Week of December 5 - 9

Thank you to all of the families who came here on Saturday to sing carols and attend the Ivy Hill gift shop!!  Your music was excellent and put everyone in the holiday spirit!

Kindergarten - We are learning a Raffia song called baby Beluga!  In addition, the children are learning a song that has become an Ivy Hill tradition, "Light the Candles All Around the World."

2nd Grade - We are previewing the 2nd grade show this week.  It is called "BUGZ!" We are listening to the songs and talking about speaking parts and costumes.

3rd Grade - We had a little fun with two instrumental pieces this week.  The first was Leroy Anderson's "Sleighride" and the other was Vince Guaraldi's "Linus and Lucy".

4th Grade - We are doing a mini unit on Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite.

5th Grade - Our focus this week is on understanding basic chords.  The children improvised on the 3 chords used in Jingle Bells.  

Week of November 14 - 18

Kindergarten - We are working on memorizing a few songs for the springtime Kindergarten show.  In addition, I read/sang a silly book to the children that has the melody of "I Know an Old Lady who Swallowed a Fly."  This Thanksgiving book is called "I Know an Old Lady who Swallowed a Pie."

2nd Grade - We enjoyed a couple of fun Thanksgiving songs called "The Turkey Tango" and "Mashed Potatoes!"  We also learned a very old song called "She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain."  Reading this song in the music books game the children a chance to practice reading verses.

3rd Grade - We learned a Thanksgiving Rap this week.  One line in the song refers to football and marching bands.  This gave me the opportunity to show a video of the Ohio State marching band to the children.  It's so impressive to watch as these college students play their memorized music while marching in such cool formations!

4th Grade - We are watching one of my favorite movies this week!  "Beethoven Lives Upstairs".  While it is historical fiction, it accurately portrays Beethoven's personality and his music.

5th Grade - We took care of a lot of business this week.  Students tried on sample sizes of t-shirts to select their size and they proofread their names as they will appear on the back of the t-shirt.

I wish you all a very wonderful Thanksgiving!!

Week of November 7 - 11

All classes have been preparing for our Veteran's Day songs!  They have learned about the meaning and history behind our country's National Anthem and have done a nice job of memorizing this 202 year old poem!  They have polished up the sign language and melody for "God Bless America", and have learned a touching song that thanks Veterans.

God Bless America!

Week of October 31 - November 4

Kindergarten - We are preparing for Veteran's Day with patriotic songs and John Phillip Sousa marching band music!

2nd - 5th Grades - We are all getting ready for our very first Veteran's Day assembly!  All of these students are learning about our National Anthem.  In addition, we are brushing up on "God Bless America" and we are learning a new song called "Proud of Our Veterans."

I have a Veteran's Day wall of of fame in my room.  I invite all students who have a United States Veteran in their family to bring a picture for me to post on this wall.  It is a privilege for me to honor these brave Americans by displaying their pictures.  It makes Veteran's Day much more meaningful for our students!

God Bless America!

Week of October 24 - 28

Kindergarten - We had fun playing lots of small percussion instruments this week!  We used them to enhance a Halloween story.

2nd Grade - These children are doing a great job at applying music concepts to new songs.  For example, they know how to apply dynamics, rhythms and canon form to songs and poems.  Their ability to read rhythms has also impressed me.

3rd Grade - Today is recording day!  They are finally ready to perform their competition song!  I will share a private YouTube link with you once I am done editing.

4th Grade - Congratulations!!!  These students did a wonderful job performing "Compose Yourself!"  The film footage and photos have turned out nicely!  I will work hard to get the DVD made quickly.

5th Grade - We are in the final days of our composition projects.  I am really proud of these children.  They've worked together in small groups with creativity and cooperation, and they've created great music together!

Week of October 17 - 21

Kindergarten - We are having fun experiencing music concepts with Fall and Halloween songs.  I introduced the children to more of our classroom instruments by using them as sound effects in a story.  Next week, they get to play them!

2nd Grade - The students are learning about dynamics, which is the music word for volume.  They are applying them in a scarecrow song and adding them to the Halloween poem they created last week.

3rd Grade - We had some fun playing Boomwhackers this week!

4th Grade - We are rehearsing hard on the stage and have been adding props to the choreography. It's both fun and intense!  We had a surprise visit by Dr. Bein, our superintendent, during a rehearsal on the stage.  She was very complimentary!

5th Grade - These students are becoming wonderful composers!  I am so impressed with their ability to add more layers of difficulty to their creations.  Please look on Twitter for a few videos.

Thank you for stopping by to say hello at our Open House!

Week of October 11 - 14

Kindergarten - The children were introduced to minor music.  We sang a couple of Halloween songs to experience the spooky sound of minor music and compared it to the happy sound of major music.

2nd Grade - Last week I taught the children a cute poem about pumpkins.  We added movement and performed it as a 4 part round.  This week the students worked together and created their own classroom poem.  We added movement, showed the rhythm using notes and rests, and did it as a 2 part round.  This was a fun activity!

3rd Grade - We are now polishing our dance moves before I record the students for our upcoming competition.  In addition, we are comparing an old version and a new version of the song "Dry Bones." The conversations have been interesting!

4th Grade - I sent home a bright green sheet with all of the song lyrics to our show.  I'm hopeful that the children will practice at home and get everything memorized!  I also sent home a letter that includes costume information and the performance time.  A copy of this letter can be found on this blog under the 4th grade show tab.

5th Grade - The students have been composing together.  This project started with rhythms that the students created and performed on our classroom drums.  From there they turned their rhythms into melodies and performed them on Orff instruments.  They are now in the process of adding harmony to their music.  The music is wonderful and so unique!

Week of September 26 - 30

Kindergarten - We fill every minute with musical activities!  We sing, dance and play drums.  The students are continuing to experience the elements of music and we are getting to know each other.

2nd Grade - This week we used Mega Blocks to show rhythm patterns.  The children read rhythms, created their own, and played them on our drums.

3rd Grade - We are now learning the dance for our competition song called "Be a Friend".  we also had fun playing our birthdays rhythms on the drums!

4th Grade - The cast list was posted on Monday and lunch recess rehearsals have started.  What an amazing group of kids!!  In class, we are making sure that songs are memorized and we are learning choreography.

5th Grade - Using a drumming ensemble as a model, the students are creating their own ensembles and performing them.  In addition, we are in the process of designing and voting for 5th grade t-shirts.

Week of September 19 - 23

Kindergarten - We are continuing to experience the fundamentals of music through sining, dancing and playing drums. Beat, echo, high, low, fast and slow are now familiar vocabulary words.

2nd Grade - We have been focusing on understanding the difference between beat and rhythm.  This week we added music notation to see the difference.  They are continuing to to sing beautifully and drum more challenging patterns.

3rd Grade - We are focusing on learning a song for an upcoming competition.  The students are reading music and learning about repeat signs, first endings and second endings.  They are applying these concepts while reading rhythms and playing them on the drums.

4th Grade - Auditions are almost done.  I will be posting the cast list on Monday.  Thank you to the parents who have offered to help with costumes and scenery!

5th Grade - This week we analyzed a familiar drum ensemble and notated it.  Now the students are creating their own 3 part drumming ensemble.  Videos will be posted soon!

Week of September 12 - 16

Kindergarten - We continue to explore our music words with fun songs and dances.  These words include echo, beat, fast, slow, high and low.  The children used our big world drums this week, too!

2nd Grade - This week we focused on feeling the difference between steady beat and rhythm.  We also practiced spelling the words!

3rd Grade - These students are continuing to polish a difficult drumming ensemble.  We are starting to learn a wonderful song called "Be a Friend".  The 3rd graders will be learning this song and a dance for a competition to be in a mash-up video.

4th Grade - We are continuing to practice for our upcoming show "Compose Yourself".  Auditions for speaking, singing and rapping parts will be held in my room during lunch recess next week.

5th Grade - I gave some students the opportunity to lead the class in our rhythm and vocal exercises.  It was both difficult and fun!