Get Their Wiggles Out!

     As the end of the year comes, it's time to help our students move and shake it!  If you're looking for something new to try for upper grades, check out my Class Cooperation Freeze Dance.  It's a great test of their teamwork and has lots of fun poses too!

 

Here's a few samples pages:

     Enjoy the end of your school year.  Catch you next time I have something noteworthy!

Tips for the End of the Year

     It's getting close to the end of the school year--and boy, do the students seem to know!  Or maybe it's the teachers :)  Here are some tips for the end of the year to keep it fresh, purposeful, and fun:

End of the Year Tips

1.  Review what your students learned this year!

     I have a word wall for each grade in my classroom.  When we get near the end of the year, I like to do a whirlwind of activities to review the concepts we learned throughout the year while pointing back to the word wall and talking about what we did.  It keeps the students on their toes and also helps them to be proud of all that they have learned!  Here's a sample of part of my 3rd grade word wall (we do a unit playing the violin).  Someday I hope to have the word wall all printed out and pretty. 

 2.  Try a new activity

     I always like to go to workshops to get new ideas each year, otherwise I don't feel as excited about my teaching!  Other great places to search for music activities are blogs and Pinterest.  Recently, my kindergarten students were "painting" their bodies to the beat while we sang "I Ain't Gonna Paint No More." I think we will create our own rhyming verses next week just for fun.  I have the CD that I got through scholastic books, but I don't know where it's available now :( 

3.  Have a choice day!

     The very last day of my music classes is always a game day where students can pick their favorite activities from the year and revisit them!  I also include folk dancing and the broom game as options.  Sometimes we even have our last class outside if the weather is nice. 

4.  Set goals for the summer

     I am the queen of post-it notes.  My desk is covered in them!  But, it allows me to take those small ideas I get throughout the day and not forget them.   So, now is the time of year I look through my ideas for the summer and start working on it.  This year's goals?
     1.  Redo the costume closet at my school.
     2.  Take Kodaly Level I (or Orff Level II if that doesn't work out).  Either way, it will be invaluable!
     3.  Read some books. It's always nice to hear how someone else runs their classroom so you can pick their best ideas and use them in yours.  Here's one I'm going to check out for sure:

     4.  Pick out possible music and musicals for the upcoming school year.  I normally wait to make my final decisions until the school year is in session, but it's always good to have a list to choose from instead of starting from scratch.  And next year I will be K-12--so it's never to early to start planning!

     Catch you next time I have something noteworthy!  Feel free to share how you are making it to the end of the year!

     For more great tips on what to do at the end of the year, click here to see who else is blogging about it!

Five Favorite Music Freebies Linky Party

     Hi all!  I'm hosting a linky party this week for music bloggers to tell you what their "Five Favorite Music Freebies" are on Teachers Pay Teachers!

      If you have used Teachers Pay Teachers at all, you will know that one of the best parts about it is that every seller is required to have at least one product in their store that is free!  Not only does this give you a FREE activity to use in your classroom, but it also gives you a taste of each seller's work so you know that what they make is high quality (or not!).       I have compiled a list of some of my favorite music freebies available on Teachers Pay Teachers--check them out! 

Five Favorite Music Freebies

1. Listen & Roll, A Music Listening FREEBIE

     This is a fun way to get students to talk about what they are hearing when they listen to music.  Rolling the dice makes them much more engaged in answering the questions--I even had fun myself!

 2. Headbands! A Rhythm Decoding Game, ta ti-ti

     This is a fun activity that has students wearing rhythm headbands while their partner claps the rhythm.  They have to try to decode what rhythm they are wearing on their head.  What a great way to practice rhythm dictation.  There are other levels available, but this one is free!!

3.  Favorite Folk Song--Alabama Gal

     Make Moments Matter has a great line of products about folk songs, and this one is free!  Find out about the historical context, vocabulary, and get a copy of the music without any work on your part!

4.  Music Brag Bracelets

     I do something similar to this in my classroom and plan on making a set of what I do for free this summer, but until I do, check out these from the always creative Jena Hudson.  Simply print and put them around students' wrists when they do something great in music class!

5.  Aaron Copland Composer of the Month with Youtube Links

     I thought I would throw one of my own freebies in for fun!  There are lots of composer of the month sets out there, but one thing that makes mine a bit unique is the youtube links.  Each set in my  composer of the month series has a page with youtube links of the composer's music being performed in a variety of settings.  It's like a virtual field trip for your students and it saves you time and money trying to find examples of the composer's works :)

     And as a special treat, I've decided to make my 100 Follower Freebie permanently free :)  Click below to get it!  You can follow me on Teachers Pay Teachers here to find out about new products, sales, and freebies in the future!

      I would love to hear of other freebies that you love!  Please comment below if you have one you love, or if you have one that's in your own store that I didn't cover!  Or, even better--write your own post and add in to the linky party!  Don't forget to grab the linky party logo at the top of this post, put it in your post, and link it back to this one!

An InLinkz Link-up

     Catch you next time I have something noteworthy!
Graphics by KG Fonts, Udy Studio, and Graphics from the Pond :)

Making May Musical

     I'm teaming up with the Totally Tuned In Teacher this month to bring you "Making May Musical!"
     The first week of May is Teacher Appreciation Week, so Teachers Pay Teachers is throwing a site-wide sale where most sellers will have their stores on sale for 20% off, and then you can enter in the promo code ThankYou to get another 10% off!  I know I always check my wishlist when this happens, plus, it's nice to have some fresh ideas for the end of the school year.  Sooooooooo, here are three items I'm excited about!

1.  Music Undercover

     This game helps students to identify a variety of musical symbols (notes, dynamics, etc.).  I love this game and use it for stations/centers in my classroom.  It's also great for days when your voice seems to have disappeared or when you have a sub.  Click on the picture if you want to see more about it!

2.  Music Listening Worksheet Bundle

     I have bought some concert review packets from Cori Bloom before and I LOVE them.  So, I'm certain this packet will also be a winner!  If you are looking for some creative ways to increase your students' ability to listen to music purposefully, I'm betting this packet will save you a lot of time!  This bundle is for K-12, but you can also buy the individual products if you want to just have K-6 or 7-12.

3.  Crazy Squirrel Graphics

     So, every once in awhile I'm inspired by clip art that makes me want to create a product just so I can use it!  This cute set of graphics falls into that category.  I will definitely be buying this set at some point--and no day is better than a site-wide sale!

     I hope you have fun searching for great musical products May 5-6.  I know I will :)   If you want to hear about additional great products found by other music bloggers, click on this picture:

      Catch you next time I have something noteworthy!