Together With Music
1. DYNAMICS GAME:
cheeky seals
Aim:
To use the cheeky seal to help the children to recognise the dynamics of quiet (piano) and loud (forte) plus explore the in between dynamics by gradually increasing and decreasing the volume.
GAME:
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Use your voice or a percussive instrument (maybe the shaker you have made) and make some noise.
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Now let's try changing our volume from quiet to loud.
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Ask someone to be the leader who holds the cheeky seal cut out. When the leader waves it high in the air it means to play LOUD!
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When the leader holds the cheeky seal low near the floor it means to play QUIET.
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Appoint new leaders or have a go yourself and explore dynamics with your family or friends online.
HAVE A GO:
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Choose some of your favourite music to dance around to playing your shaker. Try out your new dynamics throughout the song!
2. TEMPO GAME
finding cat
Aim:
To help the children learn what tempo means by playing fast or slow plus using dynamics by playing quiet and loud.
GAME:
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Use your voice or a percussive instrument (maybe the shaker you have made) and make some noise.
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Now let's try changing our speed from slow to fast.
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Go and hide the cat cut out (or use one of your own cuddly toys) in the room, house or garden.
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Ask a family member to be the finder. They will start finding cat when the music starts.
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Start to play your instrument. When the finder is getting nearer to the cat, play FASTER and LOUDER.
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When the finder is far away from the cat, play SLOWER and QUIETER.
HAVE A GO:
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Swap parts and become the finder. Choose a favourite song that you know off by heart. Sing the chorus really SLOWLY and then speed up to really FAST! See how fast you can sing it before the words start to blur!
3. MAKING MUSIC:
composing sounds
4. WRITE A SONG
pick an emotion
Aim:
To write some lyrics for a chorus of a song whilst exploring pitch (low and high sounds) composing the melody.
GAME:
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Think of an emotion or a theme to write your song. It could be a grateful song, joyful song, excited song or an angry song?
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Use the worksheet to help you write some lyrics for the chorus (the main message of your song): think of your theme/emotion and write some words that pop into your mind about it. Put into two columns labelled THINGS and FEELINGS.
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Let's add a melody: say the words back, then chant them and then rap them to see if they flow. Now add some melody by singing the lyrics adding high and low notes.
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Let's write some lyrics for the verses using the same method (setting the scene for your song).
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Now think about how to arrange your song in sections. Do you want 1 or 2 verses? How many times do you want to sing the chorus? Will there be an ending?
HAVE A GO:
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Either use this backing tracks from the emotion songs Binoculars Out or Angry Storm Clouds to create your song or create your own. Don't forget to share your song here.
Aim:
To play an improvised piece of music exploring sounds using body percussion and voice. Introduces the musical concepts of timbre (sound quality) and texture (layers of sounds).
GAME:
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Think of an emotion and think about where you would feel this emotion in your body. E.G would excited feel like butterflies in your tummy or bubbles fizzing? Would anger feel like hot flames in your cheeks?
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Now let's make a sound to match this emotion.
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Let's also find a movement to match this emotion.
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Grab some family members of friends online and ask everyone to do the same thing (find a sound and movement to match an emotion).
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Appoint a leader who points at a person in the group to play their sound/movement. Then bring in another person and another until everyone is playing.
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Listen to all the interesting sounds and have a go again picking a new emotion/sound/movement.
HAVE A GO:
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Create your own human loop pedal composition. Build the texture of the pice (different layers of sound) and select the timbres ( sound quality) carefully. Appoint a leader to bring in people one by one. The leader then points again when he wants the sound to stop. Why not add dynamics (QUIET & LOUD) and tempo (SLOW & FAST).
Make Your Own Instruments:
Ocean Drum & Shakers
OCEAN DRUM:
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Decorate your paper plates how ever you wish. I have made mine into a fish with googly eyes and a bright tail.
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Ask a grown up to help staple the two plates together but leave a little opening.
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Put inside your chosen filling (rice, lentils, beans,sand) that will make a great shaking sound.
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Place your fishes tail in the opening and then staple the two paper plates closed.
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Finish any decorations and get playing. You can TAP, SHAKE or BANG your ocean drum!
SHAKERS:
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Grab your empty toilet roll and with help from an adult staple one end shut.
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Now fill your toilet roll with your chosen filling (rice, lentils, beans,sand) that will make a great shaking sound.
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Pinch the other end of the toilet roll in the opposite direction to the first end and staple this shut with help from a grown up.
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Now decorate however you wish using tissue paper, paints, beads, fabrics, ribbons! get creative.
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You can TAP, SHAKE or BANG your shaker!
MINDFUL MUSIC: relax & breathe
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Play 'I Am Calm' backing track. Close your eyes and imagine you are lost at sea like Little Boy. What can you feel in your body? Does your body feel twitchy and tight? Do you feel wobbly in your tummy? What can you notice?
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Let's learn about breathing and singing from our diaphragm. Place one hand one your chest and one on your belly by your rib cage. Keep your eyes closed and breathe in through your nose feeling your belly rise. The hand on the chest should stay as still as possible. Breathe out through your mouth and feel your belly deflate. The hand on the chest should still remain as still as possible.
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Now practice on the out breathe making a little 'shhhhh' noise like the sea waves swishing backwards and forwards. See how long your breath can last and then take another. With every 'shhhh' sound imagine you are telling the ocean's waves to calm down.
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Let's imagine you can see Wisdom the Whale coming to rescue you. She is singing to calm you so we choose to sing back to thank her. Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth singing a gentle 'hum'. See how long this sound lasts and then take another.
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Try this with your family or friends and listen to the beautiful harmonies you have created and see how calm you feel in your body now.
CALLING TEACHERS & EDUCATORS
Why not have a go ...
If you enjoyed these activities then why not grab the WISDOM BUNDLE which contains 10 music activities, 5 art activities, 8 movement activities and INTERACTIVE SESSION PLANS plus more!
Designed to achieve the National Music Curriculum Framework.
You will receive:
1 x Big Emotions Book (Paperback)
1 x Pack of Big Emotions Flash Cards in beautiful packaging (plus PDF downloads)
1 x Pack Mindful Colouring Postcards 4 designs (plus PDF downloads)
1 x Big Emotions Song Book (A5 spiral bound)
1 x Big Emotions Pupils Handbook PDF
MP3 downloads of workshop songs
PDF downloads of worksheets
Youtube teaching and performing videos
All for the introductory offer of £34.99 (r.r.p £50).