Halloween is just around the corner ~ crazy, right??? Here is a fun activity to do with your first and/ or second graders that will bring out the ghosts and ghouls! It doesn’t take a whole lot of time and the kids get super excited about creating a Halloween themed composition. The process is simplified […]
I love giving students activities that require them to explore and analyze a problem! When they come to the answer themselves, they are more likely to remember it. A couple of weeks ago my first and second graders started asking questions and making guesses about the relationships between notes: “If 2 yellows = 1 red, […]
This year I am back to teaching each class for 30 minutes once a week and it is NOT ENOUGH TIME to teach everything, so I try to find any time at all that I can to teach something of value. No minute goes unnoticed!! Up until now I have always used some sort of […]
As we all get ready for school to start ~ some of us have already started while others have a whole month before they start ~ here are the BIG 4 MUST HAVES: Standards: we all have them, but they don’t necessarily work for us! I don’t love the layout, so I reorganized them to […]
Assessment and fun are the 2 most important words when it comes to planning the end of the school year lessons!! Games are always a “go-to”, but here is another creative idea for your students to do in 15 – 30 minutes! The best part is that it requires little to no set up and […]
I am so excited about this week’s blog post!!! I happened to come across a photo of a plastic egg filled with 2 eighths on Facebook and ideas have been popping in my head ever since! …SO MANY POSSIBILITIES!! Here are my 10 best: THE SET UP Create a 4/4 rhythm sheet (or use my […]
A few weeks ago, I discovered “William He Had 7 Sons” and realized that the rhythm was exactly the same as the “In the Hall of the Mountain King” main theme. (The latter has been in my brain lately as my five year old is obsessed with “Hair Up” from the movie Trolls!) I further […]
I am always thinking of new ways to practice the steady beat with my students. …and in this age of social distancing and virtual learning, it can be difficult. I also like to play the freeze game with my kids, but it gets old quickly! Two “problems”, one solution ~ The Steady Beat Freeze Game! […]
For the first 2 weeks back from our winter break, we went virtual. I was excited for the opportunity to sing with my kids, as I haven’t been able to thus far, and to break out my ukulele. I often hear how easy the uke is to play and use in the classroom, but I […]
It is overwhelming to think that you have to clean every single instrument that you want to use during a class so well that there is no possible way any germs are left behind ~ especially for those of us on a cart! Here are 5 instruments that I use regularly that are small enough […]