Week of May 2nd
The second grade classes are back to work after a wonderful concert last week! We have been working on la- sol-mi and we added do this week. This will lead to the students reading traditional notation next year. We added do with a song that we have been enjoying for a while!
Week of February 13th, 2012
The second grade classes have been working on reading quarter notes, quarter rests, eighth notes and half notes. This week they composed with them using ocean animals. The students chose ocean animals and then added a rhythm pattern to the animal. We eventually added a song to our rhythms and decided in the form (pattern) of the piece. See if your child can explain the form of the piece to you! 2HB did a great job!
Week of January 29th, 2012
The second grade classes are working on la-so-mi. The students have been reading la-so-mi, playing la-so-mi and singing la-so-mi. Last week we worked on the song Wibbleton to Wobbleton. Ask your child if he can tell you which instrument is playing la-so-mi.
Week of January 23rd, 2012
We begin each music class with singing and dancing together. One of the favorite songs of the younger students is Bow Wow Wow. We work on keeping a beat and using our singing voice. Enjoy!
Week of December 19th, 2011
The second grade classes have been working on reading la-sol-mi on the music staff! We spent several lessons learning the song Chook, Chook by reading the melody. Following our melodic reading we learned a dance and added instruments to the song. As the students were performing the song they worked on using their singing voices and keeping a steady beat on the instruments as well as in the dance. Enjoy the work of 2HB!
Week of November 7th, 2011
The second grade classes have been working on reading half notes! They have been reading quarter notes, quarter rests and eighth notes since first grade. The students identified the half note in our song and then played it on the bass xylophone, bass bar and metallophones. We also learned about a coda. Ask your child if he or she can explain what a coda is! Enjoy the work of our second grade students!
Week of October 31st, 2011
We spent last week working on reading rhythm patterns with a Halloween song. The students identified quarter notes, eighth notes and quarter rest. We also spent some time describing the song and discussing what makes it minor. Many students say that it sounds scary, sad or that it makes them tired. A song in a minor key has a very distinct feel!
We also worked on playing the steady beat on the tubanos and rhythms on the hand drums. This is something that we will work on throughout second grade. Enjoy the work of 2BR!
Week of October 24th, 2011
The second grade classes have been working on reading la-so-mi and playing a steady beat on the instruments. We will be working on reading rhythm patterns with a Halloween theme during the upcoming week.
We are also working on our singing voices. We do this throughout elementary school and many times we do it through play party songs. These are great songs that get kids moving and singing in an easy going and fun way. We just learned the play party song "Round De Do Bop" and it has a been a blast to sing! I hope you enjoy the work of 2HB!
Week of October 10th, 2011
The second grade classes worked on iconic notation last week. This was an early experience in music reading using a symbol to read high and low in music. Our song was "Charlie Over the Ocean," so the symbols for this song were fish. The students identified high and low, determined that those were so-mi and then added to words to the song.
As part of the lesson we also worked on steady beat and instrumental technique. The students did a great job adding instruments to this piece of music! I hope you enjoy their singing and playing.
September 26th, 2011
We are continuing our work with 8th notes, quarter notes and quarter rests. We composed rhythmic patterns as a class for the song "This is What We Do." After composing as a class, the students used popsicle sticks to compose and read four beat rhythm patterns. I really enjoy listening to the students work together to choose rhythm patterns. I hope you enjoy watching our 2nd grade students working together too!
September 19th, 2011
We have been working on the song "This is What We Do." We are finally putting the entire song together. The students have created a form (pattern) of ABABA for the song. During the A section they are singing and playing instruments. During the B section the students composed rhythm pattens using quarter notes, eighth notes and quarter rests. The students have been speaking and tapping the rhythms in the B section. It has been a challenging piece, but they have done a nice job.
Week 2:
We had a great first week of music! The students worked on using their singing voices by playing the "name game." Each child sang his or her name to the class and the class sang hello. The students also worked on the poem "One for the Money." It was a great opportunity to review mallet technique and to work on maintaining a steady beat. One of our biggest challenges was playing the instruments while thinking the poem in our heads. We will be working on this skill, inner hearing, a lot in second grade. Stay tuned to this blog for more video's of your child's work!
Rhythm: steady beat, beat vs. rhythm, varying rhythm patterns, music organized into 2's, 3's and 4's
Melody: notes that move by step, skip, leap and repeat, solfege: la,sol, mi, re, do patterns
Harmony, Tone Color and Texture: layers of melody and harmony, ostinato, string instruments and their unique sounds
Form: same or different, verse and refrain AB, ABA
Expression: crescendo and decrescendo, forte and piano, music can communicate mood
History and Culture: music as it relates to the world around us, audience behavior, performing responsibilities
Welcome to second grade! I look forward to seeing all of you again and meeting new students as well!
We will be spending the first few weeks of school reviewing singing, steady beat and music reading. We will be using the Orff instruments to review steady beat and we will playing some play party games to get reacquainted with each other.
Melody: notes that move by step, skip, leap and repeat, solfege: la,sol, mi, re, do patterns
Harmony, Tone Color and Texture: layers of melody and harmony, ostinato, string instruments and their unique sounds
Form: same or different, verse and refrain AB, ABA
Expression: crescendo and decrescendo, forte and piano, music can communicate mood
History and Culture: music as it relates to the world around us, audience behavior, performing responsibilities
The second grade classes have had a great first week of school! We worked on the poem "One for the Money!" This gave students an opportunity to speak a poem and play instruments during certain words of the poem. One of our biggest challenges was thinking the poem in our heads while continuing to play the instruments. This works on independent musicianship as well as steady beat. We also worked on our mallet technique, something that we will use throughout elementary school. Enjoy the work of 2W!
Welcome to second grade! I look forward to seeing all of you again and meeting new students as well!
We will be spending the first few weeks of school reviewing singing, steady beat and music reading. We will be using the Orff instruments to review steady beat and we will playing some play party games to get reacquainted with each other.
