MUSIC

The kindergartners and first graders have had a very industrious month!  We have been busy preparing for our Spring Concert to be held on June 8, alongside the graduation ceremony.  We have been learning the song "La Mariposa," a song and rhyme about a magical Spanish butterfly who has the ability to not only change sizes, shapes and colors but she also knows how to make the most delicious chocolate to share with her neighbors!  The kids have been busy making butterfly music on the Orff instruments as well as learning how to move like a butterfly.  No song about a butterfly would be complete without learning about the life cycle of a butterfly, of course!  We are also learning the "Life Cycle of a Butterfly" song, have read books about butterflies and have even watched an incredible 3 minute video that documents the life of a butterfly from egg to full-fledged butterfly.  The children are experimenting with both improvisation on the Orff instruments (soft butterfly music, quick butterfly music, slow butterfly music, excited butterfly music, tired butterfly music, etc.) as well as learning how to play the actual melody of the song that they have learned to sing.  I didn't just tell the kids the notes to the melody, however.....I made them work for it!  I would give them one clue (such as "the first pitch is a C" and they would then have to use their ears to figure out whether the next pitch went up or down - by referencing the song with their own singing voice - and they then had to figure out which pitch sounded like the correct one).  We are using a C pentatonic scale (which is only a 5 note scale as opposed to the traditional 7 note diatonic scale) so the finding of the pitch is more accessible with 2 bars removed from the Orff instruments.  We have had a wonderful time focusing on the Orff instruments this past month.