Rhythm and Beat
Submitted by: Grace & Blair
Activity 1: Rhythmic Patterns (back to top)
Age: K-5 grade
Activity: Teacher gives groups different rhythm patterns and different sounds. Student’s play the patterns separate and then together.
Materials: Different rhythm patterns
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Students will have to be split up into different groups.
Standards: MU.A.2.1.1 & MU.A.2.1.2
Activity 2: Who has the Penny? (back to top)
Age: 2-5 grade
Activity: Students will practice a steady beat, and then will read a quarter eighth-eighth quarter quarter and quarter eighth-eighth quarter rest. Teacher will teach song Who has the Penny, then distribute one penny and one safety pin to be passes around. Class will sing song and clap beat who every has the penny and pin when song ends will sing appropriate line while class claps.
Materials: Poster board with quarter eighth-eighth quarter quarter and quarter eighth-eighth quarter rest.
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Make poster, learn song, teach steady beat.
Standards: MU.A2.1.1 & MU.A3.1.1
Activity 3: The Beat of Mexico (back to top)
Age: Pre-K-5
Activity:Students learn about mariachi music an create their own rhythm instruments
Materials: Mariachi music, plastic pantyhose eggs/ empty drink mix cylinder/two heavy duty paper plates, beans, paint and paint brushes, glue or staple.
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Make a sample musical instrument, bring in real Mexican shakers. Find books on Mexican culture and customs.
Standards: NSS-G.K-12.2, NA-MK-4.2, NA-M.K-4.3, NA-M.K-4.6 & NA-M.K-4.8
Activity 4: Tap Your Feet (back to top)
Age: Preschool-1 grade
Activity:Students will practice following a pattern and become familiar with the concept of beat in music. They will be introduced to tempo. They will gain experience play the beat on non-pitched rhythm instruments, at various tempos.
Materials: Computers with Internet, non-pitched rhythm instruments, picture cards of non-pitched instruments with the names of the instruments written, big book stand, music stand, flannel board.
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Find repeat the beat and improvisations station web site. Find non-pitched instruments
Standards: MU.A.2.1.1, MU.B.2.1.1, LA.C.1.1.1 & MA.A.2.1.2
Activity 5: Pass It On (back to top)
Age:1-2 grade
Activity: Class sits in a circle, teacher claps a short 4/4 beat to the child on her left. Child “passes is on” to the child on their left. Passing continues to the last person who claps the rhythm out loud, then game repeats.
Materials: None
Preparations/Safety Precautions:Making up 4/4 beats
Standards: MA.A.2.1.2, MU.A.2.1.1 & LA.C.1.1.4
Activity 6: What's in the Box? (back to top)
Age: K-2 grade
Activity: Children will select objects from a box and then say and clap out the syllables. All the children will repeat the object and clap out the rhythm. The children will then select several objects (3-5) and clap out the objects all together.
Materials: Big box, variety of objects (ball, toys, baseball hat, dolls, house hold objects.
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Filling the box with a variety of objects.
Standards: LA.C.1.1.1, LA.C.3.1.1, & MU.A.2.1.1
Activity 7: Jump or Jiggle (back to top)
Age: 1-2 grade
Activity: Teacher will read Evelyn Byer’s poem “Jump or Jiggle” while the children clap out the steady beat on their thighs. Children will then demonstrate how they think the animals would move and sound using scarves and instruments.
Materials: Poem by Evelyn Byers, cards with pictures of animals from poem, scarves, musical instruments.
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Finding the poem, going over rules of scarf dancing, and using instruments, making picture cards.
Standards: MU.A.2.1.1, LA.D.2.1.2 & DA.A.1.1.4
Activity 8: Rhythm and song (back to top)
Age: 1st grade
Activity: Students will listen to songs on CD and beat out the beat of the songs. The students will learn the words of the song and echo the song. Play farmer in the dell while listening to the song and clapping out he rhythm.
Materials: CD with children songs including Farmer in the Dell, rhythm sticks
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Locate CD, CD player, and rhythm sticks
Standards: MU.A.2.1.1, DA.A.1.1.3, LA.C.2.1.1, & MU.A.1.1.1
Activity 9: Keep the Beat (back to top)
Age: K-3 grade
Activity: Have the students go around the circle - in order - with each choosing a rhythm pattern. The object of this game is to keep the beat. You also want the students to choose something different than the person beside them. Example:
Sally: 4 beats pat knees Class: 4 beats pat knees
John: 4 beats clap Class: 4 beats clap
Steve: 4 beats nod head Class: 4 beats nod head
Materials: None
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Teach children “Who stole the Cookie from the Cookie Jar” chant. Play the game first then move into Keep the beat game
Standards: MU.A.2.1.1, MU.A. 1.1.2, & HE.A.1.1.1
Activity 10: Body Rhythm (back to top)
Age: K-1 grade
Activity: Have them step to a slow beat saying "toh, toh" several times. This should be the value of a half note. Next, they should tap their thighs to what should equal a quarter note, and say "tah, tah, tah, tah". Finally, have them clap their hands to "ti, ti, ti, ti" at what should be the speed of an eighth note. Mix and match patterns of eighths, quarters and half notes with the appropriate step, tap or clap.
Materials: None
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Have students stand with enough room between not to touch each other
Standards: MU.A.2.1.1, MU.A. 1.1.2, & HE.A.1.1.1
Activity 11: Charlie, the Caterpillar (back to top)
Age: K-5 grade
Activity: Begin by teaching the students each of the cue words. Once the students have learned the words, assign the instrumental parts and have the remaining students dramatize the non-instrumental parts. The whole class sings the song together. When it seems as though the students are comfortable with their parts, read Charlie, the Caterpillar aloud, incorporating the instruments, drama, and song.
Materials: Charlie, the Caterpillar by Dom Deluise, ratchet, xylophone and mallets, rubber band guitar, child’s party noisemaker or finger cymbals, bell, sandblocks.
Preparations/Safety Precautions:Go over the key words of the story and which instruments go with what words. Practice several times by calling out the words and the children playing the various instruments.
Standards: MU.A.2.1.1, MU.B.1.1.2, & LA.A.1.1.2
Activity 12: Move to the Beat (back to top)
Age: K-5 grade
Activity: Introduce the song to identify its content, listen to the song, discuss aspect of the song, why it is good for dancing. Have children dance freely to the beat of the song. Have children follow specific movements to dance to the beat of the song.
Materials: Fast beat song.
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Move furniture for movement , or take player outside. Go over musical vocabulary.
Standards: MU.A.1.1.1, DA.E.1.1.1, & DA.A.1.1.1
Activity 13: Jingle Bell Parachute (back to top)
Age: 1st- 3rd grade
Activity: This activity today will require them to perform a "pattern" according to the beats of the music. Have students grip the parachute with thumbs on bottom, fingers on top (as if playing the piano).Introduce each of the movement patterns without the music (demonstrate each, singing or saying the words while performing the movement). Once you have them all, put them together and add the music!
Chorus line 1: "Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way..."
Movement line 1: Lift parachute slowly up, slowly drop down, slowly lift up, slowly drop down.
Chorus line 2: "...Oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh, heh!"
Movement line 2: Fast shakes!
Verse 1: "Dashing through the snow, in a one horse open sleigh, over the fields we go, laughing all the way, HaHaHa..."
Movement verse 1: Students slide to the right
Verse 2: "Bells on bobtails ring, making spirits bright, oh what fun it is to sing a sleighing song tonight!"
Movement verse 2: Slide to the left.
Materials: Parachute, recording of the song "Jingle Bells".
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Jingle Bells is a winter song about a sleigh ride that can be used with students of any cultural origin. First, play (and sing) the song so students can focus only on hearing it. Then have students move to sitting around the parachute, waiting for instructions before they begin to pick it up.
Standards: LA.C.1.1.1, MU.D.1.1.1 & MU.D.1.1.3
Activity 14: Dance to the Beat (back to top)
Age: K-2nd
Activity: Play different drumbeats. Students will stand and move to the beat, changing their movements each time the beat changes. Ask a student to come up and play a beat on the drum for their classmates to dance to. Continue until all students have had a chance to play on the drum.
Materials: Different drum beats, music player
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Find differ drumbeats, something to play the music on.
Standards: PE.A.2.1.5, DA.A.1.1.1 & DA.A.2.1.1
Activity 15: Name (back to top)
Age: 2nd- 3rd grade
Activity: While playing an upbeat song with a strong beat, have the children follow your lead by moving in time with the music. Some suggested movements are:
walk in place to every beat
walk beside someone; in a three-person group; in a four person group, etc.
jump on every beat
jump on every other beat
clap on every other beat
clap, clap, and hold for two counts
clap, clap, stamp your foot twice
clap, stamp, clap, stamp
walk forward 1,2,3, and clap on Count 4 (repeat walking backwards)
repeat to right side (then back to left)
grapevine to right side (then back to left)
heel tap, step (right), heel tap, step (left)
etc.
Materials:Music Celebration by Kool and the Gang
Preparations/Safety Precautions: Talk about different beats: strong, counts, etc.
Standards: PE.A.1.1.7, DA.A.1.1.1 & LA.C.1.1.1