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The "Big Kid" Rhythm Bundle (Grades 3-6) **30% OFF!**
By Jason Litt
Included in these rhythm bundle are 25 resources that you can utilize in grades 3-6. Games, dictation, worksheets, races, and more are in this bundle as the resources discuss longer rhythmic patterns, sixteenth notes, triplets, and long durations of rests.
Definitely a semester filler in here, terrific for reinforcing your 2nd half of the year with some of your upper grades, and with 30% off when bundled together, it's a sale you can't beat!
Listening Cards (Printables and Powerpoint Images)
By Jason Litt
If you're working on melodic contours, high and low, and direction, this may be for you!
Included are 16 printable cards you can reproduce, cut out, and issue to your students.
Play these melodies on a piano, clarinet, slide whistle, however you wish! Then, ask the students to place the card which they think best resembled the melody you played.
Although there are 16 cards, you can ask students to do 4 cards a time (by telling them which cards they are to us), play the melody, and then they can choose from the multiple choice answers you allotted to them.
The image files can be put into a powerpoint as well and you can us it as an answer key after you play the melodic example.
Have fun with this on your quest to discover melodious melodies
Terms of Use:
All images/photos/clip art in this resource were created by me.
By Jason Litt
Use these notation printouts for students to compose their own rhythms. Included are Wholes, Halves, Quarters, and Eights, along with their corresponding rests. All notes have borders which can easily laminated then cut
By Jason Litt
For your printouts and powerpoints, this pack of notation has everything -- Wholes, Halves, Quarters, Eighths, and Sixteenths. The notation is vectorized and transparent, so it will fit alongside any background in powerpoint There are word files with notation templates included as well, if you'd like to print multiple of one note You can use these to make flash cards, rhythm building, and much more!
By Jason Litt
A fun activity to play with kids of all ages! Check out these Italian names and guess whether it’s a PASTA or a COMPOSER! See how many you get right! Some of these are quite tricky while others are pretty obvious :)
Out of the Box! (Playing accessory percussion)
By Jason Litt
Got a box full of percussion instruments? Work on rhythm reading together with the kids in creative fashions! In "Out of the Box!", 4 separate lines hold 4 different classroom instruments -- tambourines, rhythm sticks, hand drums, and maracas. These instruments are all assigned different 4 beat rhythms and focus on quarter notes, quarter rests, eighth notes, and more techniques throughout the presentation. To get everybody playing, shaking, and grooving, I place four stations throughout the room filled with the associated instrument. I then have a group of students rotate through the instruments throughout the activity so they can all get a feel of each instrument (no more "you get what you get, and you don't throw a fit...") Win-win! You can run in the way you wish! You can have the students perform an ostinato by repeating the 4 beat measure, or have them read it in a canon, or just do it all together as suggested! Or... you can have students write their own composition if you have an interactive whiteboard! How cool! Included are the powerpoint file (completely editable and expandable with images embedded in) and PDF file as a static presentation. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them. Have a great time!
Jump through Hoops! (Rhythm Dictation)
By Jason Litt
This will sure to get your class energized and all you need is about 8 hula hoops! We group all the boys on one side and all the girls on another side (or you can do team A + team B) In front of the teams will be 4 hula hoops (representative of 4 beats of music). Kids will be called up in groups of 2, 3, 4, or more and listen to the musical example. After they hear the example, they have to act as the quarter and eighth notes in the example and spell it out from left to right! It's a hot mess, but it sure gets the kids to work together! As soon as the first team gets the right rhythm, advance the slide and show the answer! Each slide will contain how many students will be in the group, the musical example, and the hoops shown. Up to 2 students (2 eighth notes) can be in a hoop, 1 student (will represent a quarter note) alone in a hoop, or a blank hoop (0 students) for a rest. Have a great time with this the KIDS LOVE THIS!!!!!!
BoomBox (25 sight reading patterns for BEGINNING Boomwhackers!)
By Jason Litt
In BoomBox, students will see a series of 8 to 12 boxes with corresponding boomwhacker colors filled in each box. When played, the teacher will count off the students to read down the Boomwhacker boxes from left to right, line by line.
Teachers can use a laser pointer, point with a cursor, or even have kids read by themselves from the beginning to the end.
In this resource, there are 3 levels
There are twenty five (25) exercises meant to get your kids booming right along! Included in this resource are the powerpoint, PDF, and percussive background tracks from MM 90 - MM 120.
Enjoy!
Composition and Instrumental Lesson Using Click, Clack, Boo!
By Creating Musical Literature
Play and compose using this Halloween classic from Doreen Cronin! Using the words "crunch", "creak", "tap" and "quack" in the story, have students play a variety of instruments (hand-held percussion) along with the verbs while you read! Then print, cut out, and laminate the composition cards and have the students compose their own musical soundscapes!
REMINDERS
1. If you have any questions about this product or any of my products, feel free to email me at creatingmusicalliterature@gmail.com
2. Your purchase of this product is for SINGLE USE ONLY. Please purchase additional licenses to share with other teachers. Copyright © 2022 Creating Musical Literature. All rights reserved.
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Rhythmania! - Identifying modified notation (Primary Music)
By Jason Litt
This is a terrific lesson for your younger kids in Kindergarten and 1st grade who aren't familiar with standard notation just yet! In Rhythmania, students are given two separate rhythms on the powerpoint. The teacher will play the rhythm back (embedded mp3 files included) on the powerpoint and the students will have to identify which rhythm the teacher played.
I cut out "1" and "2" cards and have the kids hold it up, or you can have them answer as a class, write it on whiteboards, or even race to see who can get it first! After the answer is locked in, advance the slide to see the correct answer!
In this lesson, you will see 7 different examples all of different "Levels". They are named levels like "3rd grade level", "high school level", "pro level" and such to get the kids thinking as it's a huge challenge. And of course, if they get it correct, how smart do they feel? :)
Have fun with this and if you have any questions or comments, please leave 'em below!
By Jason Litt
We know percussion instruments are anything that you either hit, shake, or scrape, but how well do you know them? Want to see how well your kids can identify which instruments are which? Try "Pitch Perfect 2!" where a musical example will be played of a pitched percussion percussion instrument. Students will see three different instruments and will have to select one of the instruments they think matches the musical example. On the following slide will be the answer! In this 9 question game, you can play this any way you want -- boys vs girls, team vs team, individually, or have students write answers down on whiteboards or even come up to the board to interact with the powerpoint. Have a great time with this and leave a comment below if you have any questions!
Hi-Low Rally Race (* Distance Learning Approved! *)
By Jason Litt
Working with your kinders and first graders on high and low pitches? Got a little bit of space in your classroom? WIth Hi-Low Rally Race, you can put two hula hoops (or taped off areas) in your classroom and designate one a "high" area and a "low" era.
You will play a short example of a melody (8 examples included) that's pitched high or low and students will walk "briskly" :) to the corresponding area which they think the pitch is -- high or low
You then advance the slide and show the correct answer!
Also works well for Distance Learning if your district has applied that. Just upload it to your Google Classroom and have the kids self pace it at home
Have fun with this!
Boom Along Songs for Boomwhackers
By Jason Litt
Simple simple songs for your primary classes in Boom Along Songs! This powerpoint is pretty much start slideshow AND GO! Animations have been previously set so the teacher advances the slide and the arrows indicate which note to be played. No more pointing to the screen and reaching across the projector -- it will automatically do it for you as you advance the slide! Best part -- take it at your own tempo. It's like the old sing-a-long songs... pretty much fool proof! Enjoy these arrangements of This Old Man Go Tell Aunt Rhodie Mary Had a Little Lamb Twinkle Twinkle Little Star Ode to Joy Have fun!
By Jason Litt
A time tested rhythm builder in the elementary classroom are popsicle sticks, and this activity, "Stick it to Rhythm!" will reinforce quarter and eighth note rhythms. After a brief review on quarter and eighth note rhythms, students are allocated a set of popsicle sticks. After they make space for themselves on the floor, the teacher will play each example (8 in this pack!) and students have to dictate the rhythm using their popsicle sticks (don't worry, instructions on how to do eighth and quarter notes are embedded in the powerpoint) After letting the students decipher the rhythm, the teacher advances the slide to find out the correct rhythm played in the example. This works great for your youngest grades and all examples are MM 95bpm and under. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to leave it in the Q&A section or email me at jasonlitt@gmail.com!
SOL-FISH - FISHING FOR SOLFEGE!
By Jason Litt
We reinforce tons of Sol-Mi patterns in early elementary music. How about the kids dictate it through Sol-Fish? Each student receives a "Fishing for Solfege" printout which is a fish bowl with 2 spaces - the top space reserved for the SOL and the bottom space reserved for the MI Ten examples will be played and students will have to decipher where the sol's and mi's are after listening to them. They do this by putting bingo chips on the Sol or Mi spaces. After students lock in their guess, advance the slide to reveal the answer! You may do this through the printouts, or you can make it an interactive game with your whiteboard, the possibilities are endless! All sound files are embedded in, so you'll need to manually click each "speaker" icon to play each example. Have a great time with this, and let me know if you have any questions or concerns!
Rhythm Espresso! (* Distance Learning Approved! *)
By Jason Litt
Something that'll satisfy your caffeine fix and your students understanding and mastery of rhythm!
In Rhythm Espresso, students will see an assortment of 10 famous beverages (by national coffee chains, of course) and accompanying coffee logos with rhythms in them. One of the rhythms match the rhythmic syllabes said in the beverage name.
Have your students select the rhythm they believe to be correct, advance the slide, and the correct rhythm will illuminate green!
Works well with boys vs girls, team vs team, individually, or even as a distance learning activity!
By Jason Litt
Shaun the Sheep hits theaters this summer, and there's no better way to work on Solfege than "Sol Mi Sheep - Level One!". In Sol Mi Sheep, Shaun the Sheep, the Lambs, and the Farmer, help the kids identify where the Sol, Mi, and La lines are on the staff in a game format. Characters are placed on different solfege levels and students will sing back the solfege syllables as they see them. If the class masters the solfege example, the slide will advance and the high score will continue to elevate. Each character has an independent rhythm -- Shaun is a quarter note, the lambs are a pair of eighth notes, and the farmer is a quarter rest. The way I construct the lesson is I have all classes participate and record the highest score at the end of the lesson. I run this exercise about 2 or 3 minutes (it helps if you have a percussive background track running around 90-110 bpm) and let the students keep adding to their score. You'll notice that the more the activity progresses, the solfege examples become more lengthy and difficult. I keep track of the scores on a different powerpoint so the kids can see how they're progressing AND how they match up against other classes in their grade. Trust me, it gets pretty competitive! :) Included are instructions and the game in PDF and powerpoint format. All steps are a 2nd, so no La to Mi skips... yet ;) If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment. Happy Sol Mi La-ing!
By Jason Litt
Learning the values of quarter and eighth notes are a good solid foundation to start off, but when it gets to rests, understanding a beat of silence is a little different! In "Give it a Rest!" students are introduced to the quarter rest, which is a note, but a note of silence. They watch "Give it a Rest!" from Music K-8 and then are given an activity -- try to decipher where the rest occurs in a musical example. The students will be told how many beats are in the example and then a four beat percussive introduction is played. Students will be asked to dictate the quarter notes AND quarter rests in the musical example. The teacher can play this again for reinforcement (but for kids in upper grades, playing it only ONCE can be a challenge!). There are 12 examples, each one getting a little more difficult than the last! You can run this activity in many ways: - Student can write on whiteboards with dry erase markers - Pairs of students can team up in a race to spell it out - Use as a whiteboard/smartboard/IWB activity - Print out cards of quarter notes and rests and have them line it up on the floor - Any other way you find creative! Enjoy this with your class and as always, if you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment!
HAPPY FEET! (Fast, Slow, and Moderate expressive movement)
By Jason Litt
A great way to work on expressive movement with your kids is through HAPPY FEET!
In this lesson, students will hear a 4 minute and 32 second compilation of classical music, Edvard Grieg, John Philip Sousa, Dmitri Shostakovich, and more! Each piece will be played for a segment of time and while being played students will mimic the tempo by showing expressive body movement
Of course, as the music teacher you can tailor this however you like, but with social distancing in our classroom at this juncture, the motions are preferable the way they are built :)
In between each segment there may be a slight pause which students will "freeze" in time. Keep the kids' attention by saying if they moving during the silence, they're OUT! ;)
Have a great time and perform this however you wish!
Up, Down, All Around (Melodic Direction)
By Jason Litt
Your Kindergarteners and 1st Graders may understand high and low (although they may think it's loud and soft, but this is why we teach them), but can they identify it which way it travels through non-traditional notation?
In "Up, Down, All Around!", your students get a brief introduction of melody, the most important aspect of a song or piece and will venture into the lesson where they will learn to identify melodic direction.
They will be given a multiple choice selection of 3 answers and then asked to identify which answer is UP, DOWN, or is a melody that STAYS THE SAME. Advance the slide and the correct answer will illuminate green!
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You can play this one of several ways
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Play some classical music in the background, and you have a win-win!