Month: December 2019

Twelve Days of Orff – Day 8

For the remainder of the ‘Twelve Days of Orff”, I will be giving you previews of products I am going to be using in my classroom beginning in January.

Our grade 3’s look forward every year to learning how to play the recorder. I haven’t found the “perfect” recorder resource so I created my own.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Lets-Play-Recorder-Level-1-4939782

I wanted a resrouce with engaging visuals.

I wanted clear, easy to read directions and information. We have french immersion students and late bloomers in our literacy programs so keeping it simple was important.

My students are very capable rhythmic readers but they are still learning how to read staff notation. I wanted a resource that started without staff notation. It is super challenging to learn:

Hand position

Finger Numbers

How to hold the recorder

How to cover the holes

Embouchure

Gentle Air

Tonguing

It’s a lot for an 8 year old.  I wanted to keep it simple to secure good playing techniques.

After song #2, I review how to draw notes on the staff.

They do have to learn how to read fluently. I do not believe using “Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge” or “F A C E “ is promoting music literacy. I am also a literacy specialist, so I understand how children use different meaning, syntax and visual sources of information. It is the same in music. Our brain needs to use startegies like ” What would make sense?” , “What would sound right?”, and “What would look right?”Using the above rhymes mean we are reading note by note when it is so much more efficient to notice melodic contour, steps, skips, repeats, patterns. We start with B, A, and G and we learn what they look like, sound like, and feel like when we are reading and writing on the staff. Instead of passing them sheet music, I have them write their own copy to read.

It just makes sense.

“Let’s Play – Recorder Level 1” includes:

“Hot Cross Buns”

“Merrily we roll Along”

“Hop Old Squirrel”

“Rain Rain”

“Engine Engine Number 9”

“Acka Backa Soda Cracker”

“Old Brass Wagon”

“Old MacDonald had a farm”

Here is the link to Freebie Number 8:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Twelve-Days-of-Orff-Freebie-Number-8-5123794

If you like what you see, you can purchase “Let’s Play Recorder – Level 1” by clicking below.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Lets-Play-Recorder-Level-1-4939782

Take care,

Syndi

Twelve Days of Orff – Day 7

On the seventh day of Orff, Ms Syndi gave to me…

Are you getting tired of this yet? I hope not. Freebie Number 7 is another Instrument Scavenger. This one is focused on classroom instruments rather than orchestral instruments. It’s all about choice and teaching goals.

INSTRUMENT CARDS

Score Card

Here is the link to Freebie Number 7:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Twelve-Days-of-Orff-Freebie-Number-7-5122128

Take Care,

Syndi

Twelve Days of Orff – Day 6

On the Sixth day of Orff, Ms Syndi gave to me…

AN INSTRUMENT SCAVENGER HUNT!!!!

We celebrate Music Week at our school usually in May. We have grade level sing alongs, music station time, guest performers, and little games that we put up around the school like this scavenger hunt. The kids go with a friend, or two, and they search out all the instrument pictures we have hidden throughout the school. They mark them off on their score sheet and they get bragging rights if they find them all.

Instrument Cards

Score Sheet

I know in the United States, Music in our Schools Month is coming. Try the scavenger hunt and let me know how it worked for you.

Here is the link for Freebie Number 6:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Twelve-Days-of-Orff-Freebie-Number-6-5120162

See you tomorrow for day seven.

Take care,

Syndi

Twelve Days of Orff – Day 4 and Day 5

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!! I missed posting yesterday so…

On the fourth and fifth day of Orff, Ms Syndi gave to me…

Unfortunately, we do not have much snow to play with on Prince Edward Island yet but I still LOVE THIS BOOK!!!! And so do my students!!! Robert Munsch uses a repetitive refrain to measure the depth of the snow as Jasmine travels to school in a blizzard. Only to discover, that school is CANCELLED. Sooo funny.

I wrote a little melody for the refrain:

 

For day number 4, my gift to you is the Orff arrangement to this little melody that we used when we performed this story in one of our winter concerts.

Here is the link to Freebie Number 4:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Twelve-Days-of-Orff-Freebie-4-5117245

 

Now on to the fifth day of Orff… I have made you some lovely visuals of the pentatonic tone sets. They are great for bulleting board displays but also for stations.

Here is the link for Freebie Number Five:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Twelve-Days-of-Orff-Freebie-Number-5-5117880

I hope you have a wonderful holiday. See you tomorrow,

Take care,

Syndi

 

Twelve Days of Orff – Day 3

On the third day of Orff, Ms. Syndi gave to me…

A new modulator.

My modulator has become my best friend. When I started teaching, it drove me nuts introducing sol and mi without any context. Now, I introduce the whole scale in Kindergarten. We do a little song that was introduced to me by a fellow music teacher, Linda MacIsaac Gallant.

 

We start in a crouching position, (on the first floor), and we move up slowly as we sing the song. At the end, we all say”Express to the Basement” and ZOOM back to the basement. We play this game lots and, inevitably, one of my little darlings will make the connection that our body is going up just like our voices are going up. My next step is showing them my modulator:

 

I explain that notes have names just like people and we go through the scale ascending only. Most make the connection that it sounds just like the “Elevator Song.” We get very comfortable with this.

When it is time to label sol and mi, I actually say “In this song, we use the notes sol and mi” and I take the sol and mi directly from the modulator.

The students unserstand where these names come from and they can see their relationship between each other and the rest of the scale. It just makes sense.

So my gift to you is a new modulator of your very own that I hope you will come to love as well. My friend, Dorothy Dahn, mentioned that you can color co-ordinate them with the colors of the boomwhackers etc. if that suits your teaching style.

Here is the link to Freebie Number 3

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Twelve-Days-of-Orff-Freebie-Number-3-5116176

See you tomorrow

Take care,

Syndi

Twelve Days of Orff – Day 2

On the second day of Orff, Ms. Syndi gave to me…

It is day 2 and today’s give away is a Body Percussion piece based on building a snowman.

I love Body Percussion. It is a versatile tool in the Orff world to teach instrument parts but most of all to spark creativity. This little piece can go in many directions:

  • Accompany a poem with the layered Body Percussion
  • Perform in Canon
  • Transfer to Non-Pitched Percussion
  • Transfer to Pitched Percussion
  • Use it as a Drum Circle
  • Use it as an Ostinato in a story.
  • Change the words to suit your resrource or teaching topic
  • Use as a model to create a new Body Percussion

The possibilities are endless. A possible Form to perform would be :

Stamp 8 beats

Add Pat 8 beats

Add Clap 8 Beats

Add Snap 8 beats

Perform all together 8 beats more

Take away Snap 8 beats

Take away Clap 8 beats

Take away Pat 8 beats

Take away Stamp.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Twelve-Days-Of-Orff-Freebie-number-2-5115241

See you tomorrow for Freebie Number 3.

Take Care,

Syndi

Twelve Days of Orff

This fall I embarked on a journey. I wanted to share my experience as an Orff educator with all of you. It has been three months…

 

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Sellers-Im-Following/Add/Just-Orffin-Around

119 Followers

https://www.facebook.com/justorffinaround/

126 Followers

 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1527116180763031/?ref=group_header

42 members

Wow!!!. I feel so blessed that music educators want to hear and see what I do. I am so thankful for all of you. So……

TIME FOR SOME FREEBIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Twelve Days of Orff starts today. From now until Jan 1, 2020, I will be giving away an Orff inspired tool every day. I have carefully picked experiences that have worked really well in my classroom this year. I teach approximately 160 4-9 year olds a day at Westwood Primary School. My process teaching has become very refined. Click the link and download it straight from TpT.

FREEBIE NUMBER 1

This orchestration of “Start Light” was a favorite this year. We did this orchestration in a circle and passed the instruments as others were added.

It was a culmination of our learning journey. We read and played the melodic contour of the Soprano Xylophone; we learned how to hold the ukulele and strum; we colored words with NPP using the guiro and soprano glockenspiel; we improvised star music for our star dances.  Here is the link:

 

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Twelve-Days-of-Orff-Freebie-number-1-5115173

See you tomorrow.

Take care,

Syndi

The Next Steps – Let’s Talk Pedagogy.

 

I was so excited to share some of my Orffy ideas today at our Music Educator’s Association Day. It was so much fun BUT there is never enough time to go deeper into the pedagogy. I thought I would share a few more thoughts about my next steps.

When preparing for today, I decided I wanted to share two great Orff resources I have used with resounding success. The first resource was “We’re Orff!” by Tamara O’brien and Mark Carthew. I purchased my book from Apple Books. It is sold per song module for immediate download and I am all about having something right away. You can purchase it as a book that includes the 5 songs in one publication.

I shared “Fiddle Diddle Dee.” Here is Tamara O’Brien modeling the little game.

But what is my next step? My grade 2’s are working on making peace between pitch syllables and absolute note names. We have been doing lots of echo singing but we are beginning the shift to echo playing. My goal for them is to figure out how to play mi, re, doh when doh = C.

  • isolate the phrase “Chicka Boom, Chicka Boom, one, two, three” Change it to “Chicka Boom, Chicka Boom, mi, re, doh”
  • Send a student to a xylophone, do they see mi, re, doh? Nope!!! Review the musical alphabet.
  • If C is doh, what is re? what is mi?

My board looks like this:

 

  • Transfer the melodic motive to the soprano xyolophone and play.
  • What if F is doh? What is re? What is mi?

The concept of moveable doh becomes more tangible. They understand the relationship between mi, re, and doh.  It sets the stage for some mi, re, doh composition fun.

“Star Light”. A little singing, star dancing,and star music improvisation. This was my own process and approach to melodic contour.

What is my next step? Let’s look at kindergarten:

My Board would look a little like this.

I use a body scale. For me high is touching shoulders and low is touching hips. It doesn’t stay this way. Once we discover the highs and lows, we explore other ways to show high and low on our bodies.

Composing for a K student is not going to be a huge piece of music with contrasting sections. It’s going to be 4 beats. I give them a place mat and 4 stars with some bells or glockenspiels using G and E. It is a written representation of their “Star Light”. They are showing they understand the concept of high and low by using what they know to create something new. They play their composition 2x as a contrasting B section to “Star Light”. (It’s a great teaching moment for the repeat sign.)

“A Christmas Drum Circle” I love doing drum circles. It envelops the participants with a beautiful sense of peace.

What is my next step?Group work is such a great assessment tool. The orff approach is amazing in developing collaboration skills. They play around for awhile, taking turns and playing each others rhythms. Then I ask them to create a final rhythm together. In a group of 4, each person can create one beat. They practice it together and then we add it to the other rhythms and create a new drum circle. I always start with visuals. They clap the word to discover the thythm and then write it in.  Eventually, they will create using only rhythms.

 

 

“Brian Boru’s March” This experience came from an amazing Orff resource called “Pieces and Processes” by Steven Calantropio.

I love this resource and I have learned so much about Process Teaching from Steven Calantropio. I highly recommend it.” Brian Boru’s March” has always been a work to teach about ensemble playing. The independent parts; pitched percussion accompanying the recorder; working together to transition from the A section to the B section; learning about form. There is so much value in this little tune.

I had a question at the session about instruments and how to grow your Orff program. My first response was you can use the Orf Approach without the instrumentarium. It’s the icing on the cake. However, the instruments are so much fun and amazing tools in the music classroom. Here is a link to a great blog post that includes a 5 year plan in growing your program.

Build Your Instrument Inventory: A Five Year Plan

Empire music has some great starter sets as well.

https://empiremusic.ca/index.php?route=product/product&path=148_278&product_id=1407

Thanks for learning with me and have fun on your own Orffy journey. If you have any more questions, leave a comment and I will get right back to you.

Take care,

Syndi