Week of April 3

We had a great first week back to school after spring break!  Keep reading to learn about some of the highlights from your child's music class this week.

Kindergarteners discovered that "Twinkle, Twinkle" is in AB form.  They created movements that represented this form.  They then focused on identifying the difference between high and low sounds in a song and showing the highs and lows through their movements.

First graders performed a folk dance called "Alabama Gal" this week.  They discovered that there were some similarities and many differences between this dance and other dances they have performed in the past.

Second graders each selected an unpitched percussion instrument and composed rhythms for their instrument.  They needed to consider the sound characteristics of their particular instrument in order to write rhythms that could be successfully played by the instrument.  They then used rhythms that their friends had composed to create a three-part composition.  They will be performing these next week!

Third and fourth graders were very excited to find out their parts for the upcoming Spring Sing!  Many students had lunch or recess rehearsals this week.  They are doing a nice job with their parts so far.  It is very exciting to see the show beginning to come together with all of the different speaking parts, instrument parts, and solos!

Fifth graders learned about Modest Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition," Gustav Holst's "Planets," and Camille Saint-Saens' "Carnival of the Animals" this week in preparation for their Ravinia field trip, which was on Wednesday.  The musicians performed several sections of these pieces, and the students really seemed to enjoy it.  They also began learning the basics of playing the ukulele this week!

As always, please free to contact me with any questions or concerns: ecrutchfield@nssd112.org.