Flipchart Download: Apple Tree, Apple Tree

Another flipchart is available for free download. This flipchart features the game song "Apple Tree, Apple Tree." A preview of each slide can be found on Promethean Planet. 

Introductory Activity

First, students see stick notation and count rhythms. Then, students get to drag the whole apple and apple slices to make iconic notation representing quarter notes and eighth note pairs. Students will review sol and mi pitches and get introduced to la. 

Game Song

I'm sure most of you are familiar with the game to accompany this song. If not, here are the rules we use in my classroom:

*This is an elimination game.
*Students stand in a circle facing counter-clockwise.
*One student has a ball and sits in the middle of the circle with their eyes closed.
*While singing the song, students walk to a steady beat around the circle. (They stay single file and cannot pass another student.)
*When the song is over, the students freeze and the child in the middle rolls the ball (eyes closed).
*The first child touched by the ball is knocked out. (Avoid large gaps in the circle. When the ball goes between 2 people, the teacher picks who the ball was closest to.)
*The child knocked out gets to become the tree and roll the ball next time.
*The child who already had a turn being the tree is eliminated.
*Continue until only 1 child remains in the circle.

Optional Steady Beat Assessment

During elimination games, it is always nice to give students an extra special job after they have been eliminated to have them focus on something positive (like playing an instrument) instead of the negative (not winning the game). Repetitive game songs also provide the perfect opportunity to observe students for a performance assessment (either singing or playing). In this game, the students get to take turns playing the harmonic accompaniment on the bass xylophones and I observe them playing the steady beat.

*After each student has a turn being the tree and rolling the ball, they get to come to a barred instrument to play harmony.
*If you are in the key of C, students should play C and G. (I always prepare the instruments for the pentatonic scale ahead of time and remove F and B)
*Teacher should have the gradebook ready to record how well each student performs a steady beat. 
*Encourage students to sing along. If students are off beat, singing along to the song usually corrects this.


Instrument Set-Up Variations:
Choose the best set-up for you and your students. If they are not used to this type of performance assessment, you may have to start with just 1 student at a time.


4 students at a time:
You could use 2 instruments and have 2 kids on an instrument rotating through the seats. (Each student would get to play 4 times before going to the elimination area.)

2 students at a time:

You could use 1 instrument and have 2 kids share.

You could use 2 instruments where each kid has their own.
(Each student would get to play 4 times before going to the elimination area.)


1 student at a time:

Sometimes I play with the student and share an instrument. (Each student would get to play 1 time before going to the elimination area.)

All of my uploaded flipcharts can be found at this link on Promethean Planet.

You may also like my post on Interactive Music Flipcharts 

or my post on Technology In the Music Classroom