Instrument Family Races

Need an engaging activity to reinforce the instrument families? Need an emergency sub plan that can be used by a non-music sub? You should try this new resource--Instrument Family Races.
This resource includes 24 instrument cards, 2 game versions, and a video demo. You only need to provide 4 or 8 hula hoops.

I divide the class into 2 groups. Each team has 4 hula hoops to represent the 4 instrument families (string, woodwind, brass, percussion). The hoops will be on one side of the room. One student from each team will stand on the opposite side of the room from the hoops.

The teacher will have 2 stacks of instrument cards which are in identical orders. The teacher will draw the top card from each stack and reveal it to the players. Each player will grab their card and race to place it into the correct hula hoop family. The game will continue rotating new teammates each turn.

When all the cards have disappeared, you can play in reverse. The teacher will call out an instrument and the players will race to find the correct card and bring it back to the teacher. This will get the instrument cards back into two identical stacks ready for the next class to play the game.

This game is very engaging and can easily be managed by a non-music substitute teacher. I recently left this game with a sub along with this demo video and she had no trouble understanding the rules and procedures. Here is my demo video:

This game is available for download on my Teachers Pay Teachers Store. 

Just follow this link:

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Washi Tape for your Whiteboard

I have to display my learning targets in student friendly terms. I used to write these on a laminated poster but it became difficult to erase and clean each time.

I have now divided my whiteboard into sections with Washi tape so I can erase my objectives more easily and cleanly. Below, you can see photos of my objectives in the music room and in the art room.

Here is a brief video tutorial showing how I divided the board into sections and kept the lines straight without using a level.

I used less than one roll of washi tape for each board. You can purchase a roll of washi tape for less than $3. It comes in many different colors and designs. For the music board, I used glitter washi tape.

The whiteboard wipes off so much easier than laminated posters. Comment below if you have any more questions or if you would like to share your favorite use for washi tape.