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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!
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
Trying to wean the kids off of the letter names but want to do it easily? Start with a warmup! In "Super Simple Recorder Warmups", you'll receive 25 4-beat exercises designed to warmup your kids while working on quarter and half note patterns.
Use the background accompaniment tracks if you wish (ranging from 80bpm to 117bpm) and reinforce the notes of the staff and rhythms throughout before heading into your recorder activity!
Included in this version are the recorder notes, G, A, B, and C
By Jason Litt
The ultimate Boys vs Girls competition! If you're working on notes of the treble clef staff, this is a fun way for kids to competitively spell them out. First, we made a boys side (on the left of the screen) and girls side on the (on the right). A word will appear and the students have 10 seconds to spell the word out (there is a timer attached to the powerpoint and it will count down as soon as the slide appears). This games works best on a whiteboard that has magnetic backing as I print out notes and have the kids race as fast as they can to put them on. After the kids lock in their answer, the next slide reveals the notes. For notes that have F's and E's, the answer key has both top line, top space notes -- those F's and E's both count! :) Some are easy (CAB, DAB, DAD), some get a little tricky (BECCA, CABBAGE, DECADE) and so on. Towards the end they repeat, and feel free to edit and make your own! Have fun with this and if you have any questions, let me know!
Wreck it Rhythm! (Level 2 - Whole and Half Notes)
By Jason Litt
Based on the new movie, Wreck it Ralph, a new Disney/Pixar Movie coming out in November about a video game character, Wreck-it Ralph, who has been doing the same job for 30 years... Which is basically wrecking a building into pieces with his fists. Wreck-it Rhythm is a music game where you’re going to get to destroy a fictitious dilapidated 29th street beat building Ralph is fueled by Rhythm, and the class is the one to give it to him... Read a variety of rhythms on the screen below in a variety of different ways... Everyone will receive a pair of lummi sticks and when you see the rhythm, you will play that rhythm on the correct area (H, M, K) If the entire class plays the rhythm correctly, you will start destroying those bricks! (just advance the powerpoint) For quarter and eighths, have the students click together the rhythm sticks normally, but for wholes I have them hit it, swing it back, and swing it up (and count to 4 at the same time). For halves, I have them hit it normally but rebound from the sticks and say "SLO - MO" (half note duration). You can find neat ways for them to count these whole notes and half notes too! Gets the kids REALLY engaged! They try to get the highest score! Put some 8-bit music on with a MM = 120 or less Enjoy!
By Jason Litt
This is a competitive pitch matching name in powerpoint format. The learning goal is for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students to name pitches as fast as they can. We usually play this game 'around the world' style. We start off on the left side or right side of the the room and the first two people stand up and you flash a note on the screen. The student who gets the note correct gets to move onto the next child in the class while the other student sits. That student has to make their way through the entire class before being deemed champion... but they could be beat at ANY TIME! You can mix it up, left side, right side, boys/girls, etc. Kids get ultra competitive, especially in 5th grade.
Boom and Response (Call and Response for Boomwhackers!)
By Jason Litt
Getting your students to improve on rhythm and melody can't be any easier with "Boom and Response"!
In this resource, there are 3 tracks totally 5 minutes that you can play for your students (and repeat if necessary). Each track is a specific amount of beats for the "Call" (4 beats, 6 beats, or 8 beats) with the same amount of empty beats that follow directly after -- and thats where you students submit their "Response"
You can utilize this in one of several ways:
Or any other crazy way you may think!
Have a great time with this!
By Jason Litt
We got notes, yes we do, missing notes, all the way through! This is terrific on reinforcing aural training in the upper elementary students. Students are to listen to a short phrase of music made up of 5-9 beats. The music will be displayed on the powerpoint with several beats missing. Their job? Fill them in! I cut out paired eighths, quarters, and half notes and allow them to build them out on the floor and see if they can dictate what I'm playing. Only difference between regular dictation is there are a few cheaters in... but as we go through the examples (10 included), more beats disappear. Fill 'em in! If you have any questions or comments, you know where to leave 'em! Enjoy!
By Jason Litt
Learning the notes of the treble clef staff couldn't be more fun... and exhausting! In Presto Pitches - Rally Race, students are to stand behind a line in the music room (designated by the teacher). The teacher will control the powerpoint and advance the slide where a note "letter" will appear (A, C, Line E, Space F, etc) The student will be equipped with a laminated and magnetized cut out circle (you can make this yourself or they can use a dry erase marker, or some other implement) and race to the board to place the circle on the correct line or space that reflects the answer After their answer is locked in, the teacher advances the slide and the correct answer is shown. The team which answers first remains, and the team who answers second will have to pass off their circle to the next team member. Who wins first?! Ultra competitive! You can split it up boys vs girls, team 1 vs team 2, colors vs colors, however you wish! As the teacher, you can have them use any material, a "dot", "circle", "x", or simple note that's printed out. It just has to stick to the projection screen or whiteboard :) All up to you! Enjoy Presto Pitches - Rally Race, and if you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them!
To Tell the Truth! (* Distance Learning Approved! *)
By Jason Litt
Can your kids tell the difference between what rhythm is shown and what rhythm is played? Test it out with To Tell the Truth!
Students will see a rhythm on the screen and then a rhythm will be played. Does the rhythm played match the rhythm on the powerpoint? Students will use popsicle sticks (or whiteboard or can do it individually at the screen) to show their answers and the answer will then appear on the screen as you advance in the powerpoint - True or **False!**8 musical examples are included with 4 beat all the way to 7 beat patterns of Quarter and 2 paired Eighth Note rhythms.
By Jason Litt
So you've taught your kids their three basic solfege syllables (Sol, La, and Mi) and looking for a way to identify the pitches in an interactive game... look no further!
In Solfege Drag 'n Drop, students are challenged to identify Sol, La, and Mi in a series of musical examples. A static example of quarter notes (in groups of 4, 5, or 6) are placed on the "Sol" line, and then the example is played. Students will have to take the pen from the IWB to drag the remaining notes to reflect what was heard in the musical example. It can be dragged above to the "La" line, remain on the "Sol" line, or dragged below to the "Mi" line. After locking in their answer, the teacher will advance to the next slide to reveal their answer.
Although designed for an IWB, students can play on personal dry erase boards, on staff paper, or however you wish. You can even split the class up boys vs girls, team 1 vs team 2, etc, and have a race to identify the correct answer first.
There are 15 examples in the powerpoint ranging from beginner (4 quarter notes) to advanced (6 quarter notes). All examples are MM=100 or below
If you have any questions, please feel free to comment below! Happy Solfeging!
Rhythm Lineup 2.0, great for Aural Theory (* Distance Learning Approved! *)
By Jason Litt
Quarter and Eighth Note pairs are the foundational elements of elementary music -- let's work on our aural skills with **Rhythm Lineup 2.0!
**Students will have a baggie of cards (or alternatively they can write them down on a whiteboard or make their own cards) and hear a rhythm played. They will have to use their cards and place the cards down on the floor in the order that they are heard.
After the example is played, I usually give them another listen to 'check their work' or go back and fill in the missing gaps. Then on the next powerpoint slide, the answer appears one beat by one beat. Check your answer and celebrate if you got it correct!
Can be applied for distance learning as well! Kids can just use sticky notes and write down three eighth note pairs and 4 quarter note pairs and play along!
Included are 10 examples with brass and woodwind instruments. Have a great time!
Stick it to the Rhythm - Part II!
By Jason Litt
In Stick it to the Rhythm, we used popsicle sticks to identify quarter and eighth note notation in our classrooms. What happened if we didn't give the kids a blank slate and they had to use eyes, ears, and minds? In this follow-up, "Stick it to the Rhythm Part II", students are instructed to put a number of sticks on the floor (6 to 12 'quarter notes') and will listen to a musical example made up of quarter and eighth notes. They are then to interpret that example and use the last sticks and place them where they think they heard the eighth notes... In essence, they are taking the quarter notes at the end of the phrase and making them into eighth notes by beaming the quarter notes together -- this will really get your kids thinking! There are 10 examples (all with an 8 beat count off to establish tempo) and the examples range from easy to difficult with the mp3 embedding into the file. Have a great time and let me know what you think in the comments :) As always, any questions or concerns, you know where to find me!
Triplets Rhythm Lesson Using Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother, Too?
By Creating Musical Literature
Use this lesson based off of Eric Carle's book to teach triplets to your students. Use the chant every time that the book asks the question of whether or not a certain animal has a mother. Students can keep a steady beat, play the rhythm or do both, depending on the grade level. Can also be used to reinforce rhythm vs. steady beat. Additional worksheet provides practice in writing triplets. Adaptable for grades PreK-3rd grade. Perfect for a Mother's Day themed lesson!
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By Jason Litt
*** UPDATED: Revised the powerpoint and added Treble Clef to all slides! *** The lines and spaces of the staff have never been more competitive! A new form of a Jeopardy, the follow-up from the "Instrument Jeopardy" is NOTATION Jeopardy! An authentic jeopardy game board with categories for Treble Clef Notation Levels 1, 2, 3, and 4 on the title slide. Students can elect to pick $200, $400, $600, $800, or $1000 answers. After clicking on the amount, the answer (a clue relating to the word) will appear on the next slide. Level 1 starts out easy with 3 to 4 letter words, but as we progress into Level 4, the words get a little more trickier -- along with the skips and steps between the lines and spaces! After the money is awarded (You can split sides of your class, boys vs girls, class vs class, however you want it!), there is a link in the bottom right hand corner to go back to the title screen and game board. Email me at jasonlitt@gmail.com or leave a comment if you have any questions. Happy Jeopardy...ing!
Meant to Be - Play Along Percussion (Drumming/Bucket Drumming)
By Jason Litt
Need to connect with your kids with their pop music through general music? Involve them in play along percussion with tubanos, djembes, tambourines, and more with "Meant to Be" by Bebe Rexha and Florida-Georgia Line! There are three all-color coded slides along with the form identifiers listed next to each phrase (and the answer key in the first slide, just in case you wanted to tie this into an Identify Form in Pop Music lesson) :) Discuss form with the students and teach them (by rote) the rhythms on the powerpoint with the corresponding repeats (most are repeated 4, 6, or 8 times). Then, apply it to drums, tambourines, and hand claps! This is an all rote notation powerpoint and most are quarter and two eighth rhythms. There is one two sixteenth-eighth passage in a few of the slides to give the kids a little more challenge at a slow tempo. Your metronome marking for this piece is around 74BPM to the quarter note. Here's the track so you can play along... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOP5HrIkTrA Have a terrific time!
Boom Oops Boom! (Poison Rhythm/Poison Pattern)
By Jason Litt
One of the favorite end-of-the-year (or even beginning-of-the-year) activities for the kids to get them sight reading and of course, keeping their eyes and ears out for one of those DEADLY Poison Rhythms/Poison Patterns! Boom Oops Boom! takes students through 78 slides and 5 levels of Boomwhacker sight reading. Students will play a variety of rhythms as the teacher scrolls through the slides. Each slide contains one rhythm they will play and after advancing to the next slide, you can elect to give them a 4 beat or 2 beat prep to read the next rhythm, whichever works for you. The less prep they have, the better because... there will be one rhythm (the poison rhythm, poison pattern, or OOPS! rhythm as we'll call it) that students DO NOT play! If they do, they're out of the game. Students learn the rhythm before the round is played. Be careful or you will be ELIMINATED! You can play this in teams, colors, chords, however you wish! There are 5 background grooves that go from 80 bpm to 120 bpm to challenge your kids as they go through the levels. Levels begin with 4 beat rhythms and end with 6 beat rhythms with rests, quarter notes, and 2 eighth note patterns. Have a great time with this!
Who am I -- Identifying Music Terminology!
By Jason Litt
Was that Presto or Largo? Staccato or Tenuto? Forte or Piano? Use "Who am I" to reinforce the music terminology you've been working on in your class! After a brief review, 6 musical examples will be played with all examples ascribing to either Presto or Largo, Staccato or Tenuto, and Forte or Piano. Students can do this in a variety of ways: -- On whiteboards and dry erase markers -- Through collaborative grouping or partner activity (using pre-cut cards as an idea -- On a SMARTboard or brightlink -- As a race (maybe boys vs girls, side A vs side B) After the example is played, you can advance the slide in the powerpoint to reveal the answer! If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to leave a comment in the Q&A or email me at jasonlitt@gmail.com!
Mystery Word! - Student Printables
By Jason Litt
Working on the lines of the treble clef staff? Here's a fun way to have your students use their knowledge and solve a puzzle with Mystery Word! The Mystery Word package includes 50 challenging words and/or phrases that are spelled using the musical letters (A,B,C,D,E,F, and G) of the treble clef staff. Blank letter boxes are below the note on the staff for the students to fill in. Some words and phrases are easy, but some get pretty difficult! Included are three files: The teacher version, a PDF file with 50 pages in PDF format to use as a class activity. The student version, a PDF file you can print out with 25 pages, 2 puzzles to each page you can individual give to students. (If printed out and copied back-to-back, it only runs 13 pages per booklet) The answer key (just in case a substitute teacher needs it) ;) You can use this as a warmup to your lesson, or a lesson in itself -- it makes a great substitute teacher plan as well! It gets kids to critically think about the lines of the staff to fill in the blanks... my kids love it as it's fun and challenging. Would love to hear feedback how it's working in your classrooms. Any questions, you know where to find me. Have fun!
Instrument Pick-em (* Distance Learning Approved! *)
By Jason Litt
Reviewing the families of instruments with your kids? In Instrument Pick-em, students will hear a musical example of a woodwind, brass, percussion, or string instrument. They will then see a multiple choice listing of an assortment of instruments. They will then have to decide which instrument on the screen best matches the example being played.
Great for class, boy vs girl, individually assigned, or even for Distance Learning!
Have a great time with this and let us know how it goes in the comments :)