the word "MUSIC" (adjectives, music terms, etc.)
An acrostic with the letters MIOSM for the words "Music In Our Schools Month"
A template that has this year's MIOSM theme: "Music Makes Me __________" that students can design, color, and illustrate
A template that says "I {heart} music because...." that students can design, color, and illustrate

You are free to "steal" my ideas and make your own templates for students to color. Or if you don't have the time, hop over to my TeacherPayTeachers store and get the templates already done for you!! They are on sale for a limited time this weekend (3/6-3/9/15) so hurry!!

In addition to these posters on TpT, I have teamed up with roughly 40 other music TeachersPayTeachers sellers to create 4 A-MA-ZING eBooks to celebrate Music In Our Schools book. These eBooks are filled with teaching tips, resources, games, and other kinds of other goodies. I am an author on the third book, Instruments of the Orchestra. And best of all.....they're FREE!! Yes, 100% FREE! You can't not download them if they're free. They will be released on each of the 4 Mondays of March 2015. Links are below as they are released!

R H Y T H M

L I S T E N I N G L E S S O N S

O R C H E S T R A

M E L O D Y

12 Days of Christmas {Music} Giveaways - Day 10

2014-12-17T06:00:00.000-05:00

For the 10th day of my Christmas {Music} Giveaway, I am hosting a Raffle Giveaway! This is my first raffle like this and I am excited to see how it works! You can enter once for each of the types of entries below. Two winners will be selected on Friday 12/19 at 10:00 am. Each winner will receive a $10 TpT Gift Certificate to use on any items on TpT! So exciting! Remember you can enter daily to get those entries in!! The more you enter, the more likely you are to win!!

Entry -Form

What's On Your Desk? and 12 Days of Christmas {Music} Giveaways!

2014-12-04T11:10:00.001-05:00

Rachel Tanenblatt over at Music With Mrs. Tanenblatt is doing a linky party to show what is on your desk at the moment. I must give a disclaimer before viewing - it is not a pretty sight! I always have the "stack" on my desk - its where I pile all things I need but don't want to deal with. I have the "stack" at home too. It appears to be about to topple off my desk in this pic.

Also, please note my favorite desk item during December - my USB-powered Christmas tree. He blinks and is so cute and makes me happy all day. My trusty dusty MacBook Pro is always up - going on 5 years, I love him and hope he keeps on trucking for many more years. It is a District-owned computer from a time period when the music departments got to pilot Mac products in music. If and when it dies, I will get a crappy Dell so I am coddling him to keep working as long as I can!

Also please note iPad #4 in the bottom left corner - he is out of commission and won't get onto my classroom iPads' iTunes account - I've been troubleshooting for 2 or 3 days without any enlightenment.
Thanks, Rachel, for the link-up! Its fun to blog about something not so music-ful!

In other news, I am doing a 12 Days of Christmas {Music} Giveaway! Make sure you follow me over on Facebook to see what is the daily giveaway! Click on the image below to follow the link to today's giveaway!

Recorder (and Other) Resources and Cyber Sale Link-Up

2014-11-30T19:00:00.000-05:00

So with the TeachersPayTeachers Cyber Sale coming up, I am super excited to be sharing with you some awesome resources you can check out during this 2 day Mega-Sale at my TpT store and so many others' awesome TpT stores. I am linking up with Amy Abbott over at Music a la Abbott with a link party to feature my own and others' products!

My Featured Product

My "RECORDERS ROCK" soprano recorder method book is one of the best-sellers in my store. And for Monday December 1 and Tuesday December 2, you can get this method book for less than $7. What a deal! What makes my Recorders Rock Method book unique is the fact that I start students on low E - 5 fingers plus your thumb. This forces students to start playing recorder with good air support and proper finger position - you cannot blow super hard and have sloppy fingers and play low E successfully! Impossible! So even though the first day or so is hard as you really just work on slow, warm air, and covering the holes correctly, once your students are making a beautiful E sound, the rest comes so much easier than the traditional "start on B" method. Before Thanksgiving, I had 120 fifth graders playing a recorder concert of 4 tunes playing mostly in tune, in unison, and with good tone. That was after only seven 45-minute music classes. This method works!!!

Another cool thing with my recorder method book is the leveled testing system. There are certain songs throughout the method book that are colored that can be used for assessment. I have my students play the colored songs individually for me so I can assess their progress and give individual help. Each level earns the students a colored rainbow loom band that the students can display on their recorders. As we work through the levels, they will build a rainbow on their recorder! So pretty!

My Recommended Music Product

I also would like to recommend a product from another music teachers' store that I have used and adored this school year. Sara Bibee at Music with Sara Bibee (Facebook link) produces excellent resources that are thorough, eye-appealing, and well-designed.

At the beginning of the school year, I was designing a recorder bulletin board that could be helpful for my students while playing recorder. I found Sara's Recorder Fingering Charts and fell in love. She has multiple formats with and without staff notation and big, bold, colorful note names. I printed them and hung them on my bulletin board along with her Chevron pennant banners with instant success!

Here are some examples of the different types of charts she has (I added her logo so there would be no copyright infringement - just buy the set!).

She has the fingering charts in both PDF and JPEG formats. This is great because I also paste her fingering charts into my ActivInspire flipcharts that I use with my ActivBoard (like SmartBoard but just a different brand). Love them!

My Recommended Non-Music Product

I know this product is not music-related but its too cute not to recommend. These little guys are gonna show up in some of my winter product later this year and in early 2015. They are too cute to pass up and will add pizzazz to whatever classroom resources you're creating. These are the Snow Buddies Clipart Set from Krista Wallen. Visit her entire store full of amazing clipart here.

Tech Talk Tuesday - iPads in the Music Classroom: 5 Best Apps for Music Class

2014-11-24T23:30:00.001-05:00

So this is my 3rd year using iPads in my music classroom. When I moved to Clark Creek Elementary STEM Academy to open the school in 2012, I piloted a 16-iPad lab as a part of a music technology pilot. Since Clark Creek is a STEM Academy, this was a perfect pairing of the Arts and STEM. It was a truly trial-by-fire kind of experience and I learned a lot as I made mistakes and explored this new realm in music technology. Unfortunately, I was super busy those first 2 years (as my children we super young - when I started at Clark Creek in 2012 my son was 5 months old and my daughter was 2), and needless to say, I had very little time to blog about the entire experience. I regret this and I wish I could go back in time and write along the way.
One post that I have been meaning to write for these 2 (almost 3…yikes!) years is a review of my favorite apps. Shelley Tomich over at PitchHill.com is doing a Tech Talk Tuesday and encourages other music teachers to also blog about something techy. Here's my chance! Thanks Shelley for getting me writing again! She is also is a mom of little kids so we're in the same busy boat…however, I think she is able to find more hours in the day than me!! Good going, Shelley!

So here goes my top 5 Favorite iPad Apps for Music Class

Meet the Orchestra $1.99

This super cute app is well-designed, accessible, fun, and authentic. The orchestra sounds are super high quality and the graphics and images are accurate. There are two components to this app: Learn and Quiz. The Learn section allows you to browse through the families and instruments of the orchestra. Each instrument has 3-5 iconic orchestral and/or solo excerpts for your listening enjoyment as well as a thorough description of the instrument's characteristics to read. In the Quiz section, there are 4 different games that help students identify instruments by name, by sound, and by sight. Love this app! And its worth all 199 cents!

Monster Chorus FREE!!

This funny app is appealing to the younger students I have. I use this app when we start talking about pitch. Its a great app for pitch exploration and to discover pitch relationships within the major scale. Each monster-alien-thing sings a different pitch in the major scale using a neutral syllable. What I like is that there are also a built-in songs that students following along like the game "Simon" to play familiar children's melodies like "Twinkle Twinkle" and "Three Blind Mice" with the option to buy more songs. Cute, simple, and fun!

StoryBots FREE!!

This app is a lot like Monster Chorus but better. The robots can sing using the neutral syllables "la" or "bum" but also with the solfa syllables and pitch names. You can toggle between the syllables easily and visually it doesn't change the robots. I like the opportunity again for pitch exploration and making observations about pitch relationships (particularly size vs. pitch - the small robots make high sounds and the big robots make low sounds). I also use this app when discussing pitch relationships with the younger kids. I find that an iPad is a better beginning hands-on pitch experience over acoustic instruments because the technique challenge (mallets or bells or even boomwhackers have technique learning curves) isn't an issue!

Tune Train FREE!!

This adorable app allows students to be successful composers. The train picks up people in apartments which correlate to pitches and chords. Each level is set up so that pitch options are limited to the predetermined chord structure of the particular level. The built in accompaniments in a variety of styles (like pop, latin, pop rock, rock, classical) makes students feel very successful very quickly. I also use this app when discussing pitch but towards the end of pitch units. Once my students have a firm understanding of pitch relationships, they can make educated decisions about what notes to use and how they want their melodies to sound. This time of year Santa and his reindeer even show up in the last level!!

Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra FREE!!
I am amazed that this app is free. It is so high-quality that I can't believe you don't have to pay for it! I love using YPG by Britten to teach about the orchestra. The music is great listening and this app makes the piece fun and exciting. There are many components to this app. You can listen to the piece enhanced with video footage of the orchestra performing and/or the score notation. There is a listening quiz and a game to organize and arrange your own fugue. There is a very thorough and interactive biography of Benjamin Britten that is truly enjoyable. I used this app almost exclusively last year to teach the orchestra. I have a lesson plan and complete review in the works. Stay tuned for more here….

What is best about these 5 apps is that 80% of them are FREE!!! And only 1 costs money at $1.99. I highly recommend all 5 of these apps. Please contact me with any questions you have about how I teach with iPads. I plan to blog more about my approach and technique over the next few months! Thanks for reading and thanks again to Shelley for the linky party!

Halloween Music Class Activities

2014-10-27T23:09:00.001-04:00

We are finally in the week of one of my favorite holidays of the year. I do not know where my love of Halloween came from, but I do know I adore pumpkin spice, glowing jack-o-lantern faces, Reece's peanut butter cups, and fall leaves. I think since we live in the sultry, humid, sticky South, us Southerns truly welcome everything the accompanies the crisp Fall temps.
In the music room, I find the month of October and specifically the week of Halloween to be the perfect opportunity for super fun listening activities and spooky games! Here is a sampling of the ideas and activities we do in October….enjoy!

The Little Old Lady Who Wasn't Afraid of Anything
This beloved children's story is perfect setting for selecting and performing sound effects to enhance a story. My littles love this book and they get soooo into adding the instrument sounds. Click the image below to see the lesson…

Toccata and Fugue in D Minor - J.S. Bach
This is the perfect listening activity for the week of Halloween. I also like that this version reinforces the concepts of pitch and rhythm that my students and I have been working on since the beginning of the year.

Recorder Composition in Minor
Exploring minor keys is perfect in October. Since my older students are playing recorders right now and their first two notes are E and G, playing in E minor is the perfect teaching opportunity!

Five Little Pumpkins on Boomwhackers

One of my favorite activities is my Five Little Pumpkins lessons exploring pitch using Boomwhackers. I have recently given this product an update. Check it out at my store by clicking the image below.

What are some of your favorite October and Halloween activities for the music classroom? Please share below! I love feedback and I promise, I'll even respond if you leave a comment!!!

Lastly, make sure you visit my TpT store through this Wednesday 10/29 - I'm having a major sale!! 20% off all Halloween and Fall-Themed Products!

Happy 200th Birthday, Star-Spangled Banner!

2014-09-09T11:19:00.000-04:00

This September, our National Anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner" turns 200 years old!! I've been looking forward to this year for a few years and I am so excited it is here to share with my students. Every year, we learn about our National Anthem, but this year is particularly special!
On Sepetember 14, 1814, 200 years ago, Francis Scott Key penned the lyrics to our national anthem, following a pivotal battle in the War of 1812 against the British. The American forces had held off the attack of the British on the Baltimore Harbor and Fort McHenry. As the sun rose that morning, Francis Scott Key saw the American flag flying over the Fort after hours of bombardment through the night. He was so proud to see our flag flying proudly that he was inspired to pen the lyrics to a poem which is now our National Anthem, the "Star-Spangled Banner."
I love sharing this story with my students every year. It instills such patriotism and pride for our country. I hope that you will be able to share this rousing story with your students this year as well. Below are a number of resources to use to teach the "Star-Spangled Banner" in fun, engaging, and dramatic ways for your students.

www.flagrespect.com

The story of the "Star-Spangled Banner" so poignantly told by Pastor Dudley Rutherford. We always start with this video which sets the mood for talking about the "Star-Spangled Banner."

Video with Lyrics

Denise Gagne has an excellent version of the "Star-Spangled Banner" in sing-a-long format with the lyrics onscreen with beautiful images of America. Perfect for students to learn the lyrics to the song in an accessible, simple way.
You can also purchase the video in mp4 format with notation, mp3 versions, and another video from TeachersPayTeachers at the link below

STAR-SPANGLED BANNER (WITH MP3 FILES and A MOVIE)

Star-Spangled Banner Bulletin Board Set by Kendra Gill

Here's another TpT product that includes everything you would need to put up an awesome SSB bulletin board. It includes directions for an activity you can do using the bulletin board.

The Star-Spangled Banner Unit by Sara Bibee

This is another excellent TpT resource that is worth every penny. Sara put a lot of work into this presentation and these worksheets - so all the work is done for you. It includes an excellent PowerPoint (or Keynote Presentation) with tons of wonderful information about the SSB as well as worksheets, word puzzles, and exit tickets. The work is already done for you!

Fifty Nifty United States

I know its not the "Star-Spangled Banner," but "Fifty Nifty United States" is a patriotic tune that all kids love and get super excited about. This is one of my TpT products that is really useful!

Listening - "Stars and Stripes Forever"

Your students will love this video of the United States Army Field Band performing John Phillip Sousa's iconic patriotic march. Perfect to end class!

Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part Three - Jazz Solos on Orff

2014-04-24T15:12:00.000-04:00

In my final 2014 International Jazz Day post, I want to share a way to get your students participating in jazz instead of only consuming jazz. Jazz is truly a participation sport and its only when people start allowing jazz to pulse through them that they start to appreciate and enjoy jazz music.

There is no better way to internalize jazz music than through improvisation. At the heart beat of jazz, improvisation is the way individuals take ownership of the music and start making it "their own" (sorry for the overly used cliche). Many people are intimidated by improvisation but with the right tools, improv can be fun and liberating. Surprisingly, even very young students can be successful improvising!

Improvising on Orff with the Blues Scale

I got a new set of Orff instruments at the beginning of the school year and am absolutely in love! For Jazz month, I have set up the instruments in the E Blues Scale, which is the key that works best on the Orff instruments.

Lesson Progression for Improvising a Jazz Solo:

Before we ever go to the instruments, we echo-sing short jazz rhythms using swing eighths - I use the ascribe to the Gordon rhythm syllable system so I use

"du-de du-de du-de du"

and "du-de…de du-de du."

I make sure that I sing them in swing-eighth style with the first eighth longer than the second, almost as if it were a dotted-eighth-sixteenth figure. You could do the same if you use the Kodaly ta-ti-ti method.

Next, I spend some time discussing the Blues scale with my students and listening to and playing the notes in the scale.
Send students to instruments or set students at instruments depending on the number of instruments you have (rotations and pairs are great when you have more students than instruments). Echo-sing/play rhythm patterns - teacher sings and students play after (echo). For younger kids, I have them echo on whatever they pitch they want in the E Blues scale but they have to play my rhythm. For older students, you could make it more challenging by singing pitch names that they have to echo on their instrument with correct rhythm and pitches. For example, using the first rhythm above, sing "E D E G A G E" and the students play it back to you. We do this to give the students the melodic and rhythmic building blocks to use in their own improvised solos later. This step is essential to having successful improvisation.
Using an E Blues backing track, like this one or this one, demonstrate improvising a solo on the E Blues scale for 12 bars.
Divide students into small groups (it works best with 2-4 students). Each small group gets one 12-Bar progression to improvise a solo. This is beneficial for students to have time to experiment and experience without the pressure of playing alone. Students feel more free to play when they are not isolated.
Allow all students to have a chance to play in small groups.
Repeat the improvisation 12-bar progression activity but with volunteer solos. As the end of the 12-bars draws near, students raise hand and the next volunteer is chosen. I never make anyone perform a solo. If you allow it to be voluntary, eventually all students will want a chance to improvise alone. Making someone solo at the elementary level who is not comfortable with it could cause irreversible anxiety in the future!!!

Here's what the final product could look like.

NOTE: These are 5th grade students who worked on this lesson for a total of about 20 minutes before this video was shot. You can see how little time it takes and how quickly students feel comfortable and successful with this activity. I have done this activity with as young as 1st graders although I do not have any video evidence of it! (Mental note, video 1st graders!!)

This is Part Three of a Three-Part Series. Here are the other articles in this series:

Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part One - Resources
Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part Two - Playing the Blues on Boomwhackers
Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part Three - Improvising Jazz Solos on Orff

Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part Two - 12-Bar Blues Progression

2014-04-24T13:50:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I posted some resources, including the Chuck Vanderchuck PBSKids website, for teaching Jazz at the elementary level. Jazz is truly an American art form and although it is a world-wide phenomenon now, it started here in the Southern United States. I am proud to be an American and as an American music teacher, I owe it to my students to expose them to jazz, as it is the grandfather of most current American music (country, rock and roll, pop, etc.).

Jazz is by nature a participatory art so I like to get my students interacting and making music as much as I can. One of my favorite ways of getting students to participate in making jazz is playing the 12-Bar Blues progression.

12-Bar Blues

I know that technically the 12-bar blues is from "the blues" but the progression is also used in a lot of jazz tunes as well. It is a great way to get kids participating in jazz without knowing so much of the music theory required to play good jazz. You can choose any piece that uses the standard 12-Bar Blues Progression for this (I use "Good Mornin' Blues" or "ABC Blues" from the Silver-Burdett Making Music Textbook Series from the 2nd Grade and Kindergarten books respectively. I've also used Chuck Berry's "Johnny B Goode" recording)

We start by counting the boxes in the graphic below and discuss that each box represents one "bar" or measure in music. The black hashes represent the 4 beats in each measure. Then we discuss roman numerals and what I, IV, and V mean in roman numerals (1, 4, and 5). We practice saying the chord numbers as we pat the beat for each bar (1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1….4, 4, 4, 4, 1, 1, 1… you get the idea).

Then we discuss that each roman numeral represents a chord in music. We define chords as 3 or more notes played at the same time and that each chord has different notes in it and each chord sounds unique.

I typically use only the keys of F and C to talk about the 12-Bar Blues because that is most accessible for my instruments. The two graphics above are colored with Boomwhacker colors - the key of C uses only diatonic Boomwhackers; the key of F one uses chromatic Boomwhackers (if you have only diatonic Boomwhackers, just leave the B-flats out - you still get the same chordal effect without them).

I pass out Boomwhackers and then build each chord - only the students who have the corresponding color can play in each chord.

Then we play the 12-Bar Blues Progression with the song we sung earlier (like "Good Mornin' Blues" or "ABC Blues") as we sing along. The Boomwhackers play 4 sounds per bar when their color appears. The kids love this and really get into it. Even my littlest Kindergarten friends are relatively successful with this and have so much fun. We usually allow enough time to switch Boomwhacker colors at least once so that no one gets stuck only playing 4 times in the whole progression (sorry 3rd scale degree friends!!).

I have also played the progression with students on resonator bells, hand bells, and even Orff instruments. You can adapt that charts above to color code as you need them or simply do B&W with note names for Orff instruments.

All of the Above Charts and Images Can Be Downloaded as a ZIP File (bmp, PDF, and ActivInspire formats) for FREE from my Dropbox Account HERE!!!

This is Part Two of a Three-Part Series. Here are the other articles in this series:

Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part One - Resources
Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part Two - Playing the Blues on Boomwhackers
Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part Three - Improvising Jazz Solos on Orff

Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part One

2014-04-23T16:06:00.002-04:00

Happy National Jazz Month 2014. I know I am super late to the party this year but I thought its better late than never. I have some awesome jazz resources I want to share for National Jazz Month and best of all, they're F R E E ! ! !

Just in case you didn't know about National Jazz Month, it happens every year during April and is sponsored by National Association for Music Educators (NAME), the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, and a plethora of other jazz partners.

Here are some links and resources to check out:

Smithsonian Jazz at the National Museum of American History

Jazz April 2014 - A project of the Jazz Journalists Association

International Jazz Day - April 30

Jazz: A Film By Ken Burns (PBS)

Jazz Corner: A Great Resource for Jazz Musicians

PBS Kids used to have a great Kids Jazz club that they discontinued. I was terribly disappointed when I discovered this. However, they replaced it with a new series that is pretty ok, not great, but not bad. It is flash-based, so I cannot use it on my iPad lab but it works ok as a class activity on the Interactive Whiteboard.

CHUCK VANDERCHUCK at www.pbskids.org/chuck

He actually covers many styles and genres of music. You can choose which style and there are games and activities to explore that genre. Here are some screenshots so you can see what how accessible it is to kids.

I like the "Lyrical Solarium" and the "What Sounds Like What" activities. They are good experiential and listening tasks for kids in large-group type settings. Or if you have access to classroom computers or a computer lab, it could be a great whole-group computer lab or center activity.

I have tons more resources coming down the pike. Stay tuned for the rest of this series….And keep it jazzy, my friends!!

This is Part One of a Three-Part Series. Here are the other articles in this series:

Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part One - Resources
Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part Two - Playing the Blues on Boomwhackers
Jazz Month and International Jazz Day: Part Three - Improvising Jazz Solos on Orff

Royalty-Free, Public Domain Clip Art

2014-02-14T13:10:00.002-05:00

Clipart created using CLKER and PicCollage

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! As my gift to you, I wanted to share with you two of my favorite source for graphics and clipart that I use for my printables and products.

CLKER

Bundle Of Hearts clipart

from Clker.com

www.clker.com is a royalty-free, public domain source for clip art. What is so cool about this site is that the images are created by the users using vector designs. You could actually create your own vector illustrations using this site to share with others!

The sheer volume of clipart available on this site is pretty incredible. It is the first place I always go when creating my products, maybe because I am cheap, maybe because I am resourceful, maybe because I am lazy! I'm not sure what is true but I do know that I love this site!!!

PICCOLLAGE

I also love the free app for iPhone, iPad, and Android called PicCollage. Its also free and its great for creating your own images. I use this app more for things like above, for "catch" images. Its a great app. Check it out!!

Created Using PicCollage

Winter Olympics 2014 Music Class Activities

2014-02-06T22:11:00.001-05:00

I confess….I am an Olympics-addict. I love the Summer Games, I love the Winter Games, I love any of the Games. I feel like as soon as the last Games ends, I am counting the months until the next one. Has anyone else figured it out it is a much longer wait from the end of the Winter Games to the beginning of the next Summer Games (usually 26-28 months) than the end of the Summer Games to the next Winter Games (usually only 18-20 months difference)? Crazy, huh?
Anyway, besides the friendly competition and the obscure sports (who loves curling? Me!), I also love the music. The Olympic Games are known for some excellent musical traditions, from the opening and closing ceremonies as well as the lovely John Williams' compositions we know so well. One of my favorite albums of all time is Summon The Heroes that I bought the summer of the '96 Olympics in Atlanta. As an Atlanta native, the 96 Summer Games were a SUPER HUGE deal to my family and I and we did it all - pin trading, Centennial Olympic Park, Underground Atlanta, and even some events. We actually got to go to a lot of tennis as we lived 2 miles from the tennis complex (which I might add is now sadly torn down and paved over….sniff).

Anyway, I digress. Back to the music….I love John Williams' and I especially love him as a music teacher because I can focus on an American composer instead of always talking about the white-haired European ancients (no offense, Beethoven and Mozart…we love you too!).

Olympic Fanfare and Theme

With the 2014 Winter Olympics starting tonight, I thought I would share my lesson using the Olympics as the theme.
We start with listening to the John Williams' version of "Olympic Fanfare and Theme" with the listening question below posted on the board:

Most hands will immediately shoot up. At that point we discuss the Olympics. And where they're being held right now.

Then we discuss John Williams and what an important composer he is for American music and especially film music.

Then we compare and contrast Williams' and Arnaud's versions. As a little aside, I did a bunch of research because I was very confused. But here's the deal, Leo Arnaud, a French-American composer wrote "Bugler's Dream"(which we know as Olympic Fanfare) in 1958 for Felix Slatkin's album, Charge. John Williams' used Arnaud's piece as material for his version commissioned for the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Games. Williams released an updated version for the Summon The Heroes album for the 1996 Atlanta Games. That's why the two pieces sound almost the same; however, Williams' piece is obviously more complex and more orchestral and thematic. I prefer for music class to use Arnaud's version because the form is more accessible. Anyway, we listen to the two versions.

Then we use Arnaud's version to create movements for the corresponding formal sections of the piece. There are some distinct tempo changes in the piece which is great since we are already working on tempo in most of my classes and we can reinforce that concept here.

I didn't include all the form listening slides in order as that would make this post WAAAAYY TOOOOO LOOONG! So below is a link to a download that includes all the slides in PowerPoint format as well as both JPEG and PDF format. Also included in that download is a printable poster of John Williams to hang on your "Composer of the Week" poster - you have one, right?

Complete Lesson Materials for "Olympic Fanfare" Listening Activity

Russian Folk Dance

Since the 2014 Winter Games are in Sochi, Russia, this is also the perfect time to pull out one of my favorite folk dances. "Sasha" is a traditional Russian folk dance that has been recorded and arranged by the Amidons of the New England Dancing Masters. Their materials are EXCELLENT and I totally recommend ALL of their books and CDs. However, "Sasha" happens to be one of their two free dances available on their website. They have the sheet music and a FREE mp3 download - can't beat free, can you? This dance is magical and I have had great success with various grade levels with this dance. I actually like to teach this dance much slower than the recording for the success of the learning process. Then we can speed it up when we feel confident. That allows me to reinforce tempo concepts (adagio, moderato, allegro) as we practice. Plus, the kids keep getting more and more excited as we continue to speed up the music. So fun! I have made various tempo versions of the mp3 from their website for your use in your classroom. I don't think the Amidons will mind as I have given them credit for it and am offering it for free.

Click Here for My Dropbox Link to Download the mp3 Files

Augmented Reality with Aurasma: Part Two

2013-11-07T21:39:00.001-05:00

So earlier this week I started a series of posts on Augmented Reality in Education using Aurasma. If you didn't catch post one, read it first before continuing on!

Now that you've read up on Part One, step two is actually creating your own trigger images, overlays, and auras!! Woohoo!

I had this privilege this morning of presenting iPads in the Classroom: Tips and Tricks for Effective Implementation at the 2013 Georgia Educational Technology Conference. It was an awesome experience! I was nervous, excited, and inspired all at the same time. I feel blessed by the opportunity to share a little of my experience with technology with other educators.

Part of my presentation was on Aurasma. I created a quick reference guide for creating an account, channel, trigger images, overlays, and auras using Aurasma for my conference. This perfect timing to also share it with you! So please download the two handouts below and start creating your own Auras!

Augmented Reality Aurasma Handout - Clark Creek Examples

Augmented Reality Aurasma Step-By-Step Reference Guide

Augmented Reality with Aurasma: Part One

2013-10-31T14:04:00.006-04:00

Augmented Reality is not a new concept, but the concept in education is one that is blowing up in schools. I discovered this concept this fall while perusing my Pinterest boards. Mrs. Dennis over at Music with Mrs. Dennis posted an amazing Augmented Reality tutorial featuring an app called Aurasma. Her tutorial post is thorough, thoughtful, and applicable not only for the music room but education in general.

I am not attempting to create a tutorial since she has already done such an amazing job! You should read her blog post first before continuing on here….so click it and read! Then come back!

READ THIS FIRST!!!!

Ok….so now that you're back, here are some things I have learned, discovered, and done with this App. My school, Clark Creek Elementary STEM Academy, was recently the first stop on the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education (GPEE) Bus Tour. I posted about this experience yesterday. Read up on that too!

As a part of the bus tour, we provided groups of our tour members with iPads equipped with Aurasma so at they toured, they were able to experience Augmented Clark Creek Reality around our school. There were probably 30-40 Auras around our school. It was a huge hit and people were totally blown away with this "new" technology.

So you can see what I am talking about, follow these directions….

Use your mobile device (iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, Android phone, tablet) and download the free App Aurasma. (the purple"A" up there is the app icon - look for that image to make sure you download the correct app)

Once inside the application, slide through the tutorial and skip the account set-up if prompted (you can create an account later which you will want to do!) Select the "A" aura button to bring up the menu.

Using the Spotlight tool (looks like a magnifying glass), search for Clark Creek STEM. Our channel is the one with the RedHawk. Select our channel and then select "Follow" and "Like" to follow and subscribe to our channel auras.

Return to the viewfinder in the app by selecting the broken square to the left of the viewfinder.

You can now use the camera scanner to view some auras. Let's try some. Hold your Aurasma viewfinder over the following images.

If you saw videos pop up on top of these "trigger images," then you did it correct!! Congrats!

Stay tuned for Part Two of my Aurasma posts to give you more tips and suggestions for using this amazing technology for educational purposes! If you want to make your own auras, please refer to Mrs. Dennis' awesome tutorial over at Music with Mrs. Dennis!

GPEE Bus Tour 21 Visits Clark Creek

2013-10-30T11:16:00.000-04:00

So I have not posted anything for a while now, because I have been so busy with my school! We have been preparing for the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education Bus Tour 21. We were nominated last year and it is a huge honor to represent public education for the state of Georgia. The Bus Tour stopped here yesterday at Clark Creek Elementary STEM Academy and the visit was a huge success! My chorus performed for the visitors before they departed. We also had between 50 and 60 visitors come through the music room to see how we do what we do in music. It was awesome! Below is a tweet from the Georgia Partnership featuring my chorus students!!

Thank you Clark Creek Elementary for a wonderful visit! #bustrip21 pic.twitter.com/q0458Omcz7
— Georgia Partnership (@GAPartnership) October 29, 2013

Here are some additional pics of the activities going on in the music room for the bus tour…..

Treble Clef Pitch Practice - FREE GIVEAWAY!!!

2013-09-10T22:43:00.001-04:00

There's a new product at my TpT store and one I think you will want! Here's a little preview for you...

Spelling Words with Treble Clef Pitches

Flashcards - 24 flashcards premade with music notation and words. These can be printed single- or double-sided for multiple variations on this game
Blank Staff - for putting objects (marbles, stones, seasonal erasers like pumpkins, bingo chips, or even candy!) onto the staff to spell the words
Small Group, Individual, Pairs, or Large Group Applications - students can quiz each other, students can create their own words with the treble clef pitches, teachers can quiz students, practice can be done on just putting the "notes" (objects) onto the correct lines and spaces. Directions included! The possibilities are limitless!!!

Here's a little contest to win this product....for FREE!!! If you want this product, you have 3 chances to win....

Go "like" my Facebook page. Then come back here and comment that you liked my Facebook page.
Become a Follower on my TeachersPayTeachers page. Then come back here and comment that you became a Follower.
Subscribe to my Newsletter at the top right of this blog. Then come back here and comment that you subscribed.

Each individual comment is an entry to win. On Friday, I will choose 3 comments at random to win this product for FREE!! Woohoo!! Have fun and good luck!

A New Year and New Orff Instruments!

2013-09-01T22:35:00.001-04:00

We're back at it for another school year! This year is my 10th year teaching and I am so excited for what this year holds. This is my second year at Clark Creek STEM Academy and our second year open! We will be the first school on the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education Annual Bus Tour where 140 dignitaries from the community and educational leadership will visit our school. Very exciting times!

The most exciting part of this school year is the addition of a full Orff instrumentarium from Peripole-Bergerault. My PTA and school fundraised our rear-ends off last school year and raised enough dough to get the full set! My dreams are coming true!

It was tough to teach an entire school year with no Orff instruments, as I have taught with them and have been trained in Orff pedagogy since I started teaching. I definitely believe I am a better teacher for last year as it forced me out of my comfort zone and made me really explore new ways of teaching the same concepts and music.

However, now that I have my lovely instruments, we are using them daily, all day long, from the little Kindergarten friends all the way to the Fifth graders. Since I am not sure of the experience level of my students (I only taught a small percentage of my current students at my old school, most of the 900 students were new to me last year), I am spending time working on building a foundation of good mallet technique. I believe if my students are going to be successful with Orff, they need to first start with fundamental techniques. Then the instrumental world will open up to them and we can play anything we want!

Mallet Madness

My go-to method for building mallet technique is Artie Almeida's Mallet Madness. Technique is built through games and activities and explores hands together vs. alternating, counting and rhythm, following a conductor, high vs. low, as well as tons of other book and song related activities. I highly recommend this book and cannot speak of it high enough.

Music For Children: Keetman and Orff vs. Tossi Aaron

I also love the Schulwerk by Karl Orff and Gunild Keetman. These volumes are essential for any music teacher using the Orff instruments. The UK editions (the "yellow books") come in 5 volumes and are the "true" editions, according to Orff-Schulwerk teachers. However, I am particularly fond of the American edition by Tossi Aaron, which comes in 3 volumes. That may be sacrilege to many Orffians but I find the American editions, suprisingly, to be more appropriate for American children! Imagine that! Either way, read them, teach them, use them!

Last but not least, I would like to share a link to an article the embodies the idea of Orff-Schulwerk, which is taking the ideas of the Schulwerk and adapting them to your classroom setting, situation, and most importantly, the ideas of your students. Remember, the students are the music makers and they are to take ownership of the music to the point that they are creating their own ideas!

Stay tuned this year for some of my own Orff arrangements and other Orff resources! I have some great ideas about to break loose!

Back-To-School Sale!

2013-08-17T17:10:00.000-04:00

I'm having a Back-To-School Sale at my TeachersPayTeachers store! Click on this link http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Claire-Burns

click the image below to go straight to my store. All of my products are 20% off - put in the coupon code BTS13 at checkout to get an additional 10% off!!!

Don't forget to browse around the rest of my Learn Me Music site to find more Back-To-School Music Resources!! Happy Back-To-School 2013! May it be the best year yet!

Recorder Resources

2013-01-07T22:57:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year! Today was our first day back to school in 2013 and I am excited for what the remainder of the school year holds for my students and I in music class!
With the arrival of January, for many of you, is also the arrival of a shipment of new recorders (or breaking out the old ones!) for a recorder unit. This is actually my first year in 7 years to not teach recorders starting the first day back in January. Being at a brand new school and feeling so lost this school year, I did not have my act together as well this year to start in January. But I hope to introduce the recorder to my 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students in February or March!

For those of you starting recorder now or soon, I would like to remind you of some fantastic resources available to you!

Recorders Rock! Soprano Recorder Method Book

This is my pride and joy - an original beginning recorder method book. The entire book (music notation, images, graphics) were created by yours truly. Click the image to the left or the link above to view my original blog post about the method. I also created PowerPoint and Flipchart files to correlate with the method book to make your teaching even more effective. Below are the links to my TpT store (NOTE: you can now buy multiple licenses of products on TeachersPayTeachers at a reduced rate! So if you have other recorder lovers, buy a copy for them as well! If you purchase you do have the right to photocopy for your students as many times as needed, for educational purposes only!)

Recorders Rock! Method Book
Recorders Rock! Correlating PowerPoint
Recorders Rock! Correlating Flipchart (for ActivInspire and ActivStudio users)

Recorder Introduction Video

I made this YouTube Video to introduce my students to the Soprano Recorder in a fun, exciting, modern way. I think your students will enjoy it as much as mine do!

Recorder Crossword Puzzle

Based on the video above, this puzzle reinforces the vocabulary and concepts behind learning the soprano recorder. This is a good activity to have your students complete while you are passing out recorders for the first time!

Click here for the puzzle download page

Recorders Harmony Lesson using "Hot Cross Buns"

We often think of the recorder solely as a melodic instrument. However, we can teach harmony by using the recorder and introducing simply part playing. This lesson plan is a great supplementary lesson for your 2nd year recorder players and beyond.

Click here for the lesson plan download page

Valentine's Day Recorder Composition Lesson

Use the recorder to teach beginning composition. Based on a simple Valentine's Day poem, students use a set of pitches to create a melody to the existing rhythm of the poem. This lesson can be completed in a variety of settings, from individual, small group, or even whole group instruction.

Click here for the lesson plan download page

The 3 Best Christmas Music iPad Apps

2012-12-07T15:59:00.000-05:00

Now that I have my class set of iPads up and running, I am going to start sharing some of my favorite apps. Christmas is, by far, my favorite time of year. I love Christmas music and cannot wait for the day after Thanksgiving, when I break out my favorite holiday tunes.
As I searched for apps to use during these crazy December days in music class, I found some really fun ones that are also quite education and musical!
Here are my top 3 FREE holiday music apps, in no particular order:

Music Mixer - Elf on the Shelf - Christmas Game - Good for experiencing mixing music, this app allows students to discover how arranging sounds in different ways can change the feeling or mood of the music. Very fun and all grade levels seem to love it, from my littles (Kindergarten) all the way to the 5th graders.

Sing Along Christmas Carols Free - The free version of this app has three Christmas carols in karaoke style lyrics for you to sing a long. The accompaniment is quality piano and sounds nice. Even good to use with just one iPad and an AV dongle connector to show on a big screen for a school sing along! Also, has the potential to unlock and buy other tunes (for money, of course!)

Christmas Piano With Free Songs - Very similar to the one above, except you can play piano to three holiday tunes. Very customizable, as you can learn to play the left hand or right hand or both. You can choose to have the note labels on the keys, and you can alter them tempo and key at which you play. Lots of fun!

"In the Hall Of the Mountain King" Listening Activities

2012-10-18T15:56:00.000-04:00

I love Halloween time because its the perfect time of the year for listening to "spooky" music. One of my favorite "spooky" pieces for Halloween is "In the Hall of the Mountain King" from The Peer Gynt Suite by Edvard Grieg. Classicsforkids.com has a great resource this month that includes a listening map, biography of Edvard Grieg, and other activities. Click here for a direct link to their PDF you can download.

YouTube Videos

As I surfing the web and looking for other resources to use while I teach "In the Hall of the Mountain King," I found two great YouTube videos that you might want to use as well!

Listening Maps

Classicsforkids.com has a great resource this month that includes a listening map, biography of Edvard Grieg, and other activities. Click here for a direct link to their PDF you can download.

Also, MakingMusicFun.net has another good listening map that you can print and students can touch and follow as they listen. Click here to see download that FREE listening map.

Rhythm and Other Listening Activities

I also found a great blog post through Pinterest from Beth's Music Notes on a variety of lessons and activities using "In the Hall of the Mountain King." Her resources appeal to a wide range of ages and learning styles. Great ideas, Beth!

Source: bethsmusicnotes.blogspot.com via Claire on Pinterest

Fall Music Lessons on Pitch and Ostinato

2012-10-05T15:56:00.000-04:00

I wanted to share two new Lesson Plans/Units I have on TpT. Yes, these are paid, because it took me many hours to develop, test, and produce them. But I think that you will find them to be fun, educational, and engaging lessons you can implement in your classroom with little to no extra planning or set-up time.

These lessons include image files, PowerPoints, Flipcharts, and detailed lesson plans so the work is already done for you! Plus, they're FALL themed and who doesn't love the fall?!? I hope you enjoy them and use them in a fantabulous way in your classroom! (Click on the pictures below to go to my TpT product pages)

TeachersPayTeachers 20% Off Sale!!

2012-09-29T20:16:00.001-04:00

In honor of my favorite season, I am throwing a 20% off sale on ALL TpT PRODUCTS IN MY STORE through Monday! I wanted you, my readers, to know about this ASAP to thank you for loyally following and supporting me here!

Click the button below to visit my store!

Happy Birthday, Star-Spangled Banner!

2012-09-13T00:22:00.002-04:00

Friday of this week, September 14th, is the 198th birthday of the "Star-Spangled Banner." After a night of constant bombardment on Fort McHenry at the mouth of the Baltimore Harbor, Francis Scott Key woke to see the American flag still flying in the dawning sunlight. He was so moved in the moment that he wrote the words to a poem we now know as the "Star-Spangled Banner." In 1913, almost 100 years after it was written, it was adopted as our National Anthem by Congress.

As a music teacher, I feel a great responsibility and duty to educate our nation's youth on the history of our country through our music. American music tells the story of our country, from its birth and through the years - our turmoil, grief, victories, and liberties. Each school year I spend a good deal of time talking about, listening to, and singing the National Anthem. I hope to make some kind of impression on my students so as adults, they are the ones in the stadiums with their hats removed, standing respectfully tall, and proudly singing each and every note and word of National Anthem.
I would like to share some videos and activities and other resources that I use to help teach the "Star-Spangled Banner" and to celebrate its birthday every September 14th.
This first video is created by Rev. Dudley Rutherford of California. His site, www.flagrespect.com, plays a 9:11 video on the history of the "Star-Spangled Banner" (do you notice the coincidence of the length of the video and a date that passed earlier this week?) I play this video for my students in the week leading up to September 14 and I think it does an amazing job of giving life to what many feel is a dead song. It restores passion for a country and a song who's lost its voice.

This second video is one I created for my school to play on its morning news show each year on September 14. Its short, sweet, and to the point. The video also gets kids singing which is a huge deal! They're never going to learn it if they don't get to practice it!!!

Also, here is a links to some fantastic National Anthem activities and resources through the National Anthem Project...

Have a school-wide celebration
Standards-based lesson plans on the National Anthem
Promote in publications with logos

Lastly, this is a FANTASTIC activity packet for working with the lyrics of the "Star-Spangled Banner," which we can all admit are not the easiest of words to learn. This packet is courtesy of music educator and composer Christy Lovenduski. Click the picture below or the word link above to get the free packet from Christy.

How do you celebrate the "Star-Spangled Banner's" birthday? What do you think of these videos and activities? How will you use these in your classes?