For the past few years, I have counted down to the new year with a top ten list. I begin on 12/23 and end on 1/1. The list is comprised of 10 tech tools or tips for elementary and middle school general music. This top ten list will have a tech tool or tip featured each day in a short video and blog post. When we reach number one, I will follow it with a video of all ten tools and tips. Therefore, you can follow me daily, or come back on New Year’s Day and catch all ten at once.

WHO AM I?

If you are new to this YouTube channel or my website or my buymeacoffee site, my name is Amy M. Burns and I have been teaching and integrating technology into the elementary music classroom for over 25 years at Far Hills Country Day School, a preschool through grade 8 private school in NJ. For the past two years, I have also worked for Katie Wardrobe in her Midnight Music Community as the Community Coordinator answering questions and giving out tech tips to the community. Finally, I am an author and clinician with four publications. My recent publication titled Using Technology with Elementary Music Approaches is published by Oxford University Press and can be purchased from OUP or Amazon today.

Each week on this website and my YouTube channel I post a play-along video, resource video, or a webisode about integrating technology into the music classroom. Please subscribe and click like to the video so that you can get weekly notifications about resources you can immediately use in your classroom. I am also working on my Teachers Pay Teachers page, but currently, it holds many free items. I hope to get that going more in 2023. If you like my resources, please consider buying me a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/elmusedtech

It is Christmas Day today and this brings about a lot of cheer, thankfulness, and joy in our household. I hope that on this day, there was some joy and peace a part of it.

#8 Creatability

This is going to be a quick webisode as to get back to celebrating the holiday with the family.

What is Creatability?

From the website: “Creatability is a set of experiments made in collaboration with creators and allies in the accessibility community. They explore how creative tools – drawing, music, and more – can be made more accessible using web and AI technology. They’re just a start. We’re sharing open-source code and tutorials for others to make their own projects.”

Seeing Music

The keyboard is a great tool so that all of your students can make music. If they have a device where they move the trackpad or the mouse, they can play the virtual marimba. You can change the scales and instruments. And, the boomwhacker colors are present.

If you change the tracking into body tracking, and you allow the device’s camera to be used, you can now move the mallet with your head.

Body Synth

This experiment will access your camera so you can move your body to make music. You can change the sounds, the chords, and the sensitivity of the motion.

Both of these give all of your students access to make music. Check out the 1600+ other experiments happening at this site.

Seeing Music

I use this so the youngest of students can visualize high and low pitches, And yes, boomwhacker colors are back! You can change the visualization and bring scientific concepts into music class. Use the Waveform to also show and experiment with dynamics.

They also allow you to bring in an mp3 file of a recording you are using in class and it will show it in the visualization you are using. Finally, have the students record a simple song or melody that is under 30 seconds and this experiment will turn it into a piano roll that they can play along.

COME BACK TOMORROW FOR TECH TOOL OR TIP #7!

Check back tomorrow for tech tool or tip #7. I hope that you are on holiday break now and are finding time to relax and rest!