September: This month in music, students will learn the routines and rules for a safe and fun music class. We are learning to show and maintain steady beat in kindergarten-second grade and are reviewing and learning notation in the upper grades. Students will learn to echo, read, and/or compose rhythms and play a variety of instruments. All students will use their singing voices and incorporate movement throughout each class.
October: This month in music, students will continue to build on feeling steady beat and expand on those ideas. In kindergarten and first grades, we are adding more instruments and learning about high and low voices. In second and third, we are beginning to hone our rhythm skills and develop our singing voices. We are adding movement (folk dance) that will help us identify the difference between beat and rhythm. In fourth and fifth grades, we are building on those skills by incorporating rhythmic activities and notation, working on our head voice. Some classes in upper grades have been able to incorporate ukuleles into class. (Some seasonal favorites include the Apple Tree Game, Pick-a-Pumpkin, moving to minor mode classical pieces, ghost voice warmups, movement routines to "Leatherwing Bat" and "Carrion Crow," the tossing game "A Bat!", "Kitty Alone" with ribbon wands, "The Witch's Cat is Sleeping," and adding xylophones to accompany more rhythmic notation.)
November: Upcoming goals are:
K-2
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I am learning to keep the steady beat.
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I am learning to connect sounds with symbols.
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I can sing a short melody.
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I can speak and play patterns of long and short sounds.
3-5
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I am learning to accompany myself or others.
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I am learning to read, write and perform rhythmic notation.
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I am learning to perform and improvise using a pentatonic scale.
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I am learning to recognize same and different parts of music
PAX in the music class
PAX goals for music are currently:
-I will be a PAX leader and listener
-I will treat all items with care
-I will do my best in all activities
If your child's class can achieve all these goals in conjunction with their musical ones, we can win a Granny Wacky Prize. Please speak with your child at home about the expectations to help with reinforcement. Two of our most frequent "spleems" are talking out of turn (whispers to neighbors, blurting) and using unsafe bodies.
Helena Public Schools K-5 Music Scope and Sequence: