End of April 2015
Hello, everyone!
The
school year is winding down, and it feels like we’re only getting busier as the
summer draws near! April is Jazz Appreciation Month, so we’ve been listening
to, enjoying, and performing jazz music in addition to our other curricular
learning targets.
Earlier
this month, we were fortunate to be able to have the jazz combo from Pulaski
High School travel to Lannoye and perform as part of our Special Loved Ones
Day. For pictures and videos from that performance (along with other music room
updates), please check out our blog at:
Here’s what we’ve been
working on in April:
This month, the kindergarteners, 1st graders,
and 2nd graders all learned the song “Down Came a Lady,” which
we sing while playing a game with two concentric circles. They also learned
“Teddy Bear,” which is a jump rope song with actions. The students got to watch
and dance to a variety of jazz videos throughout the month, and scatted along
with the book Freddie the Frog and the
Flying Jazz Kitten.
In addition to the
aforementioned activities, the kindergarteners
took turns singing the echo song “Down by the Bay.” They played some more “Bee,
Bee, Bumblebee” and worked their way up to the beginning stages of Rhythm Band
(an activity in which they play rhythm instruments with picture notation).
The 1st graders practiced reading, writing, singing, and
signing their first two solfege pitches, so
and mi. They read the book Do Re Mi: If You Can Read Music, Thank Guido
D’Arezzo, which helped introduce them to the music staff. At the end of the
month, they added la to their solfege
knowledge, using songs like “Doggy, Doggy” and “Lucy Locket.”
The 2nd graders practiced reading, writing, singing, and
signing their solfege pitches (do, mi, so,
and la), and added re at the end of the month. At the
beginning of the month, they also did a listening exercise with plastic eggs
filled with different materials. You can read more about that activity on the
blog!
The 3rd graders started their month by watching the last two
March Madness “Star-Spangled Banner” performances and comparing and contrasting
them. They also watched some short jazz improvisation clips. Students practiced
identifying time signatures visually and aurally, distinguishing between 2/4, 3/4,
and 4/4 time signatures. They did a sorting activity with plastic eggs to
practice identifying time signatures by sight. The 3rd graders also
practiced reading, writing, singing, and signing their solfege pitches (do, re,
mi, so, la, and high do). They finished out the month by
learning low so through the song
“Scotland’s Burning,” and preparing for low la
with “Down Came a Lady.”
The 4th and 5th graders learned more new notes on
recorder. The 4th graders now know G, A, B, C, and D, and the 5th
graders know low C, low D, low (and high) E, F#, G, A, B, high C, and high D. They’ve
all been working on supplemental material, including the song “A Minor Melody”
by Jim Tinter, and stretching their brains by improvising over different
accompaniment tracks. We watched a couple videos of jazz performances in which
the soloists traded improvised solos of varying lengths (as long as 32 measures
and as short as 2 measures), and the students have been trading 2s, 4s, and 8s
with partners ever since. Please make sure your students are practicing their
recorders – ask for an in-home performance! J
Reminder to the parents of 5th
graders who will be in band next year: The beginning band parent meeting is
Monday, May 11th, at 6 pm in the PCMS auditorium, and instrument
fitting days are May 14th and 18th.
Upcoming performances in the area:
Tuesday, May 5 6:30 pm PCMS Band Concert
Tuesday, May 5 6:30 pm PCMS Band Concert
PCMS Gym
Tuesday, May 12 6:30 pm PCMS Choir Concert
PCMS Gym (Preceded by the PCMS Art
Show at 6 pm)
Sunday, May 17 1:00
pm Spring PHS Band and Choir Awards
Concert
PHS Ripley PAC
Thursday, May 21 7:00
pm PCMS Jazz Night
PCMS Auditorium
Sunday, July 12 7:00
pm Pulaski Area Community Band
Concert
Shippy Park
July 16 – 19 Varies Pulaski Polka Days
Visit www.pulaskipolkadays.com for more info
Sunday, August 9 7:00 pm Pulaski Area Community Band Concert
Sunday, August 9 7:00 pm Pulaski Area Community Band Concert
Shippy Park
Ms.
Corinne Galligan
(920) 822-0433
cmgalligan@pulaskischools.org
lannoyemusic.blogspot.com
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