This Week in Music

I know it has been a few weeks since I have updated this blog. I apologize for not keeping everyone informed. However, have no fear; we have still been busy in music!

Kindergarten: We have started a study of Mozart with a focus on his well- known opera, The Magic Flute. This week and next, the students will act out the story of the opera; and then create a book which highlights the characters in The Magic Flute.

1st Grade: Students are learning songs with the pitches for so, la, and mi; and they have learned some games with movements to reinforce the placement of the pitches within in the musical scale.
Students are also learning to identify the following instruments by ear: triangle, cow bell, tambourine, hand drum, wood block, and guiro.

2nd Grade: Students are learning songs which include the pitches for do, re, and mi. This week they learned the song "Buggy Ride" which is based on do, re, and mi. In addition to singing those pitches, they are also learning to notate them on the musical staff.
The students have learned a rhythmic speech piece entitled "M-A-R-C-H" about the month of March. They are learning to perform the rhythm on the hand drum while speaking the piece and while internalizing the piece (speaking it in their heads).

3rd Grade: Students are learning about the French composer, Charles-Camille Saint Saens, and his famous work, The Carnival of the Animals. The students have been on a listening scavenger hunt as they listen to the movements of the music named after animals. Saint-Saens composed the music to mimic the sounds and movements of the various animals: lions, mules, hens and roosters, fish, turtle, birds, donkeys, elephants, Cuckoo bird and swan. There are also movements representing pianists and fossils. I think the students are enjoying their journey into this great work.

4th Grade: Students have learned a silly song, "Cheesy Feet" on their recorders. They are working hard to identify the notes on the musical staff and, and then relate them back to play their recorders. This requires a great deal of concentration, so please encourage your child to work very hard on their musical skills in music each week.

5th Grade: Our Recorder Karate is still going strong. Fifteen students have achieved their recorder black belts! Once students reach the black belt level, they are asked to become peer tutors to help their classmates master the Recorder Karate songs. They also are assigned a more complex piece of music for 2 recorders, Finale Maestoso, by Johannes Brahms. We will complete our Recorder Karate unit before spring break.