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.
Who knew blobs could sing? Music educators are raving about Blob Opera, and for good reason! Check out the video below for some ideas on how to jazz up your first day back from a break with some melodic blob fun. Like my resources? Please feel free to buy me a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/elmusedtech
Read MoreWhen we return to the elementary music classroom after some time away, whether it was a long break, a short break, or you only see your students during a seasonal term, we will want to do some retrieval practice to assess their musical skills. The free website 4four.io can be a wonderful tool to help create activities for assessment purposes, games, or retrieval practice. Check out the featured activity using the dice to learn more about this useful site. Like my resources? Please consider buying me a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/dashboard
Read MoreIt's that time of year again – my annual countdown to the New Year! To kick off a new year, I'm sharing ten fun-filled elementary music activities for the first day back to school. Whether you're returning from a holiday break or beginning a new school year, these activities are perfect for any month. Be sure to check back daily, hit the like button, subscribe, or bookmark this page for later updates as we count down to the New Year!
#10 First Day of School Play-Along - Use this and the downloadable manipulatives as retrieval practice for reading and performing rhythm patterns while learning about Yo-Yo Ma and Auld Lang Syne.
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Read MoreRecently, I unveiled a Nutcracker Rhythm Play-Along extravaganza with quarter notes, eighth notes, half notes, dotted half notes, quarter rests, and sweet accents in a variety of meters. But wait, there's more! This week, I'm back with a body percussion play-along to shake things up. Get ready to groove!
Read MoreMusicFirst Elementary (MFE) Powered by Charanga is an exceptional curriculum that offers many features to enhance any elementary general music classroom. One of the most wonderful features is the inclusion of band, orchestra, and classroom instrument arrangements that can be utilized in your general music classroom setting or your band/orchestra classroom setting.
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For three years running, Midnight Music has been hosting a special Advent Calendar on its website. Every day in December, a new door will "unlock" and reveal a surprise on this page. The calendar offers an array of holiday-themed resources to enhance your teaching experience. Bookmark the site and check back from December 1-24!
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As the year draws to a close, many elementary music teachers, myself included, are beginning to plan their annual Nutcracker study. Whether you concentrate on the composer, the story, the instruments (which is my preferred approach), the dances, or other elements of the music, it's likely that you're considering, devising, or utilizing the work of another teacher to help instruct Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker. Enhance your collection with a Rhythm Play-Along of a medley of six selections from Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker!
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Read MoreIn the States, certain schools can integrate musical celebrations of the December holidays in their elementary general music classes. If you're using a scope-and-sequence curriculum like MusicFirst Elementary (MFE) powered by Charanga, you'll find that the music is either original and contemporary or in the public domain, which is a great way to connect with your students. However, since the music included in the curriculum doesn't have any seasonal or holiday association, here are five creative ways to incorporate these holidays into your MFE lessons.
Read MoreAs the holiday season approaches, some elementary music educators are gearing up for their upcoming concerts or integrating holiday themes into their general music curriculum. If you're able to incorporate the classic song Silent Night by Gruber and Mohr, this ukulele play-along is a great way to do so. With only four chords – C, F, G, and A min – this intuitive play-along is an excellent addition to any music classroom. Continue reading to see how I approach this in my own classroom!
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This week, Midnight Music is running its "Festival of Free PD" which includes four webinars for anyone to access until Cyber Monday.
Read MoreThe wise folks at MusicFirst Elementary (MFE) Powered by Charanga have crafted a treasure trove of docs to help you get the most out of their program. If you are new to the program, use this video to assist you with getting started!
0:00-:31 Introduction
0:31-1:05 Getting Started with MusicFirst Elementary (wonderful to read as the introduction to the world of MFE)
1:05-1:20 MusicFirst Elementary Summary (Data about MFE to share with administrators, families, etc.)
1:20-1:41 MusicFirst Elementary National Standards Alignment (Showcases how you are meeting each standard at every grade level)
1:41-2:15 MusicFirst Elementary Curriculum Design (Use the principles outlined in this document to enhance your program)
2:15-2:46 Scope and Sequence (You can use this to check the melodic pitch sets and rhythmic values for each grade level)
2:46-3:05 My Workspace: Setting Up Students and Yumu (see the full video here: https://youtu.be/p3f6_XCuqhc?si=9sL9he4RvB2H4LMO )
3:05-3:40 Musical Spotlights (You can use this to find extensions for lessons, outlines for teaching concert music, and as a springboard for other lessons and unit ideas)
3:40-4:11 Social Themes (Many Essential Questions can be found here)
4:11-4:36 Guided Questions Bank: K-5 (Use these as writing prompts and for writing samples in your older elementary music classes)
4:36-4:53 Documentation found at the top of each grade level
4:53-5:28 Learning Objectives and Content by Musical Element
5:28-5:40 Learning Objectives by Activity (In grades 3, 4, and 5, Music Notepad is added) 5:40-5:46 National Standards Alignment (Checklists)
5:46-6:06 Curriculum Map (Download and give to administrators)
6:06-6:29 Musical Progression Guide (Each song is listed by grade level, pitch set, rhythmic value, activity, and more)
6:29-7:40 Assessments (Checklists, Printables, and more)
7:40-8:18 Creative Tools (A brief overview of the documentation included with the creative tools)
8:18-end Conclusion
Check out the 16 videos about everything MusicFirst has to offer and a deep dive into the curriculum and creative tools!
Are you looking to spice up your elementary music class and engage your students more effectively? Have you ever considered integrating technology into your teaching methods? If not, then let me introduce you to Canva, an easy-to-use graphic design tool that can revolutionize your teaching approach. In this blog post and video, we will explore five exciting ways to use Canva for your elementary music class.
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Try it for 30 days: https://www.musicfirst.com/software/musicfirst-elementary
Have you checked out MusicFirst Elementary Powered by Charanga? Check it out here!
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For the past few weeks, I have been on the Barbie kick and have created an Advanced Boomwhacker Play-Along, a Diatonic Boomwhacker Play-Along, and a Rhythm Play-Along to Dua Lips Dance the Night (Radio Edition). I am following it up this week with a Body Percussion Play-along to Dua Lips, “Dance the Night” (Radio Version). "Dance the Night" is a song by English and Albanian singer Dua Lipa from Barbie: The Album, the soundtrack of the film Barbie (2023). Songwriter(s): Dua Lip, Andrew Wyatt, Caroline Ailin, and Mark Ronson. Producer(s): Andrew Wyatt, Mark Ronson, and Picard Brothers.
Like my resources? Please consider buying me a coffee at buymeacoffee.com/elmusedtech.
Read MoreAfter creating an Advanced Boomwhacker Play-Along and a Diatonic Boomwhacker Play-Along, it was time to create a rhythm play-along to Dia Lips, “Dance the Night” (Radio Version). "Dance the Night" is a song by English and Albanian singer Dua Lipa from Barbie: The Album, the soundtrack of the film Barbie (2023). Songwriter(s): Dua Lip, Andrew Wyatt, Caroline Ailin, and Mark Ronson. Producer(s): Andrew Wyatt, Mark Ronson, and Picard Brothers.
Like my resources? Please consider buying me a coffee at buymeacoffee.com/elmusedtech.
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Last week, Katie Argyle of Midnight Music gave a webinar to her community members titled, “😎 5 Must-Know Free Tech Tools for Music Teachers” where she covered topics that ranged from creating karaoke videos to play-along videos.
The tool of choice for the play-along video was Soundslice. Soundslice.com is an innovative platform that invigorates the way musicians learn and teach music. Created by Adrian Holovaty and PJ Macklin, Soundslice combines sheet music and audio/video recordings into an interactive experience, providing a comprehensive tool for music education and performance. With its intuitive platforms (free and paid), Soundslice is a great choice to create notation play-along videos for boomwhackers, private lessons, classroom instruments, and more.
Learn how to create a boomwhacker play-along video using Soundslice!
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Level up from ChatGPT and try some of these AI tools specifically created for educators! This blog/episode focuses on three AI tools that educators can use to save them a lot of time and energy. Like my resources? Please consider buying me a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/elmusedtech
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Seesaw listened and now we have an infinite cloner! I have been looking forward to this as the last time I was able to create musical games and activities was with the SMART Notebook program. Now that Seesaw has the infinite cloner, I can recreate some games and the students can use them for retrieval practice, assessments, and more. Check it out in the video!
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Source: https://unsplash.com/
Welcome Back!
For some in the Northern Hemisphere, this week marks the return to the school year. For others, it means the end of a holiday break and the beginning of the next term. And for some, it means that the thoughts and dreams of returning to another school year are coming.
Here are some play-along videos to use as ice breakers, rhythm reading assessments, movement activities, and for community building.
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In this video, I am using Canva's animation tool to record the movement of the snail. This can be used as a play-along video and a sing-along video. You could also use this as an assessment and place it in an LMS platform or Seesaw to share with your students. Like my resources? Please consider buying me a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/elmusedtech
Resources: Blog Post:
Seesaw Activity: https://app.seesaw.me/pages/shared_activity?prompt_id=prompt.e995c45f-2425-4b93-a737-abe664e428c4&share_token=b-lfU1JtS6qZy3NrDJH-4g
Snail, Snail: https://kodaly.hnu.edu/song.cfm?id=833
Canva for Education: https://www.canva.com/education/
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