SAMPLEPAGES
UNIT 1 We Can Sing
In this unit, learners will explore, engage and experiment with songs, with a focus on enjoying making music together. Learners will share their favourite songs, use movement to explore pitch (higher and lower sounds), dynamics (louder and quieter sounds) and tempo (faster and slower sounds). They will also experiment with making different sounds.
Learning Objectives
1MM.01 Sing and play music, joining in when appropriate and spontaneously.
1MM.03 Freely explore and enjoy playing with sounds, melodies and rhythms.
1MS.01 Listen and respond to music through words, sounds and movement.
Resources
Audio 00–37
Display Pages 01–30
Student Book Pages 05–10
Audio
Around
Tuned Percussion Untuned Percussion
Found sounds/Other Soundmakers Recording Device (if possible)
13 Playing at the Park Teaching 14 Playing at the Park Backing 15 What Can your Voice Do? Performance 16 What Can your Voice Do? Vocal Sounds 17 What Can your Voice Do? Calls 18 What Can your Voice Do? Backing 19 Say It Performance
Say It Teaching
Look in the Mirror Performance 22 Look in the Mirror Verse 1 Teaching 23 Look in the Mirror Verse 1 Performance
Beanbag or toy frog
Parachute or other fabric
Class cuddly toy (optional)
Large, stable mirror (optional)
24 Look in the Mirror Verse 2 Performance
25 Look in the Mirror Backing
26 Hop, Little Frog Performance
27 Hop, Little Frog Teaching
28 Hop, Little Frog Backing
SAMPLEPAGES
29 Naka Naka Hoi Performance
30 Naka Naka Hoi Teaching
31 Bom Çike
32 Penguins Performance
33 Penguins Vocal Slides Teaching
34 Penguins Verse 1 Teaching
35 Penguins Verse 2 Teaching
36 Penguins Percussion Slides Teaching
37 Penguins Backing
Background Information: Listening and Songs
Hello Around the World 01
words by Helen MacGregor and Sue Nicholls to a melody adapted by Sue Nicholls from the traditional If You’re Happy and You Know It
In this greeting song, learners sing ‘Hello’ to each other in different languages. The simple, repetitive lyrics incorporate different words for greetings, with a verse for signing using Makaton. Learners may invent their own gestures or actions with which to greet their peers.
Voice Playtime 07
by Sue Nicholls
This listening piece shows ways in which the voice can improvise musically. There are six short sections that explore vocal sounds in contrasting ways. It is hoped that the piece will become a talking point and an opportunity for learners to describe the sounds they hear, perhaps imitating the vocal effects
Playing at the Park 12
by Val and David Machell
This is a verse and chorus song about choosing rides to play on in the park. The verses are spoken with added vocal sounds, representing the contrasting motions suggested by the slide, swings and see-saw.
What Can your Voice Do?
by Sue Nicholls
15
In this simple call and response song, learners use different parts of their mouths (their lips, teeth, tongues and cheeks) to make vocal sounds as responses to the ‘call’ lines. These include: la la, bzz bzz, tick tock, ha ha, hee hee, wa wa and pop!
Say It 19
by Helen MacGregor and Catherine Birt, adapted by Sue Nicholls
This chant explores vocal contrasts so that learners demonstrate moods with their voices: high/low; quick/slow; gently/louder and then choosing their own ‘voice’.
Hop, Little Frog 26
by Sue Nicholls
This very simple song is built on just four notes, making it suitable for singing unaccompanied. A beanbag or toy frog is bounced in time to the pulse. New verses are composed to form a story about the frog’s day.
Naka Naka Hoi a traditional Japanese song
SAMPLEPAGES
Look in the Mirror 21
by Sue Nicholls
Learners sing this song in pairs facing each other, each acting as a reflection of their partner. They mirror the actions described in the lyrics and then make up new verses with fresh ideas.
The two key Japanese words in this short song are naka, meaning ‘outside’ and soto, meaning ‘inside’. The song is sung while various ‘outside’ and ‘inside’ actions are performed. Learners are encouraged to invent their own actions, too.
Bom Çike
31 a traditional Albanian song
This listening piece is an extract from an Albanian song from Kosovo, sung by two young girls.
We sing this song in the playground and our families know it too. It doesn’t really have a meaning. We just like the sounds.
Penguins 32
by
Sue Nicholls
This comical song focuses on penguins’ sliding actions as a means of getting around in their icy homeland. The downward ‘slides’ (or glissandi) are produced vocally, and are also played on tuned percussion by sliding beaters along xylophones, glockenspiels or chime bars. 29
LESSON 1 Exploring our Voices
Learners will sing songs and follow pitch shape. They will explore different sounds that can be made with their voices.
Resources • Audio 01–18 • Display pages 01–07 • Student book page 05 • Class cuddly toy (optional)
Vocabulary Pulse, Pitch, Improvise, Call and Response
ACTIVITY 1Sign and Sing – Hello Around the World
• Sing a song and add greetings in different languages, including Makaton.
Talk about ways in which learners say hello to their friends, and the words they use. Listen to Hello Around the World 01 and encourage learners to mark the pulse by tapping their knees.
Show Display 01 and explain how to do the Makaton sign for ‘Hello.’ If signing is new to your learners, watch a video that demonstrates how to sign this greeting. Then join in with the chanted words and actions: ‘Hello’ in English; ‘Bonjour’ in French; ‘Namaste’ in Hindi and the Makaton sign in the last verse.
Learn to sing the first verse by echoing each line 02 , following the lyrics on Display 02. Then learn the other verses using the teaching audios 03 04 05 . Once this is secure, sing the song all the way through 01
ACTIVITY 2Explore Voices in Voice Playtime
• Listen to some vocal improvisations and trace the pitch shapes with their hands.
• Echo vocal sounds and invent their own versions for others to copy.
Listen to Voice Playtime 07 and ask questions to draw out your learners’ reactions. (E.g. Who do you think was performing the piece? Can you tell me about one of the sounds you heard? Can you make it with your voice? Posing questions may offer an opportunity to introduce the term ‘improvise’ – do your learners think that these sounds were invented ‘on the spot’?)
Listen again and introduce the idea of pitch (see Teaching tips). Ask learners to trace the pitch shapes with their hands, moving them up and down as the pitch rises and falls.
SAMPLEPAGES
Using Display 03, listen carefully to each vocal sound in turn 08 09 10 11 . Invite learners to talk about the sounds they hear. Then play each one again and ask learners to copy.
Invite one or two learners to invent their own vocal sounds for the rest of the class to copy.
ACTIVITY 3Sing Playing at the Park and Add Vocal Sounds
• Create vocal sounds representing the movements of playground equipment.
Show learners the images of playground equipment on Display 04. Talk about the up and down action shapes that they would make when playing on a slide or see-saw, and the backwards and forwards shapes made when playing on a swing.
Listen to Playing at the Park 12 . Encourage learners to trace the pitch shape of each vocal sound with their hands.
Learn the chorus by echoing each line 13 , following the lyrics on Display 05. Then sing the whole song, joining in with the vocal sounds for the slide, swing and see-saw 12 .
ACTIVITY 4Explore Vocal Sounds in What Can your Voice Do?
• Sing a call and response song.
• Respond to sung instructions with specific vocal sounds.
Listen to What Can your Voice Do? 15 , showing the lyrics on Display 06 . Point out the connection between the call (the ‘instructions’) and the matching responses (the vocal sounds).
Practise echoing the vocal sounds for the responses 16 .
Learn the calls by echoing each line 17 . Then sing the complete song in two groups to highlight the call and response structure: one group sings the calls and the other group gives the responses 15
Ask learners to suggest sounds for a new verse, writing or drawing their ideas in their student book. Practise singing some of their ideas with the backing audio 18 .
UNIT 1 WE CAN SING
Using Display 07, invite learners to reflect on their favourite sounds from the song and tick them in their student book. Then make up new versions of the song with your learners’ favourite sounds and sing them with the backing audio 18 .
TEACHING TIPS
• Watch the Elements of Music videos on pitch and pulse, and the following Teacher Support videos: ‘How to show pitch when teaching a song’ and ‘How to teach children to keep a steady beat’.
SAMPLEPAGES
• If possible, take learners on a visit to a playground to experience slides, swings and see-saws, or make a mini-playground for a class cuddly toy.
• For learners who experience limitation in physical movement, use a class cuddly toy to explore play equipment.
• Revisit newly learnt songs frequently; this will develop learners’ musical memory and confidence and produce tuneful singing.
EXTENSION IDEAS AND FURTHER LISTENING
• Using the backing audio of Hello Around the World 06 , encourage learners to sing ‘Hello’ in their own language in place of the English word.
• Extend the use of Makaton, learning the signs for ‘world’, ‘sing’, ‘you’ and ‘we’ and adding them to the song 01 .
• Encourage learners to perform Playing at the Park to others using the backing audio 14 , improvising their own vocal sounds and tracing the pitch shape with their hands.
LESSON 2 Look in the Mirror
Learners will perform a warm-up chant that explores different voice qualities. They will sing a song with echoing lines about their reflection and devise mirrored actions in pairs.
Resources • Audio 19–25 • Display pages 08–10 • Student book page 06 • Large, stable mirror (optional) Vocabulary Tempo (fast/slow), Pitch (high/low), Dynamics (louder/quieter), Verse
ACTIVITY 1Explore Voices in Say It
• Perform a chant that focuses on vocal qualities.
• Recognise opposites in vocal qualities, e.g. slow/quick, high/low.
Listen to Say It 19 . Afterwards, ask learners if they can remember any of the ways that the voice was used (high/low voice, quickly/slowly, gently/louder voice). Show the lyrics on Display 08 and talk about the opposites.
Learn the chant by echoing each line 20 .
Say it in a high voice, Then say it very low. Say it very quickly, Then say it very slow. Say it very gently, Then use a louder voice. Say it any way you like, It’s your choice! (repeat)
Invite learners to demonstrate ideas for choosing a voice for the last two lines (e.g. sleepy voice, giggly voice).
Perform the chant in two groups, taking alternate lines, with everyone chanting the last two lines together in their chosen voice 19 .
ACTIVITY 2Sing Look in the Mirror with Actions
• Sing a song with a repeated line that changes in each verse.
• Perform actions to match the lyrics.
Talk about mirrors and reflections. Do your learners ever talk to their reflec tions or do funny actions while looking in a mirror? Listen to Look in the Mirror 21 and join in echoing the repeated lines: ‘Wave to myself and give a grin’ (verse 1) and ‘Wave to myself and tap my nose’ (verse 2).
Learn the first verse by echoing each line 22 , while showing the lyrics on Display 09. Practise until it is secure.
SAMPLEPAGES
Wave to myself and give a grin.
Practise the waving and grinning actions for this verse, using the student book or display for support. Then sing the verse again 23 , adding the actions. Practise as necessary.
ACTIVITY 3Sing with a Partner in Look in the Mirror
• Learn to sing a second verse with actions.
• Sing with a partner mirroring actions and explore leader and echo.
Listen to verse 2 of Look in the Mirror 24 and join in echoing the repeated line: ‘Wave to myself and tap my nose’. Show the lyrics on Display 09 and practise the actions for this verse.
Wave to myself andtap my nose.
Sing verse 2 with the actions 24 .
E xplain the idea of a leader and an echo. Demonstrate how to be the leader in verse 1 by singing, ‘Wave to myself and give a grin’ for your learners to echo.
Organise learners into pairs, facing each other, like mirror reflections. Invite learners to practise the actions in the song together. (Use the student book for support if needed.)
Ask learners, in their pairs, to decide who will lead and who will echo the lines: ‘Wave to myself and give a grin’ and ‘Wave to myself and tap my nose’. Allow time for them to practise leading and echoing.
Sing the song as a class, with partners leading/echoing and performing the actions facing each other 21
ACTIVITY 4Compose New Lines for Look in the Mirror
• Partners create echoing lines and actions for two new verses.
• Learners perform their ideas and the class gives feedback.
In their pairs, learners will invent their own actions for two new verses of Look in the Mirror. Show Display 10 and model some ideas for the class to copy (e.g. ‘Wave your hand and tap your knees/blink your eyes/jump on the spot/smile at me’).
If I look in the mirror then I see me. When I look in the mirror, that’s who I see. Wave to myself and (echo) Wave to myself and If I look in the mirror then I see me.
Allow pairs time to try out their ideas for new echoing lines and actions. They may write or draw their ideas in the student book.
Invite a pair to perform their ideas using the backing audio 25 . The rest of the class sings the unchanging lines and watches the performance. Ask the class to provide feedback using your preferred strategies (e.g. raising their hands). Give as many pairs as possible a chance to perform.
SAMPLEPAGES
TEACHING TIPS
• Make any necessary adaptations for learners who experience limitation in physical movement.
• Encourage partners to make their actions look the same, like true reflections.
• If possible, bring in a large, stable mirror so that pairs can practise their actions while looking at their reflection.
EXTENSION IDEAS AND FURTHER LISTENING
• Select some of the learners’ ideas for the echoed lines and develop them into a longer song to perform and share with another class.
• Ask learners to invent and perform actions for the line: ‘If I look in the mirror then I see me’.
UNIT 1 WE CAN SING
LESSON 3 Hop, Little Frog
Learners will sing a song about a frog and compose new verses to tell a story. They will also explore pulse and tempo by bouncing a toy frog or beanbag.
Resources • Audio 26–28 • Display pages 11–13 • Student book page 07 • Beanbag or toy frog • Parachute or other fabric • Untuned percussion • Found sounds/other soundmakers • Tuned percussion
Vocabulary Pulse, Tempo
ACTIVITY 1Sing Hop, Little Frog and Bounce the Pulse
• Learn to sing a very simple song melody.
• Recognise the melody as a tool for simple songwriting.
If possible, use a beanbag or toy frog and some means of bouncing it, e.g. a sheet of stretchy fabric, a parachute, a tablecloth or a bedsheet. (Alternatively, learners could hold a puppet or imaginary frog and bounce it on their knees.) Listen to Hop, Little Frog 26 , bouncing the frog in time to the pulse, and joining in singing as the song becomes familiar. Show the lyrics on Display 11.
Verse 1
Wake up frog, Time to hop!
Have a look around. Hop, hop, hop!
Verse 2
Hop, hop, hop!
Hop, little frog!
Jumping in the pond, Hop, hop, hop!
Verse 3
Hop, hop, hop!
Hop, little frog!
Splashing about, Hop, hop, hop!
Verse 4
Hop, hop, hop!
Hop, little frog!
Eating little bugs, Hop, hop, hop!
Practise singing the song several times, noticing the change in tempo in the first verse: it starts very slowly and gets faster as the frog wakes up. Point out the pattern of the changing third line in verses 2–4 and how that line is used to tell a story.
ACTIVITY 2Compose a Frog Story Song
• Develop ideas to create a new version of the song.
Ask learners simple questions about the frog to develop your own frog story. (E.g. How high can the frog jump? How does the frog catch little bugs? What else does the frog do?)
Show Display 12 and adapt learners’ answers to fit the third line of each verse. (E.g. ‘High as a tree,’ ‘Uses its tongue,’ ‘Sits on a rock’.) Practise singing their ideas together unaccompanied as new verses.
SAMPLEPAGES
Example Answer: Hop, hop, hop! Hop, little frog!
High as a tree, Hop, hop, hop!
Continue the activity to allow as many learners as possible to suggest lines for new verses. (You could encourage individuals to suggest suitable questions.)
Encourage learners to write their idea for a new verse in their student book.
ACTIVITY 3Explore Sounds for a Frog Story Song
• Play percussion or found sounds to accompany the frog story song.
• Explore playing sounds to a pulse.
Talk about sounds that might represent a frog hopping (e.g. scraper sounds using untuned percussion or running a stick/ pencil up and down the grooved side of a water bottle).
Encourage learners to choose a sound and practise playing in time with the pulse using the teaching audio 27
Invite small groups to explore playing your chosen sounds to accompany as you sing the song with the performance or backing audio 26 28 . (Those playing instruments join in for verses 2–4, once the tempo has speeded up.)
ACTIVITY 4Perform your Frog Story Song
• Select verses to make your finished story song.
• Play percussion or found sounds to accompany the song.
• Perform your song and talk about any improvements.
Choose four verses for your frog story song. Select from the four verses in the original song and the learners’ ideas in Activity 2.
Practise your new song unaccompanied, making sure that learners know the order of the verses. Play the note C on a tuned percussion instrument to give your learners the starting note. (The backing audio may be used if learners need more support 28 .)
Invite a small group to play your chosen percussion or found sounds to accompany your song, playing on the pulse. Practise your song again, adding this accompaniment.
After your performance, ask learners to suggest any changes that would make it better. Using Display 13, ask how confident they felt about their performance and encourage them to choose one of the faces to tick in their student book.
SAMPLEPAGES
TEACHING TIPS
UNIT 1 WE CAN SING
very quite not sure
• The Hop, Little Frog melody is simple and catchy for singing unaccompanied when exploring new verses; this is an excellent way to develop tuneful independent singing.
• When playing percussion on the pulse, encourage players to sit in a small circle so that they can follow each other and develop a sense of ‘group’ time.
• Draw some quick sketches on the whiteboard to remind learners of the order of verses in the new version of the song.
EXTENSION IDEAS AND FURTHER LISTENING
• Some learners could add tuned percussion to your performance, playing a repeated note C (a drone) throughout.
• Make up a new story song with a different toy animal or story character.
• Revisit songs from earlier in the unit and try singing these unaccompanied.
LESSON 4 Game Songs
Learners will stand in a circle and sing a traditional Japanese game song with actions performed outside and inside the circle. When the song is familiar, they will invent their own actions.
Resources • Audio 29–31 • Display pages 14–16 • Student book page 08 • Tuned percussion (teacher use) • Recording device (if possible)
Vocabulary Pulse
ACTIVITY 1Perform Actions in the Song Naka Naka Hoi
• Sing a simple song in Japanese.
• Add actions to show ‘outside’ and ‘inside’.
All stand in a circle. Listen to Naka Naka Hoi 29 and recognise the key words: naka, meaning ‘inside’, and soto, meaning ‘outside’.
Learn to sing the song by echoing each line 30 , following the lyrics on Display 14.
Invite learners to suggest an action they could do inside or outside the circle in time with the beat/pulse, shown by the underlining in the lyrics below. (e.g. put hands in front and then behind themselves; tap forehead/tap the back of their head; put a foot forward/put it behind).
Naka naka hoi!
Soto soto hoi!
Naka soto, soto naka, Naka naka hoi!
Translation:
Inside inside hoi!
Outside outside hoi!
Inside outside, outside inside, Inside inside hoi!
Sing the song again, adding the chosen actions, making sure they are suitable for all your learners 29 .
soto outside naka inside
ACTIVITY 2 Invent New Actions for a Song
• In pairs, invent new actions for a song.
SAMPLEPAGES
• Share new ideas by performing to others.
In pairs, learners invent new actions for naka and soto to perform with Naka Naka Hoi 29 (e.g. using their feet or whole bodies, or moving a toy inside and outside a circle drawn on paper).
Invite pairs to share their new actions with the class and support them in refining their ideas and making them more manageable, if needed.
ACTIVITY 3Listen to Bom Çike, Share Songs and Reflect
• Listen to an Albanian song shared by two children.
• Learners share their favourite songs.
• Learners reflect on which songs they like best.
Listen to Bom Çike 31 and show Display 15, explaining that the children singing are sharing their favourite song from Albania (see Background Information)
Talk about your own favourite children’s song and invite learners to share their favourites. Are particular songs popular with everyone or are learners’ choices more individual? Encourage learners to explain why they like the song they have chosen.
Invite learners to write or draw their favourite song in their student book. There is also space to record the song they like best from those shared by their friends. Use Display 16 and the student book to reflect on why they like it.
ACTIVITY 4Sing your Favourite Songs
• Favourite songs are chosen and sung.
• Chosen songs are performed with suitable actions.
Choose a selection of the learners’ favourite songs to perform together.
Choose a performance order and practise the songs, adding suitable actions. Give learners a suitable starting pitch by singing ‘Ready, off we go’ before they start singing.
If possible, perform your songs to an audience.
TEACHING TIPS
• Support learners in choosing actions that can be managed physically.
• If any learners are used to signing, invite them to share signs with the class.
• Check that the words of the learners’ favourite songs are suitable for sharing.
SAMPLEPAGES
EXTENSION IDEAS AND FURTHER LISTENING
• In the song Naka Naka Hoi, decide on a neutral action for hoi (e.g. tapping shoulders), to allow every word in the song to have an associated movement.
• Organise a performance of favourite songs for an audience. If possible, film or record your performance and watch it back to give learners the opportunity to reflect.
LESSON 5 Penguins
Learners will sing a song about penguins and use vocal slides (or glissandi) and tuned percussion to explore the comical way these creatures move around.
Resources • Audio 32–37 • Display pages 17–24 • Student book page 09 • Tuned percussion notes C to G (e.g. xylophones, glockenspiels, sets of chime bars) • Untuned percussion (e.g. tambours, woodblocks, maracas) • Recording device (if possible)
Vocabulary Glissando/Glissandi, Pitch, Cue
ACTIVITY 1 Listen to Penguins and Sing Vocal Slides
• Sing a song that includes vocal slides (glissandi).
• Recognise the pitch direction of the glissandi (up/down).
Warm up your voices using the chant Say it! 19 and Display 17 (See Lesson 2). Repeat a few times, inviting different learners to suggest a voice style for the last two lines: ‘Say it any way you like, It’s your choice!’
Show the picture of a penguin sliding down a snowy slope on Display 18. Talk about how this is a good way for penguins to get around on slippery surfaces.
Listen to Penguins 32 . Encourage learners to notice the vocal glissandi (slides) at the end of each verse (on the word ‘Whee!’) by showing the pitch movement with your hand and encouraging them to do the same.
Show Display 19 and ask which arrow shows the correct pitch movement (the second one). Encourage learners to tick the answer in their student book.
Practise making the vocal slides by echoing the singer 33 .
Learn to sing the verses by echoing each line 34 35 , following the lyrics on Display 20. (Note that verse 3 is a repeat of verse 1.)
ACTIVITY 2 Explore Playing Slides with Tuned Percussion
• Recognise downward pitch movements.
• Play tuned percussion with correct hand grip on beaters.
• Follow a simple cue to begin playing.
SAMPLEPAGES
Show the instruments on Display 21 and, if possible, have some or all of these instruments to explore. Ask learners which they think they could use to play downward pitch slides (1, 3 and 6). Invite them to tick the boxes in their student book.
Show Display 22 and demonstrate how a downward slide from G to C can be played on the tuned percussion (and not on the untuned percussion).
Invite learners to practise playing the glissandi (slides) on tuned percussion, holding the beaters as shown on Display 22. (If the number of instruments is limited, share them among small groups.)
Using Display 23, point out the underlined word which comes before learners begin playing. Explain that you will give a cue to indicate when to play, such as raising your hand.
Verses 1 and 3 – They just slide across the ice.
Verse 2 – They just find a snowy slope.
Sing the song all the way through 32 , inviting several individuals to play the slides on tuned percussion while the rest of the class does vocal slides.
Repeat several times to allow more learners the opportunity to perform the slides on tuned percussion.
ACTIVITY 3Invent Actions for the Song Penguins
• Choreograph sliding actions for each verse, demonstrating an understanding of pitch direction.
• Add actions and build towards a performance.
Invite learners to suggest suitable body actions for the downward slides at the end of each verse of Penguins (e.g. a finger pointing to their head then travelling downwards to their knee).
Try a few ideas and choose your favourite as a class.
Rehearse singing the song with the added ac tions, following the lyrics on Display 23 32 .
ACTIVITY 4Perform and Reflect
• Sing Penguins with tuned percussion glissandi and actions.
• Learners refine their performance.
Learners sing all verses with actions, following the lyrics on Display 23 32
Perform Penguins with the actions practised in Activity 3 and a small group playing the glissandi on tuned percussion. If possible, sing with the backing audio 37 and film or record the performance.
Discuss the performance. Ask learners what worked well and whether anything could have been performed better. (Encourage learners to reflect on their singing and playing in your preferred way, e.g. raising their hands.)
If there is time, perform the song again, making improvements and giving another small group the opportunity to play tuned percussion. Encourage learners to reflect on their performance using Display 24 and the student book.
TEACHING TIPS
• Search online for videos of penguins sliding on ice and snow to share with learners.
SAMPLEPAGES
• Watch the Elements of Music video on pitch, which introduces the term ‘glissando’.
• Learners may like to add more actions during the verses (e.g. walking movements on the spot in time with the pulse, perhaps with feet splayed and making little steps, like penguins).
• If possible, learners playing tuned percussion should hold two beaters (one in each hand) for playing alternate slides.
EXTENSION IDEAS AND FURTHER LISTENING
• You might like to watch extracts from the documentary film March of the Penguins , to show penguins travelling across ice and snow.
• Revisit songs from earlier in the unit to develop learners’ musical memory and produce confident and tuneful singing.
LESSON 6 Practise, Polish and Perform
Learners will revisit songs from the unit, practising and perfecting them for performance.
Resources • Audio 01–06, 28, 32, 37 • Display pages 25–30 • Student book page 10 • Tuned percussion notes C to G (e.g. xylophones, glockenspiels, sets of chime bars) • Untuned percussion • Found sounds/other soundmakers
Vocabulary Tempo, Pulse, Glissando/Glissandi
ACTIVITY 1Practise
for a Performance of Hello Around the World
• Revisit and prepare this song for performance.
• Practise the greetings and actions to engage an audience.
Revise singing the song Hello Around the World 01 from Lesson 1, following the lyrics on Display 25 and revising the Makaton sign for ‘Hello’. (Practise individual verses, if needed, with the teaching audio 02 03 04 05 .)
Practise the song with the backing audio 06 for a performance:
• Suggest learners work in pairs, singing the verses to their partner.
• Make sure that the sung greetings and actions are clear.
ACTIVITY 2Explore Performance Ideas for Hop, Little Frog
• Choose verses to include in your performance and explore tempo.
• Add found sounds and/or percussion as an accompaniment, playing on the pulse.
Sing or say the words on Display 26 to the learners. Ask which might sound better if they were sung more slowly (‘Getting very sleepy’). Encourage learners to explain why, and to tick the answer in their student book.
Hop, hop, hop!
Hop, little frog!
Dashing round the pond, Hop, hop, hop!
Hop, hop, hop!
Hop, little frog!
Getting very sleepy, Hop, hop, hop!
✔
Decide together which of the original verses of Hop, Little Frog and your invented verses (from Lesson 3) to include in your performance.
Encourage learners to think about the tempo (speed) of your chosen verses. Ask if any would sound better sung more slowly (e.g. ‘Wake up frog’, ‘Getting very sleepy’…)
SAMPLEPAGES
Practise singing your frog story song. You might want to use a backing audio 28 for initial support, but then tr y performing unaccompanied, playing the note C on tuned percussion as the starting note.
Invite a small group to practise the untuned percussion accompaniment on the pulse (see Lesson 3, Activity 3). You could also invite a few learners to add tuned percussion, playing a repeated note C (a drone) throughout.
ACTIVITY 3 Practise for a Performance of Penguins
• Practise singing with clear words to engage your audience.
• Revise the vocal and tuned percussion slides and practise performing them confidently and accurately.
Revise singing the song Penguins from Lesson 5 using Display 27 and the performance audio 32 , then the backing audio 37 . Encourage learners to keep the singing tone bright with clear words to convey the amusing lyrics. Remember your ideas for improvement from last lesson and implement these.
Invite a small group to revise playing the glissandi (slides) on tuned percussion. Encourage learners to hold the beaters correctly and check that players are familiar with their cue using Displays 28 and 29.
Practise singing the song with the backing audio 37 , accompanied by the small group playing tuned percussion. Add the actions devised in Lesson 5 to enhance the performance.
ACTIVITY 4 Perform and Reflect
• Perform your three songs to an audience.
• Learners reflect on which songs they have enjoyed.
If possible, perform your three songs from Activities 1–3 to an audience using the backing audios 06 28 37 and percussion instruments.
• Encourage learners to be aware of your audience and to communicate the songs with energy.
• Consider involving the audience by teaching them the Makaton sign for ‘Hello’.
• Make sure that instrumentalists are well-positioned and can see you for their cues.
Enjoy presenting your programme of songs. Afterwards, encourage learners to talk about the musical items that were successful and to tell you why they worked well.
Ask learners to share which songs from the unit they have enjoyed the most. There are four given on Display 30. Learners may tick their favourite in their student book to remember for the celebration unit (Unit 5), and reflect on why they like it.
Look in the Mirror
Hop, Little Frog!
SAMPLEPAGES
TEACHING TIPS
• Ensure that learners know the programme order.
• Practise any changes of the arrangement of singers and players in the performance space, so that learners feel confident about ‘what comes next’.
• Talk to your learners about engaging with the audience and communicating the meaning of the songs.
Penguins Hello Around the World
EXTENSION IDEAS AND FURTHER LISTENING
• Revisit these songs in the future – learners benefit greatly from singing familiar material!