Marvelous Music Map Making!

Lesson #5: Sally Go Round the Sun

Yesterday I made another visit out to Spanish Oaks Elementary! Our lesson today was centered around the short and simple song "Sally Go Round the Sun." I was taught this lesson by Dr. Brittney May in one of my Music Education classes at BYU. So instead of being the student, this time I was the teacher!

Song + Movement

The students gathered in as large of a circle as the classroom would permit and I taught them this song. The lyrics are:

Sally go round the sun,

Sally go round the moon, 

Sally go round the chimney pot

every afternoon--boom!

After singing through the song once, I picked three students to stand in the middle of the circle. Each student held a piece of paper with one of the objects in the song drawn on it (a sun, a moon, a chimney pot). I sang the song and while I sang, walked around each student (going "round" the sun, moon, and chimney pot). When I got to "boom!", I was standing back in my original spot in the circle of students. 

Next the students got to sing and move along with me. I chose children by birthday months to make sure everyone got a turn in the middle.

Mini-Preposition Lesson:

Next I suggested to the class that maybe we could substitute a different word for "round." One child suggested "over." So then the students holding the objects laid down on the floor while other students sang:

Sally go over the sun,

Sally go over the moon,

Sally go over the chimney pot

every afternoon--boom!

 One student correctly identified "round" and "over" as a preposition! If we had more time, we would have done more playing around with changing out prepositions.

Making the Map

Students then sat in their circles and I reminded them of two weeks ago when we all followed the Harry Potter music map. I told them today they would be creating a map kind of like that using "Sally Go Round the Sun."

Each student received a whiteboard to write on, a piece of paper, and a marker. I showed them how to draw an 'X' in the top left corner of their paper--this is where their map would begin. They would start their map there and then would move their marker continuously on the paper until the song ended. We practiced once with tracing our finger and then did the real thing. Later on, the students traced their maps and then added in pictures of the sun, the moon, and the chimney pot in accordance to where they happened in the song. Here are some examples of what the kids came up with:

Switch-er-roo

Next the students were to swap papers with their neighbors and would trace their neighbors' maps. This was a lesson for me. I instructed the students to pass their papers one person to the right. This was much more of a difficult task than I anticipated it would be: I learned to always make sure everyone knows which way is right to begin with. :) Eventually the kids were able to trace another map besides their own!

Conclusion:

The students learned a new song, did movement to the song, and then created a music map for it. Creating the map required that they listened to the general melody and shape of the melody. We briefly talked as a class how the maps they made were different from one another. Although all the students heard the same song being sung, different people interpret and visualize music differently--in a way that makes the most sense to them.

M&Ms: Math & Music

Lesson #4: Addition, Body Percussion, & Instruments

Today at Spanish Oaks Elementary we began with reviewing 4-digit addition. I wrote three math problems on the board, and the students solved these problems in their math notebooks. For each problem, a student came to the white board and showed how he or she had solved the problem. 

Then I asked for the students' help to identify the:

• thousands column
• hundreds column
• tens column
• ones column

As the students identified which column was which, I put a box around that column.

Each column, I explained, would be assigned a different body percussion. As now shown below:

In this way, the answer to every math problem becomes a kind of song or composition. This one would consist of 3 snaps, 2 claps, 1 pat, and 6 stomps. I modeled how this should be done--keeping an even beat and counting out loud while we snapped/clapped/patted/stomped.

After the kids got the hang of this, we then performed the whole equation (1862 + 1354 = 3216) with the same body percussion as before.

Group Activity:

Next the class was split into four groups. Each group was assigned a different addition problem to first solve and then to practice as a group to soon perform in front of the class. They did this!

Body Percussion to Instruments:

I then erased the snaps/claps/pats/stomps markings I had written on the whiteboard and replaced them with these words: claves, triangles, sand blocks, and Chinese balls. What do these words all have in common? They are all percussion instruments!

The instruments were handed out to all of the students (they got to play their instruments as much as they liked while this was going on). After going over rules about the instruments, I explained how now each column would be played by one specific instrument. To simplify things, on the whiteboard I drew symbols that represented each of the instruments (clave=stars, triangles=circles, sand blocks=squares, Chinese balls=hearts).

We then played the equations using our instruments!

It was a fun time!

Music Standards Met:

3.M.P.8; 3.M.P.11

Music Mapping

 Lesson #3: A Music Map!

This week at Spanish Oaks elementary we began exploring music maps!

For our first activity, I showed the class I drawing I had done of my neighborhood. I pointed out places in my neighborhood that were important to me and that I had put little stars next to (my house, my friends' house, my church). The students then had about five minutes to create a map of their own neighborhood.

Class Discussion:

Then as a class we talked about some of the purposes of a map. Some of the things we came up with were:

• Maps show others where to go (could help a friend get to my house)
• Maps have symbols on them that represent something (little boxes represent houses, stores, and so forth)
• Maps show distance (e.g., how far away my house is from the neighborhood park)
• Maps aren't always 100% accurate--they are interpretations
• Maps show a specific place or location (or a specific neighborhood)

The students' maps were all unique and creative in their own way. Here is just a couple of them!

The Music Map:

Next I hung up on the board what is called a music map. This map "maps" out a song--using symbols, lines, and shapes to depict the different melodies throughout the song. I stood by the music map and as the song played, I traced my finger along each of the lines and symbols. The class was silent during this process! 

The song we used is from the movie soundtrack "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets." (I chose this song and created this map in mind of this class--their classroom decoration has a Harry Potter theme.) Here is a link to the song as well as a close-up picture of the music map itself. 

"Book 2: Prologue and the Escape from the Dursleys"

Then I invited the kids to all put their fingers in the air and trace along with me.

Next I asked what the kids noticed about this map. Many students shared musical insights that they had noticed while listening and watching the map.

Some of their observations included:

• The map followed the melody in the song
• Symbols/lines in the map showed if sounds were short/long, slow/fast, and soft/loud
• Some parts were repeated in the song
• Lines showed whether the melody went up or down

Tie-In:

At this point, we revisited the class discussion we had earlier about the purposes of map. We talked about how this music map, although visually looks different than the neighborhood maps they drew, has the same functions as a regular map.

Music maps also can:

• Show a listener where the melody goes throughout a song
• Contain symbols that represent sounds, timbres, dynamics, tempos, and melodies
• Show distance (how far away different themes in the song are from one another)
• Are not 100% accurate--are interpretations!
• Show a specific song (using this map with another song would not be effective)

For the last activity, we listened to the song again and the kids were told to stand up and to use their bodies to follow along with what the music was doing (instead of just tracing with their finger). I traced for them and they did some movement (some of which was quite entertaining to watch)!

Music Standards Met:

3.M.P.5; 3.M.R.1

Water Glass Music-Making

Lesson #2: Using the Scientific Process

With my second week at Spanish Oaks Elementary, we used the scientific process to answer a question about the pitches these water glasses would make!

1. The Scientific Process

All students received a handout that listed the steps within the scientific process. Together as a class we went through each of the steps:

• Purpose/Question
• Research
• Hypothesis
• Experiment
• Data/Analysis
• Conclusion

Our scientific experiment involved the five water glasses shown above. Each of the identical glasses are filled up with different amounts of water (with food coloring). The students were asked to make a hypothesis about if all the glasses would make the same pitch when hit by a metal spoon. If they thought the glasses would make different pitches, then which glass would create the highest pitch and which glass would create the lowest pitch.

After experimenting, the kids made the conclusion that the blue glass (that contained the most water) made the lowest pitch, and the purple glass (which contained the least amount of water) made the highest pitch.

2. Further Experimenting/ Music-Making

Next I used the water glasses and a spoon to play a melody for the kids. They each raised their hands when they recognized which song it was (Mary Had a Little Lamb). These glasses form an E Major scale (do, re, mi, fa, & sol). I added another tiny glass which then became 'la.' Then each student got a turn to come up and help play a common children's song (while they rest of the class listened and guessed which song it was). 

Because of the setup of the glasses, each student knew it was their turn to play when I lightly tapped the top of their head (which I did with student permission). We played through several songs: Mary Had a Little Lamb; Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star; It's Raining, and London Bridge is Falling Down (the latter being the trickiest for the kids to recognize). 

This was a fun activity that caused the students to think, listen, and participate! We could have spent many more minutes playing around with our little water-glass-ensemble!

Music Standards Met: 

3.M.P.11

Side Note:

The students thought I was so cool because I went around the room and listed off all of their names (which I had memorized using the class roster).

                                             #ProudTeacherMoment

Music + Grammar

Lesson #1: Recognizing Verbs,   Adjectives, and Nouns 

This marks a new semester! I am now teaching at Spanish Oaks Elementary in a fun classroom of third graders. After a short getting-to-know-you activity, here it what we did!

Opening Activity:

First we all learned the first verse of the simple song "Buffalo Gals."

Similar Recording of Buffalo Gals

Then we added movement/actions that illustrated individual words in the song. Words like: "walking," "street," "gal," "see," "buffalo gals," "dance,' and "moon" to name a few. I suggested actions for the first half of the song, and the students enthusiastically created actions for the second half. We performed the song several times with all these actions!

Application Time:

For the application part of the lesson, the students returned to their desk and helped me write the lyrics to the songs on the whiteboard. Then I asked students to raise their hands and tell me which words involved "doing something." The kids supplied the answers, I underlined them in a different color, and then pointed out that these words are VERBS.

Next I did the same thing with all of the NOUNS and then ADJECTIVES in the song. 

Then we returned back to our standing circle and performed the song again. But this time, the students were instructed to only do the actions for the verbs and to omit the other actions. It was easy for the students (and me) to get carried away and do all of the actions unless we were really thinking!

Lastly, we returned to looking at the lyrics on the whiteboard. I erased a verb here, an adjective there, a noun there--leaving the underlined colors that showed what kind of word it had been. Then the students suggested words to go in those blank places--creating different lyrics. We then sang this version as a class one last time!

Music Standards Met:

3.M.P.10; 3.M.CR.2

Lesson #9: Musical Game & Creating a Song

December 21st: Musical Memory Challenge

To begin this lesson, I reminded the students of the music map that we looked at last time for the Overture in "The Marriage of Figaro" by Mozart. I showed the music map again on the projector with the help of three volunteer students. Then each student received a ziploc bag that contained the same music map--just cut into pieces that were phrases or sections in the music. They were to piece the music map back together by remembering what shapes/symbols represented which musical phrases (without having the music map on the projector for reference). This was kind of like a musical puzzle! I was impressed that about 75% of the class completed this within five minutes, some with no difficulty at all! The students then got to listen to the song one more time, following along with the music map on their desk--switching around any phrases that were out of place. 

Creating a Class Rap:

For our second (and final) activity, we created a class rap. I told the students that our rap could be about anything they have learned this semester in school (both musical and non-musical things). Students made several suggestions, most of which were some of the musical activities we had done together. Then the students worked together to come up with sentences that fit within 8-measure phrases. Here is the rap that the class created! 

Hey, we are the Fox Hollow Sixth grade class,

I don’t wanna cut the grass, I wanna see stained glass.

We listened to the troll song, tho it wasn’t very long,

It was a really weird song, but it sounded like King Kong.

Joseph was in jail, eatin’ bread that’s stale,

But that just makes us wonder why Joseph didn’t bail.

There was a baby travelin' down a river,

Pharoah’s wife went walkin’ and saw him thither.

There was a Greek who was a freak and his hair was on fleek,

This is our rap, and it sounds pretty sweet!

The lyrics from the second, third, and fourth section are related to some of our musical lessons we have had--listening to "Peer Gynt and the Mountain King," and watching clips from "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" as well as "The Prince of Egypt." The class also has been learning about stained glass in art class and Greek people in another. The class would have loved to have written more if there had been more time!

We performed the rap with a backtrack that I had found. We used the sistrums to keep the beat while we rapped.

Listen to the rap backtrack

Wrap-up:

And that was the end of our class! This was sadly my last time teaching in the ARTS Bridge program. I have loved this opportunity and I will miss teaching these wonderful sixth graders! I was surprised to receive a goodbye-card from the class. I wish them the best!

Music Standards Met:

6.M.CR.3

6.M.P.5

6.M.R.1

6.M.R.6

6.M.CR.4

Lesson #8: Music Map!

December 19th: Creating and Following a Music Map

Today we began class by singing the Hebrew song we learned last class period--"Ha'Sukkah Mah Yafah." After reviewing the song, I asked the class to put a finger in the air and pretend to draw along with the flow of the music while we sang the song several more times. Then I directed all the students to draw an "X" on their papers. This "X" marked where the beginning of the song would be. As we sang it this time, the students drew on their papers how they thought the music flowed. The students' drawings were all different, but most of the lines were similar in that the beginning of the song started lower, then rose to a peak, and then fell back down. We then put this aside for a couple of minutes.

I pulled up on my projector several pictures of random sheet music--a piano piece and a song for the recorder (the students have been learning to play the recorder with their regular music teacher). I explained this kind of music notation is familiar to us. Oral tradition is another way to record and pass on music (like how the Ancient Egyptians would have done before music was notated). Then I showed a picture of a music map. This is kind of notation that is different in that it does not show the regular notes, staves, key signatures, and so on. The class had just barely drawn a mini version of a music map, but this one is much more complex! This music map is for the Overture in "The Marriage of Figaro," an opera by Mozart. 

With this map shown on the projector, I held a pointing stick to follow the music map while we listened to the piece. For the second listening of the song, the students joined in following the map with their finger in the air. The kids were so quiet and focused! Then we split the song/music map into three chunks and had three students come up and follow along during their assigned chunk. The students were really enthusiastic about this and several students participated at the front of the classroom. 

Afterwards I asked the class what might some advantages be from using a music map instead of regular notation. About ten hands went up--all the students had good comments! We talked about expressive qualities: tempo, dynamics, style. We talked about the melody as well as form. The class caught some small little details and were excited to share them! A couple students even mentioned what instruments were playing when I asked about specific sections. This was a really fun lesson that the kids and I enjoyed!

Music Standards Met:

6.M.R.1

6.M.R.2

6.M.R.6

6.M.P.8

6.M.P.5

6.M.CR.3