Broken Fan Tutorial

Props can be a great way to peak student interest in a classroom activity or add a polished touch for a performance. If you are purchasing props for an entire class or grade level, it can become expensive. It is sometimes difficult to find an inexpensive prop that is also durable and can withstand the nervous hands of a student awaiting show time.

Recently, my Orff Ensemble performed the Korean folk song "Arirang",  which included a fan dance. These fans were only $1 each from the Dollar Store. They are made of plastic and fabric and come in a variety of colors. I purchased them from the store in December, but they are currently out of season for their brick and mortar stores.  They are still available online but you must purchase a minimum of 24. Follow this link to the Dollar Tree online store.

During rehearsals, we had no trouble with these fans. While waiting to perform, two students accidently broke their fans. I'm so glad I had extra! After the performance, I tried to find a way to repair the broken fans instead of throwing them away. I am very pleased with the results. Actually, I think the repaired fans are going to be more durable than the originals. Follow this simple tutorial to save your broken fans!

Broken Fan Tutorial

To repair your fan, you will need a large paperclip and some needle nose pliers.

Step 1: Straighten the inside of your paperclip, pulling it open to form a 90 degree angle.

Step 2: Insert the straightened clip through the end of the fan.

Step 3: Using needle nose pliers, form two more 90 degree angles so that your paperclip forms a box around the end of the fan.

Step 4: With pliers, coil one end of the paperclip around the other.

Step 5: With pliers, continue coiling and then snap off any excess paperclip by bending the piece back and forth repeatedly.

Step 6: With pliers, bend the coil down and make sure there are no sharp ends that would scratch your hand while holding the fan.

I hope you find this post helpful! I originally purchased 12 fans, I will definitely be ordering some more to have a complete class set. If you have any lesson ideas that use fans, please add them in the comments below!

Tangle-Free Ribbon Wands

Are you looking to purchase some ribbon wands or do your ribbon wands keep getting tangled? You need to read this!

Eight years ago, I completed my first level of Orff Schulwerk training and devoted a big portion of my classroom budget for creative movement props. One of my biggest regrets, until now, was purchasing a class set of ribbon sticks from Oriental Trading. A very similar product is still found on orientaltrading.com.  They come in sets of 6 and are currently $8.


I had immediate buyer's remorse when I discovered how easily they would tangle. These ribbon sticks do not allow for the ribbon to swivel 360 degrees and therefore the ribbon tangles very easily. Also, once the ribbon is tangled, kids start yanking on it and cause the rubber end cap to come off. For years, they have been stored in the cabinets without being used.

This year, I pulled them out of the closet again after finding the "Chinese Ribbon Dance" lesson in Artie Almedia's Mallet Madness. I was determined to find a solution and put these props to use. 

 I searched online and found the Tikkido blog which suggested using swivels that are used for fishing lures. I had actually purchased a small package of swivels and had planned on investing in some new dowel rods. Since I had not purchased the dowels, I had not repaired them yet.

But, this week, two third graders showed ingenuity and solved my problem without the purchase of extra hardware!

My ribbons were connected to the stick with an eye hook and a metal clip. They discovered that if you remove the eye hook and rubber end cap, you can slide the biggest side of the metal clip around the stick. Then, simply replace the black end cap. The end caps may need a drop or two of glue to ensure they won't come off. My students are begging to come back to glue the end caps on another day! I was going to try super glue or a hot glue gun. But, if I let students repair it, I may use a safer adhesive.  Yes, the metal clip will slide up and down the stick. But, when you are using the ribbon your arm is continuously moving, so it does not slide around until you stop.

When these two showed me their discovery, I was elated!!! They repaired all 30 of my ribbon wands for FREE! (Although, I do plan on buying them some M&M's) 

 I have one last picture to show you how I store my ribbon wands. This is similar to my Boomwhacker storage, if you have seen that post. I separate each color in a smaller box which fit inside a bigger box.

The skinny boxes were actually very long boxes I kept when I purchased some wooden decorative shelves for my home. I had 3 boxes and simply cut them in half down the middle. I'm sure you can find similar sized boxes if you look or ask around. I am very conscious of our planet and try to reuse or repurpose things whenever possible!



I am so excited about the ribbon wands. This summer I plan on going through my Orff Level binders and searching the web for ideas to use them in lessons. If you have any suggestions, please comment below. I will leave you with one last picture of my problem-solving duo, Hunter and Leah, demonstrating the tangle-free ribbon wands!!!

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July 25, 2015

Don Gato

I love being a student teacher mentor because it keeps my curriculum fresh. As my student teachers explore books and materials from my shelf, they discover songs and poems that I have overlooked for years! Last fall, I had my first student teacher for just 8 weeks. Ms. Morrison discovered the Mexican song "Don Gato" in an old textbook. (Grade 3, Music Connection from Silver Burdett & Ginn)  The book suggested students play the chord roots on Orff instruments along with the recording. However, the chord progression was very challenging for many of the students in the short amount of time provided in the lesson. Also, the instruments were so loud it was very difficult for the students to hear the recording and stay with the tempo of the song. Although the lesson didn't go as well as planned, it was a great teachable moment and allowed for Ms. Morrison to practice self-reflection.

This fall, I had the pleasure of mentoring a second student teacher for an entire semester! Ms. Moreman and I cotaught "Don Gato" with some modifications. The original goal of the lesson was to teach about a ballad. The students would still learn about a ballad, but we decided the main focus of the lesson would be chord building. We had just studied the order of the musical alphabet with some relay races and small group games. (Click here to learn more about the staff games!) We wanted to reinforce this concept because some students were still struggling to remember that A follows G. We also decided to use Boomwhackers instead of barred instruments. The Boomwhackers were much more quiet and did not overpower the recording. The students LOVED  this lesson!

Lesson Sequence 

1. Discuss the term "ballad". Play one verse of "Don Gato" at a time, asking students what is happening in the story and how the plot has changed. I display the words of each verse on the flip chart as we discuss it.
2. Display the slide with "tempo" and "dynamics" definitions. Ask the students when they hear these musical elements change and how that was related to the story. (The music gets quieter and slower when Don Gato dies and louder and faster when he comes back to life.)
3. Review the definition of "harmony." Using a xylophone, demonstrate how to build a chord by skipping every other letter. Give the students a starting letter and ask them to spell the chord and build a triad (diatonic). Play each triad on the xylophone and ask them if it sounded major or minor.
4. Divide the class into 4 groups, one for each chord in the song (D minor, C major, G minor, and A major). Each student will play one or two Boomwhackers from their chord.  Ask  to play with a steady beat and then ask them only to play when you point to their chord grouping on the board.
5. Display the harmonic progression to accompany the song.  Practice the progression in tempo without the music and then try to accompany the recording, remembering to change tempo and dynamics on the appropriate verse. 
6. We also tried to sing the song without the recording so we could hear the Boomwhackers more clearly. I was able to conduct the groups and Ms. Moreman changed the slides to display the lyrics. (this could easily be a job for a student helper) The students' favorite part, by far, was singing "meow, meow, meow" in each verse.

Music Recording

I used the textbook CD to accompany the Grade 3 Music Connection by Silver Burdett & Ginn. If you don't have that textbook series, you can use the audio from this YouTube video.

How Many Boomwhackers Do You Need?

When I taught this lesson  I used 5 sets of diatonic Boomwhackers and 6 Octavator caps. The small black rectangles represent the octavator caps which lower the pitch of the Boomwhacker a full octave. When teaching the lesson, I challenged the students to guess what the small black rectangles would represent. There was at least one student in each class who remembered the Octavator Caps from a previous lesson.

If you only have diatonic Boomwhackers, the A major and G minor chords will feature only the root and the fifth of the chord. 

If you have 24 kids in a class, each group would have about 6 kids. So, you would need:

• Group 1: DFA, 2 of each pitch
• Group 2: CEG, 2 of each pitch
• Group 3: GD, 3 of each pitch, 3 Octavator caps on G 
• Group 4: AE, 3 of each pitch, 3 Octavator caps on A

I have since purchased 2 sets of chromatic Boomwhackers. So, next year I plan on using this set up:

• Group 1: DFA, 2 of each pitch
• Group 2: CEG, 2 of each pitch
• Group 3: GBbD, 2 of each pitch with 4 Octavator caps on G and Bb
• Group 4: AC#E, 2 of each pitch, with 2 Octavator caps on A

 For this set up, you would only need 4 diatonic sets, 2 chromatic sets, and 6 Octavator Caps.

I also purchased a set of bass diatonic Boomwhackers and plan rewarding one student in each group with the big Bass Boomwhackers. These sound best when you place an Octavator cap on them, hold them vertical, and tap the cap end on the carpeted floor.

 ***In the uploaded flipchart, both versions are available (with and without Bb and C#). You can choose which version to use according to your available resources.

Download the "Don Gato"flipchart for free from Promethean Planet.

If you liked this flipchart, check out my others!

"120 Singing Games" 58% off!

This is one of my favorite resources! I am posting about it now, because I discovered that it is on clearance right now on

Walmart.com for $68.

That's 58% off!

 It normally retails for $162! I know I paid more than $100 for my used copy years ago purchased from amazon.com. If you do not have this book in your library, do not miss out on this outrageous deal!

The instructions for the dances are very clear and include helpful diagrams. There is also a very extensive movement glossary in the back of the book. Here are just a few of my favorite games and dances from this book:

"Old Betty Larkin" -a circle dance which is a mixer to trade partners. Grades 2-5 always enjoy this dance. Check out a previous post on this song.  

"Pop Goes the Weasel"-a triple circle dance for Grade 1-5

"I've Been To Haarlem"- double circle moving with partners and then separately in contrary motion. My students love to "wring the dishrag" and separate from their partner!

"Old Brass Wagon"-I love a dance where the lyrics tell you what to do!

"Paw Paw Patch"- a Kentucky song and a great dance to teach K and 1st how to "peel the banana"!

"Alabama Gal"-a "peel the banana" favorite!

"Obwisana"-an African rock passing game (we use beanbags)

"Tideo"- an arch-forming game

  

A full index of the contents is available at westmusic.com.

If you already have this great book, share your favorite game or song below!

"Old Betty Larkin": A Kentucky Folk Dance

Greetings, from Kentucky! We just finished a lesson introducing the mountain dulcimer, Jean Ritchie, and a Kentucky folk dance, "Old Betty Larkin." The dulcimer is Kentucky's state instrument, so I always make sure to expose my students to our Kentucky heritage at least a couple times throughout the school year. "Old Betty Larkin" is a game song that any age will enjoy. I teach this lesson to 2nd-5th grade every year and it is a favorite the kids remember from year to year.

The song and dance can be found in "120 Singing Games and Dance For Elementary School" by Lois Choksy and David Brummit. This is a great resource and I use it often. If you don't currently own a copy, I promise it will be worth your investment! On westmusic.com, this retails for $162.00. I know I paid more than $100 for my copy several years ago when I purchased on amazon.com.  I did a quick search and found it at walmart.com for only $68! What a deal!

The song is in D dorian, but the kids usually pick up on the melody very quickly. (It's actually refreshing to get out of the world of C Major pentatonic!) I usually accompany the song on my dulcimer just playing a drone throughout the song without worrying about the melody string because I have zero skills or training in actually playing the dulcimer. There are chord changes you could choose to play if you were accompanying the song on piano, guitar, or even Orff instruments. (I've always wanted to make an Orff arrangement for this song but haven't gotten around to it yet!)

We repeat the song several times. Usually we try to give everyone a turn, but sometimes we just run out of time. If you have an even number of students, we have 2 people in the middle to be Betty/Billy. I just remind them to go to opposite sides of the circle to start the weaving so that they don't end up stealing 2 people from the same couple. This is a time saver to allow more kids to have a turn. The older kids could handle 3 in the middle if you are adventurous!

Dance Connections

Here are a few questions I usually ask the kids to include dance vocabulary in the lesson: 

In verse 1, who was locomotor? Everyone except Betty/Billy

In verse 2, who was locomotor? Only Betty/Billy

In verse 3, who was locomotor? Only the new Betty/Billy

In verse 1, what kind of pathway did you travel? Curved

In verse 2, what kind of pathway did Betty/Billy travel? Zigzag

In verse 3, what kind of pathway did the new Betty/Billy travel? Straight (to go to the center)

Which verse(s) had a double circle formation? Verse 1

Which verse(s) had a single circle formation? Verse 2 & 3

In verse 1, did our circle move clockwise or counter-clockwise? (counter-clockwise)

I always encourage students to use the dance posters for help answering these questions. If you missed my post talking about these fabulous dance posters, click this link.

Historical Connections

This year, I saved the last 10 minutes of class to talk about Jean Ritchie and show a video of her playing "Old Betty Larkin" on the dulcimer. The video comes from a radio show that is televised on our local PBS station, "Woodsongs Old-Time Radio Hour." Their website woodsongs.com has video and audio archives of all their shows. The episode I use is #450. A direct link to the video can be found by clicking the picture below. The video opens in Windows Media Player.

You can cue the video to 18:10 to show only the song "Old Betty Larkin" but before she plays she talks about being a young child sneaking to play her father's dulcimer when he was out working in the fields. She also talks about going to New York straight out of college. When people saw her carrying the dulcimer on the subway, they would beg her to play it because they had never seen an instrument like that before. She began playing in clubs and is credited with bringing the sound of the dulcimer to the world-wide audience. Jean also talks briefly about the tuning of the instrument. It is a wonderful interview, very insightful and informative. The interview begins at cue mark 11:40.

After the video, I usually ask the kids to compare and contrast her version of the song to our version. Jean skips the verse that says "Needle in a haystack" but also includes another verse that says "You take mine, I'll take another." Jean's version can also be found in her book "Folk Songs of the Southern Appalachians." "Old Betty Larkin" is on page 15 and can be viewed in the preview on amazon.com. The book is $15.91 on Amazon.

I'm sure your students will enjoy this game song. If you have any other activities or suggestions to accompany this lesson, please share your ideas!

Once Upon a Musical Pair

As we are approaching the end of the summer, I thought some of you may be examining your wishlists and ordering new materials for your classroom. I thought I would share some recommendations.

I absolutely love these 2 books:

"Once Upon a Folk Tale" and "Once Upon a Mountain Tale" by Linda Rockwell High and Carol Kindt. 

They are each $14.50 at westmusic.com. They are each $15.95 at amazon.com but eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping. I suggest you visit Amazon to take a sneak-peak inside  "Once Upon a Mountain Tale" to view a few pages and see if you like it. Both books are formatted the same way.

Each book has 8 stories set to music. 

"Once Upon a Folk Tale" includes:

Chicken Little 

3 Billy Goats Gruff  

How the Camel Got His Hump

The Boy Who Cried Wolf

The Fox Who Lost His Dinner 

The Gingerbread Boy

The Old Woman and Her Pig 

Silly Jack

"Once Upon a Mountain Tale" includes 6 Jack tales and 2 Grandfather tales set to melodies from Appalachian folk songs and fiddle tunes. (I teach in Kentucky so this book was an awesome addition to my resource library!) 

Orff Arrangements

When it is time to insert a song, the reader will see a treble clef appear in the story. Although you could sing the melodies with an accompaniment, the songs include very simple Orff arrangements. Due to time constraints, sometimes I teach only the bass part. You could adapt the arrangement to meet your need by omitting or adapting some of the instrument parts. You could also play some of the parts on the piano to accompany the singing. If you are a string player, you would definitely want to bring your instrument to accompany the Appalachian folk tunes!

Sound Effects

 The characters in each story have specified sound effects with a variety of percussion instruments. The selection of includes: claves, cowbell, finger cymbals, guiro, hand drum, maracas, tambourine, temple blocks, vibraslap, wood block, cabasa, chime tree, gong, log drum, metal shaker, piccolo blocks, ratchet, recorder, sleigh bells, snare drum, suspended cymbal, timpani, triangle, wind chime, bass drum, conga, slapstick. If you don't have some of these instruments, you could make some substitutions. The characters that have sound effects appear in bold in the story to signal to the reader to pause to hear the sound effect.

Visual Aids Included!

The appendix of each book includes visuals for each character you can copy, color, and laminate to serve as visual aids during the lesson. I always glue mine onto cardstock and laminate them so they will last from year to year. I lay the visual on the carpet in front of each instrument group to remind them which character they are representing. I store them in ziploc bags and use a binder clip to keep them with the book.

Drama Integration!

The stories are short and simple and could very easily lead to dramatic performance in the classroom or for a public audience. Elaborate costumes and props are not needed, just an active imagination! I have never performed this for parents, but have often invited classroom teachers to come to a few minutes early to see a special performance. Unfortunately, I have never recorded any of these performances on video. If I ever record one, I will share it with you.

Substitute Teacher Plans!

The instructions are very simple. I have the "Chicken Little" story on stand-by as emergency sub plans. The substitute could very easily incorporate the percussion sound effects but would most likely omit the Orff melodies. I have recorded my voice singing each of the melodies so they can listen and play them for the students, since the sub most likely won't be able to read music. 

If you order one or both of these, I'm sure you'll be happy with your purchase!