Lesson plan - week 3

1) Attendance : (K&1- say name, 2&3- sit in assigned seats, 4&5- move to new assigned seating- roll
call by favorite instrument)
st

nd

***Accommodations: K and 1 grade- in a semi-circle on the carpet with tape marking seated spots, 2 th
5 grade in assigned seats in posture chairs evenly spaced on step-platform levels. With these positions,
students are aware that they are allowed three strikes and then they have the consequence of sitting in
the corner, and then to the office if necessary.
2) Welcome : (K&1- "Hello Around the World" this week German "Guten Tag," 2&3- learn the musical
instrument families, 4&5- call each name for grade book recording of whether or not they came prepared
to class *pencil, folder and music)
***Accommodations: for the younger kids, I use the imagery of painting yourself a bubble. This way
they begin to see how they are to handle their own physical space in correlation to their neighbors.
Older classes sometimes need to be told 4 on the floor and to sit up while in their posture chairs.
3) Rhythm flash cards *adding difficulty with each grade level, each week
K- 9-12 (TA, titi)
1st- 9-12 (begin to count after going through Tas and ti-tis)
2nd- 45-48
3rd- 45-48
4th- 73-76
5th- 73-76
***Accommodations: use rhythm sticks for lower 3 grades if students are having difficulty with own bodily
kinesthetic and/or oral motor skills.
For advanced students, allow for individual production/performance of the rhythm card.
4) Solfege review and into the "round song" of the day
Kindergarten and 1st grade work on echo and call and response songs
2: stretching
Pulse the "s" (steady beat) then on pitch, sounding Do (on Ah) moving to Re and Mi
*** Accommodations: stick to 2 pitches to isolate the movement of higher to lower and its corresponding
hand gestures
For advanced students/classes, allow for movement to five pitches or more, adding a skip
3: stretching, warmup of the voice using falling and rising sounds
*5-4-3-2-1... Sol, fa, mi, re, Do
* Do, Mi, So, Mi, Do
2- "Boomdeadah/I Love the Mountains" *learn the second part
3- "Row Your Boat/Are you Sleeping" *learn the second part
***Accommodations: take more time with warming up the voice, making sure to reach for higher and lower
registers- slowly move to the Do pitch, and use an even slow movement to Re and so on you may need
to find the pitch they are and move from there to establish more flexibility and ear training for their young
voice and hearing.
For advanced students, have them take some sight-singing sheets and work softly elsewhere in the room
while you work with the others, making sure there is a leading student amongst the group.
4-5: stretching, warmup of voice using high and low in major steps, full succession of solfeggio
*8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1... Do, ti, la, Sol, fa, mi, re, Do

* Do, Mi, So, Do, So, Mi, Do

* "So, mi, Do, mi, So, Do"
***Accommodations: many students will struggle, but at this age level it is important to push for more of
an ensemble feel in warmups- provide personal attention during latter parts of the class period.
5) call/response song or interactive story
K- "PB&J" song (louds and softs)
"Touch Your Nose" (matching pitch)
*listening lab (draw the music)
*** Accommodations: use tactics of encouragement and group excitement (this time, lets!) in order to
get full participation in attempting to match pitch or at lease sing out. For the listening exercise, provide
excessive encouragement no matter what they draw, but be sure to point out the students that show more
expert creative drawing responses to the specific music being heard.
1- "Who has the Penny?" (Singing alone)
"Lila the lamb" (ear training)
***Accommodations: if they guess the wrong cup from deciphering higher and lower pitches, take a
moment with the student to figure out whether or not they misunderstand that Mi is higher than Do or if
they are unable to accurately label which pitch is higher apart from using solfege syllables.
For advanced students, ask them to sing the options back to you, and in special circumstances have
students work in pairs, playing their own game with the ear training exercise.
2- "Boom-dee-ah-dah/ I Love the Mountains"
3- "Row Your Boat/ Are you Sleeping"
***Accommodations: when students show frustration or failure to participate, make their group larger and
try to give them an easier edge to encourage more or better participation. Take these exercises slowencourage commitment to excellence while ensuring success.
For advanced students, have them be in a much smaller group while attempting the rounds- raise the
level of expectation and jump in to help if they dont quite complete the song. In that case, try again after
adjusting the group numbers and/or changing the exercise expectation.
4-5:
Note names
*(1-8 and solfege, then naming them on the piano- use smart board)
SSB
* hear the opening intervals of "So-mi-Do, mi, So, Do"
How the Voice works
*(pics on the smart board)
***Accommodations: this is a time for working with individuals, whether advanced or not. Be a teacher
that facilitates learning rather than lecture material. Allow for questions, and if there are none, ask
questions that point students to ponder further.

6) Christmas songs (1-3 grades).

1- "Blitzen's Boogie"
**choreography
"Do you wanna build a Snowman?"

***Have them work hard with enunciation, call and response, and watching me (knowing how I conduct)
2- "Hip Hop Reindeer"
**choreography
"Rise up, Shepherds, and Follow"
***Try some hip hop moves and talk about the difference in music styles between the songs (establish
what a Spiritual is)
3- "Sing We Now of Christmas"
"Christmas Dreams"

**clapping and dynamics

**pick soloists

***Be sure students understand how an audition works- if you dont get picked it does NOT mean youre a
bad singer.
4&5:
Page 12-13 in December 2014 Vol. 15 No. 3
"Christmas Time is Here" from a Charlie Brown Christmas
(Harmony, dynamics, read the music-name notes, play Orff instruments to accompany, understand the
relationship between music and other arts)
***Accommodations: with this lecture and performance portion of the class, allow for more advanced
students to work with students at a more basic level. If this option is unavailable (probably due to
behavior) assign questions to be answered as a small exit quiz. This will allow you to direct more
pointed questions for the next class period after assessing what they do and do not understand.
7) Stickers (For K and 1st) ... Points (keep track of "point-taker" for all grades)
8) "walk-line up" at the door - "ready for the hall" songs
* (not necessarily grades 3, 4 & 5)