Rockin' Rhythm Band

Little ones are led through a series of rhythmic songs and chants while they march, clap, and use their tummies as percussive instruments. They work on singing in pitch, chunking, and keeping a steady beat. 

Your second graders can become composers with a little help from the Garage Band software. You pre-select several drum, piano, and guitar loops for the groups to choose from, then they put them together following an ABA looping pattern....

Pupils discuss find out about the four types of musical instruments. They identify several instruments of each type. Students listen to a simple rhythmic music. They follow along with its notation. Pupils identify treble and bass clefs....

Students create and perform original band compositions using their own band instruments. This two day lesson requires student compositions to be done at home. Students evaluate performances using a checklist for composing (included).

Kids consider contemporary art as a forum for modern culture. They engage in a discussion about poetry and art that expresses feelings of surrealism and schizophrenia. They then create a collection of material objects and compose a paper...

Students watch a segment of the PBS Ken Burns JAZZ documentary about Buddy Bolden creating the "Big Four." They compare and contrast the rhythms of marches and jazz based on the examples in the film, and explore notation, subdivision of...

First graders explore rhythm using poetry and their own names.

Middle schoolers explore the rhythm instruments as part of a rhythm band to accompany the well-known poem, "Five Little Pumpkins." They study instrument names, playing techniques, and playing at the appropriate time. They study how to...

Fun awaits both you and your class as you embark on a musical activity. After discussing different rhythmic meters they choose a poem to set to music. The poem must rhyme and be set to a melody in the key of C Major. Because the activity...

Help your class create collective poetry following a simple, engaging model from Teaching Tolerance (tolerance.org). Each young poet writes five things on an index card: sayings from others, favorite sound, favorite place, favorite...