Amy M. Burns

Elementary Music Technology and Integration

Amy M. Burns has taught PreK-grade 4 general music for over 25 years at Far Hills Country Day School (FH) (https://www.fhcds.org/). She also teaches grade 5 instrument class, directs the FH Philharmonic, is the Performing Arts Department Manager, and teaches privately in the after-school conservatory after being the director for over 20 years. She has authored four books and numerous articles on how to integrate tech into the elementary music classroom. She has presented many sessions on the topic, including four keynote addresses in TX, IN, St. Maarten, and AU. She is the recipient of the 2005 Technology in Music Education (TI:ME) Teacher of the Year, the 2016 New Jersey Music Educators Association (NJMEA) Master Music Teacher, the 2016 Governor’s Leader in Arts Education, and the 2017 NJ Nonpublic School Teacher of the Year Awards. Her most recent publication, Using Technology with Elementary Music Approaches (2020), published by Oxford University Press (OUP) is available from OUP and Amazon. Burns is also the Community Coordinator for Midnight Music (MMC) at https://midnightmusic.com/, the General Music Chair for NJMEA Board of Directors, and the Elementary Music Consultant for MusicFirst (https://www.musicfirst.com/), a company built by music educators for music educators, dedicated to helping music teachers and their students make the most of technology in the classroom.

Time of Your Life - End-of-the-Year Ukulele Play-Along

May 12, 2024  /  Amy M. Burns

Check out a fresh ukulele play-along featuring Green Day's hit "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)." The title has been slightly modified by omitting "Good Riddance." This rendition is from the 1998 Letterman Show when the album "Nimrod" was introduced. The performance is by Green Day's frontman, Billie Joe Armstrong. As it's a live version, it skips the initial part found on the CD, excluding a word unsuitable for an elementary music setting.

Teaching this song

This song is based on four chords: G Major, E Minor, D Major, and C Major. The teaching approach involves introducing one chord per class session.

  • First Class: Focus on teaching or reviewing the C Major chord and have the students play it whenever it appears in the song.

  • Second Class: Introduce or review the E minor chord. Encourage them to play this chord when it comes up.

    • Advanced Option: For those studying privately on the ukulele or more advanced players, challenge them to play both chords.

  • Third Class: Cover the G Major chord. Instruct them to play this chord as needed.

    • Level 1: Play the G chord exclusively.

    • Level 2: Incorporate both G and C chords.

    • Level 3: Include all three chords: G, C, and E minor.

  • Fourth Class: Introduce or review the D Major chord. Have them play this chord when it's part of the song.

    • Level 1: Focus on playing the D chord.

    • Level 2: Include the D and C chords only.

    • Level 3: Progress to playing the D, C, and G chords.

    • Level 4: Master playing all the chords.

    • Level 5: Challenge them to play the chords without looking at the ukulele.

Manipulatives

Here is the link to duplicate the chord progressions discovered in the song. By incorporating various methods in teaching this song, you can observe the ukulele chord matching the boomwhacker colors on the main screen. For more alternatives, students can also use the boomwhackers with the play-along video. Additionally, on the side of the screen, hand positions are shown for students who require visual guidance while playing.

Copy of the Manipulatives

Feel free to use this to make a copy and edit to work well in your class: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1iZMYYM4bHsZuGl8FZ6PwT0DsSsJ89j0Qcys4g-NW884/copy

Resources:

There are many excellent resources out there to create play-along videos. I used the following to create this one:

  • Clipchamp Web-Based Free Video Editing Program: https://clipchamp.com/en/

  • Canva for Educators (free version) to create the slides: https://www.canva.com/education/

  • Ukulele Buddy Free Images: https://www.ukulelebuddy.com/free-ukulele-chords.html

  • Midnight Music’s Free Ukulele Chord Library: https://midnightmusic.com/2014/05/free-ukulele-chord-image-library/

Coming Soon!


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