Kindermusik: The Benefits of Folk Dancing & Ensemble Development

Lesson Focus - Folk Dancing:

Dance traditions are passed down through generations of diverse cultures to celebrate important occasions and to provide diversion from everyday life. The benefits of folk dancing are many.  Folk dancing requires rhythmic competence, challenges you to be aware of your body in relation to the larger physical space, and requires keeping a sequence of moves in your memory.  In addition, it foster a sense of community.  Today’s lesson included two opportunities for folk dancing:  choreographed in a simple line dance, “Donkey Riding” contained simple steps.  The “Paw Paw Patch,” which represents a more complicated set of movements, comes from the traditional American folk dance repertoire.

 Today we did several folk dances, including "Bwana Awabariki" with lummi sticks (see pictures above).  This tied in very well with our tale today, called "Where do Stories Come From?"

We also enjoyed ensemble development with Gathering Drums and Resonator Bars & Glockenspiels.  We practiced different rhythms on the drums and then practiced steady beat on the bars to the melody of "Go Well and Safely."  

Thank you for sharing your children with me for Tell Me A Tale camp this summer!  I wish your families and well and safe rest of the summer and look forward to being with you again this fall.

Kindermusik is a music and movement program that promotes your child's development not just for 7 years, but for life!  We look forward to sharing Kindermusik with the families in the Pittsburgh area for years to come.  Come and see what we're all about!

Free Preview Class available.  (412) 344-0535.  www.KathysMusic.com

Kindermusik helps children become better listeners & learners!

The children are imitating the 6 blind men in the story on their way to the Rajah's palace.  The scarf "blindfolds" help them imagine what life is like for someone who can't see.

During craft time, we explored several different kinds of textures and used words to describe them much in the same way the Blind Men used words to describe what they "felt" when they touched one part of the elephant.

"Tell Me A Tale" Camp Day 3: Six Blind Men and the Elephant

 

Home Activities:

1)  Read the story of the Six Blind Men and the Elephant together.  Together discover the words that the blind men used to describe the Elephant.  What is the "truth about elephants?"

2)  Sensory Exploration:  Using a drawstring bag, put in items with various textures:  Smooth (fabric, sock), Sharp (comb, fork), Thin (Rope, Yarn, Shoelace), and Round (small ball, bead, etc.)  Invite your child to put a hand in the bag to feel the object without seeing it.  Encourage your child to explain what they felt and guess what it is.  Talk with your child about using their sense of touch as a way to understand their world, especially if they cannot see with their eyes.  We played this game in class today and they did a very good job using "describing" words to talk about what they were feeling inside the bag.

 

Lesson Focus:

Authentic Indian Instruments –  Today we learned about authentic Indian instruments, including the Tabla, Sitar, Bansuri, and Shenai.  

For pictures and more info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_musical_instruments

Sitar - is a plucked stringed instrument. It uses sympathetic strings along with a gourd resonating chamber to produce a very lush sound. Predominantly used in Hindustani classical, sitar has been ubiquitous in Hindustani classical music since the Middle Ages.

Bansuri - The bansuri is a bamboo flute used in the North Indian system.  It typically has six holes, however there has been a tendency in recent years to use seven holes for added flexibility and correctness of pitch in the higher registers.

Shenai - The shenai is a double reed instrument used in Hindustani classical music. Originally an outdoor instrument used for temple celebrations and weddings, it was brought into classical music in the latter part of the last century, along with other instruments such as the bansuri, a bamboo flute, which had previously been seen as folk instruments.

Tabla - The Indian tabla, a two-piece percussion instrument, is the principal rhythmic accompaniment to most North Indian classical and light music.  The Tabla consists of two upright drums that are played with fingers and palms. Tablas are arguably the most complex drums in the world.

Exploring the concepts of Smooth, Sharp, Wide, Thin, Round, and Tall as they relate to textures, movements, and musical instrument sounds.  Listen to “The Elephant” on your Home CD.

Listening to be  “Better Learners”:

Becoming focused and discriminating listeners will help children become better learners.  It is a joy to open their ears to new worlds of sound and encourage them to become careful and purposeful in their listening.  How are we learning to focus our listening?

o      Today, the children listening to music as they took a blindfolded walk around the room. Listening without seeing allows us to experience a heightened sense of hearing; the ears become keener when the eyes are not engaged.

o      On Day 1, children listened to the sounds of the animals as represented by voices and instruments; they compared the differences and noted the similarities of range, tone, and color.

o      On Day 2, they listening to authentic Gamelan music, recalling similar familiar sounds from personal experiences with various instruments.

These rich listening experiences help to build a vast listening vocabulary and a sensitivity to aural detail that makes the world all the more multidimensional. 

Our focus on Folk Dancing continued today as we learned the "Paw Paw Patch" folk dance.  We'll be doing more with that dance tomorrow!

Melodic Contour - Tell Me A Tale Day 2

Playing Lummi sticks to the  Crocodile Chant

Craft time: creating the Melodic Contour of one of our songs on paper using form=AABA

Folk Dancing - "Down The River" where partners sashay down the river together

Home Activities Suggestions:

1)    Read the story from your book together.

2)    Ask your child to tell you the story in his/her own words.  Write down what the child says (word for word, if possible).  Then have your child draw picture of the crocodile to complete the story.

3)    Dance to the “Gamelan” song on your Home CD.  Explore movements and build your child’s vocabulary by labeling the different ways to move.  Here are a few examples:

·      Move arms slowly and smoothly

·      Move arms slowly but with sharp movements

·      Move around the room in a “curvy” path

·      Move ins a straight path with arms moving in strong, quick, sharp ways

·      Move quickly in a curvy path with arms up high moving smoothly

·      Leap in a straight path, then stop and twist your hips.  Alternate between leaping and twisting, as described.

·      Hop n a zig-zag path on one foot, then curl slowly in a small ball.  Uncurl and hop on one foot in a zig-zag path again.

4)    Play along to “Mrs. Murphy’s Chowder” using your lummi sticks. (review from day 1)

 

 

Lesson Focus:

 

Melodic Contour – Today your child explored the contour of the melody in the “Yangtze Boat Song”.  First we used our hands, then added scarves.  Finally, we applied what we were hearing with the movement of our body to create a “melodic contour” picture using craft supplies.

We also discovered that the melody follows the Form of AABA.  Try listening to this song at home and finding the AABA pattern in the melody.

 

Gamelan is a traditional Indonesian instrumental ensemble comprised mainly of percussions instruments.  Based on tradition, gamelan music is created by communities.  All members of a gamelan ensemble are equally important.  There is no distinction between professional and amateur players, classical and new music, or ritual and entertainment performances.  Today we listened to a “Gamelan” piece of music and identified some of the instruments being played.

 

Rhythm At An Early Age  - Rhythm is one of the fundamental building blocks of music.  When your child participates in rhythm activities, such as moving to the beat of music, clapping and stamping along with poetry and songs, or playing rhythms on instruments, she is integrating, in a fun and natural way, the tools she will use for language, coordination, movement, and of course, music!  Being able to feel and experience the rhythm of words and music (as opposed to simply understanding the concept of rhythm as a child exposed to music at a later age might be trained to do) is an enormous part of a fulfilling musical life. 

Folk Tales + Kindermusik = Tell Me A Tale Camp

The Bremen Town Musicians – Day 1
Lesson Focus for today:
Storytelling – is an art that takes time and practice. Each day we will be learning about a different tale from around the world and reading about it in our book. Consider asking your child to “share” the story with you or a family member, neighbors, or other children. Each time they “tell” the story they will be honing their skills such as vocal inflections, sound effects, and repeated phrases.

Musical Form – AABC
In our “Galopede” song/dance, we learned dance steps to the music that encourages each child to work together with a partner. Not only does this activity help to develop social skills and attentiveness, it introduces the musical form of AABC. Listen to the song on the CD and see if you and your child can pick out the pattern together.

Timbre – is the distinctive sound that each instrument has. Today in class we created sound effects for each of the characters in our story: donkey, hound dog, cat, rooster. Ask your child what each character sounds like and what instrument closely matches the sound. Using the child’s vocal sounds or the Home CD, encourage the child to retell the story with these sound effects.

The Creative Process – Create your own “chowder” together!
We listened to “Mrs. Murphy’s Chowder” and picked out a variety of ingredients that were mentioned in the song. Try it at home, too! Create your own chowder by creating phrases that included foods for the “chowder” and rhyming phrases. Listen to this song on your Home CD, and then make up our own recipe together complete with silly ingredients and imaginative rhymes.

Vocal Development – is a process that begins by exploring vocal sounds, such as sounds from the environment or animal sounds. Gradually, thye learn to match and produce specific pitches. In Kindermusik class, we introduce a rich and varied repertoire of songs, both for singing and for listening. We specifically choose some songs with a limited range based on the pentatonic scale; the tones of this scale are the easiest for our young singers to hear and sing, starting with the most fundamental and easiest interval to produce. From there, we ad pitches, and children have the opportunity to grow into competent singers by singing carefully chosen songs.

During craft time, we created a "Bremen Town Musician" totem pole with each of the characters in the story. They are stacked on top of each other just like in the tale when they are trying to look into the Robber's House. See our class picture with our totem poles in hand.

We're looking forward to Day 2 where we will learn about another Folk Tale from a different part of the world.

On The Road with Kindermusik & Kathy's Music

The best learning experiences are those that integrate the senses, learning domains, developmental needs, and interests of the child.  The activities in the Kindermusik Adventures "On The Road" camp involve singing, language, imagination, creativity, problem solving, and pretend play.  This level of integration creates an optimal and meaningful learning environment for each child.

See our pictures from our Day at the Fair with our own drums.  Plus, there are several pictures from our last day on our pretend Day at the Campsite.

We Found Buried Treasure - Pirate Camp Day 4

On our last day of Pirate camp, we focused on buried treasure.  We sang "Oh, Where, Oh, Where has my treasure gone.  Oh, Where, Oh, Where can it be?  With coins of Gold from long ago, Oh, Where, Oh, Where can it be?" (singing voice, steady beat)

At one point, we pretended to dig for buried treasure (creativity, pretend play). Here's what our pirates found:

Pirate Jack - 10 Wiggles DVD's

Pirate Brayden - a treasure chest and a lion

Pirate Brady - gold & dinosaurs

Pirate Aidan - a house

Pirate Elijah - big heavy treasure

Pirate Cooper - three live triceratop dinosaur

Pirate John - biggest playground with a big, big, house

Pirate Benson - treasure

Pirate Eli - dinosaur

Pirate Riley - chipmunks

I'm so proud to say that our group of pirates learned the parts of the Galleon ship this week!  They did a great job naming them during circle time.  (literacy, language)

We pretended to sing and "build me a boat" using lollipop drums.  (steady beat)

Our craft was decorating a treasure chest and then filling it with "gold" and other bits of treasure.  The pictures tell the story!  This craft was a big, big hit!  (fine motor skills, creativity, art)

Special thanks to Pirate Jack for sharing his favorite Pirate Book, "How I Became a Pirate" with the group.  We read it during story time.

We pretended to "sail" at night with twinkle lights while moving in our bilibos. (physical coordination, balance, cooperative play)

As we brought out last day of camp to a close, we asked the Pirates about their favorite part of camp.  Here is what we learned:

Pirate Jack - singing "Build Me a Boat"

Pirate Brayden - getting the treasure candy

Pirate Brady - hunting for treasure

Pirate Aidan - musical baseball

Pirate Elijah - making crafts

Pirate Cooper - musical baseball

Pirate John - craft time

Pirate Benson - musical baseball

Pirate Eli - treasure chest with candy

Pirate Riley - musical baseball

Thanks for sharing your Pirates with us this week!  It was a wonderful adventure for all of us!

Shiver Me Timbers, We’re Making Maps! - Pirate Camp Day 3

Today we had fun making a big "class" map where each child created a destination.  See the picture above and discover all the fun places we pretended to sail in our Pirate Ships.

We pretended to build our pirate ship using a different musical tool - bells. (steady beat)

Then we reviewed the parts of the ship.  Pirate Parents - consider asking your child about the following parts of a ship:  mast, crow's nest, hull, helm, anchor, jolly roger, deck, figure head, and sails.

During craft time we made our own treasure maps (creativity, fine motor skills).  Then went out side to play another game of musical baseball -- special thanks to Miss Jennifer for taking those pictures!

Our story today was "Rupert, The Wrong Word Pirate."  Rupert kept getting his words mixed up.  Instead of saying pirate "hats", he said pirate "cats".  Instead of saying the "beach", he said "peach."  The boys helped us discover the right word by finding words that rhyme.  Fun!

We ended today with some bilibo play (kind of like sitting in a bowl).  These were very popular! We pretended the bilibos were our "ships" and we sailed them during the day and at night using twinkle lights.

We're looking forward to our last day of Pirate Camp tomorrow!!

Goodbye for now, Matey's!

Pirates & Parrots - Pirate Camp Day 2

Ahoy There, Mates!  Today we sailed the seven seas together in Pirate camp while we made new friends.  Here are the details:

We met the Captain's friend - the Pirate Parrot.  After listening to the Parrot talk and imitate his sound (vocal development), we made our own Parrot Craft to take home and enjoy (fine motor skills).

We pretended to build a boat today with a new tool - sandblocks.  Each pirate gave us his idea of how we could use and  move the sandblocks together (steady beat, creativity, fine motor skills)

We reviewed the parts of the Galleon Ship (language development) and learned a song that helps us learn the different between Port Side and Starboard.

We listened to the sounds on the water - oars in the water, seals, buoy bell, tug boat. (Discriminatory listening).

We used our Spy glasses to look out on the sea.  We saw all kinds of things together: pirate ships, buried treasure, an island, waves, and more.  Each child responded with his idea of what we might see "Out Here on the Sea" and we practiced singing the idea together (singing development).

We also heard the sound of Whimsical Whales in the water.  We pretended to swim like the whales and blow water out of the blow hole.  The music told us how to move as we practiced more discriminatory listening.

Because it was Pittsburgh Pirate day at camp, we played Musical Baseball outside together.  Miss Kathy pitched to each pirate by playing a rhythm on the drum.  The child responded by playing the same rhythm back to Miss Kathy.  Then he would run to first base.  Everyone made it around the bases for a win for the Home Team!

During Snack Time, Miss Kathy read a new book called "I Spy The Sun in the Sky" formerly known as "An Island in the Sun."  The story is about a young boy who sails to a distant island to meet an old friend, playing "I Spy" along the way.  After reading the story, each child had a turn to play "I Spy" with the group.  (Turn taking, Cognitive Development, Literacy, Listening to others).  To learn more, visit http://www.mybarefootbooks.com/BrandiLavrich and search on the book title.

During Center Time, our pirates played with a variety of Wooden Puzzles.  What a hit!!  The boys played together very well, sharing the puzzle pieces, and taking turns putting in the pieces.

Tomorrow we will practice our Map reading and Map making skills.