March was quite a fun month! All students got a taste of Irish dancing for St. Patrick's Day, continued to learn new songs and games, and further honed their musical skills.
First Grade: In addition to practicing quarter notes and rests, and eighth notes by reading rhythms, and determining the rhythms of everyday items and food, students learned how Irish dancers, tap dancers, ballet dancers, hip hop dancers, and really, every kind of dancer makes rhythm with their whole body! Two dances we did were "Sasha" and "Heel and Toe Polka." They were full of rhythms we knew! Other songs and games we played were "Bluebells," "Four in a Boat,"and "Apples Peaches Pears..."
Second Grade: We finished up our unit on Brass Instruments, and reviewed the other instrument families, as well. Ms. Hunter brought in her tin whistle and played a bit for our special St. Patrick's Day lesson, and we danced a modified version of the Irish Ceili "The Bridge of Athlone." Other movement activities included work with Sol-Mi-Re-Do improvisation, and melodic contour identification with scarves and body scale. Students did a fabulous job playing Orff instruments with the song "Who's That Tapping." We also played a game called "Frosty Weather, " which seems to still be apropos!
Third Grade: The unit on String instruments culminated in a small project in which students designed their own original string instrument. They had a set of questions to answer in paragraph form, and drew a labeled sketch of their instrument. Those who wish to will present their instrument to the class when we return next week. Some of the already existing String instruments we looked at were the Oud, the Saz, the Sitar, and the Kora. Students performed the authentic Irish Ceili "The Siege of Ennis" in their classes 2 weeks ago, as well. String instruments, like the fiddle (aka violin), mandolin, and guitar are very popular in Irish Traditional music.
Fourth Grade/Chorus: Students are working hard and it is really paying off! Three of the songs we will include in the June Program are already learned and working towards memorization. Classes are split into "part 1," and "part 2." Each "part" will have their own special selection, which will include movement, instrument playing, and of course, singing. Students were assigned one of these things to do in their part's selection, and began practicing. One of the "skill building" activities we did to prepare for learning complex movement was the Irish Ceili "The Harvest Time Jig."
Second Grade: We finished up our unit on Brass Instruments, and reviewed the other instrument families, as well. Ms. Hunter brought in her tin whistle and played a bit for our special St. Patrick's Day lesson, and we danced a modified version of the Irish Ceili "The Bridge of Athlone." Other movement activities included work with Sol-Mi-Re-Do improvisation, and melodic contour identification with scarves and body scale. Students did a fabulous job playing Orff instruments with the song "Who's That Tapping." We also played a game called "Frosty Weather, " which seems to still be apropos!
Third Grade: The unit on String instruments culminated in a small project in which students designed their own original string instrument. They had a set of questions to answer in paragraph form, and drew a labeled sketch of their instrument. Those who wish to will present their instrument to the class when we return next week. Some of the already existing String instruments we looked at were the Oud, the Saz, the Sitar, and the Kora. Students performed the authentic Irish Ceili "The Siege of Ennis" in their classes 2 weeks ago, as well. String instruments, like the fiddle (aka violin), mandolin, and guitar are very popular in Irish Traditional music.
Fourth Grade/Chorus: Students are working hard and it is really paying off! Three of the songs we will include in the June Program are already learned and working towards memorization. Classes are split into "part 1," and "part 2." Each "part" will have their own special selection, which will include movement, instrument playing, and of course, singing. Students were assigned one of these things to do in their part's selection, and began practicing. One of the "skill building" activities we did to prepare for learning complex movement was the Irish Ceili "The Harvest Time Jig."