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Kindergarten & Preschool Our learning goal for this trimester was for students to sing songs from memory with a steady beat while demonstrating knowledge and skills of tempo and dynamics through sound and movement, while being safe, kind, and responsible. For example, when we learned the song “Hop Old Squirrel,” students explored singing and playing simple rhythmic instruments with various dynamics and tempos to interpret the music, while also engaging in improvised physical movements to complement both the lyrics and rhythm. Students learned a variety of songs, culminating with a performance at the Harvest Celebration in November to showcase their work. 1st & 2nd Grade Our learning goal for this trimester was for students to identify the four basic families of instruments and describe how each family creates sound. For example, while learning about percussion instruments, students made their own güiro out of a soup can and demonstrated how scraping a stick along the ridges of the can causes the tin to vibrate to produce sound. And while learning about woodwind instruments, students made their own reed instrument out of straw and demonstrated how blowing air into the straw causes the plastic to vibrate to produce sound. In addition, students learned a variety of songs, culminating with a performance at the Harvest Celebration in November to showcase their work.. 1st grade sang “Don’t Worry, be Happy” and 2nd grade sang “It’s in Everyone of Us.” 3rd & 4th Grade Our learning goal for this trimester was for students to identify and describe music genres popular in the Western World, including classical, folk, blues, jazz, country, rock, and hip-hop. Students listened to a variety of music samples and practiced their communication skills by describing what they heard, helping them to build a vocabulary for describing the various characteristics of sound. In addition, students learned a variety of songs and were challenged to accompany their singing with both pitched and unpitched instruments, including drums, xylophones, keyboards, ukuleles, and guitars. They were free to explore the range of sounds and textures on these instruments to create their own unique musical arrangements. The trimester culminated with a performance at the Harvest Celebration in November to showcase their work. 3rd grade sang “My Kinda People” and 4th grade sang “This Land is Your Land.” 5th & 6th Grade Our learning goal for this trimester was for students to identify and describe basic elements of songwriting (verse, chorus, bridge, etc.) as well as describe and use strategies for writing their own songs. Students listened to a variety of music samples and practiced their listening and communication skills by identifying the various elements and patterns they discovered. In addition, students learned a variety of songs and were challenged to accompany their singing with both pitched and unpitched instruments, including drums, xylophones, keyboards, ukuleles, and guitars. Students had access to sheet music and chord charts to practice reading music and learning proper fingerings on the instruments of their choice. The trimester culminated with a performance at the Harvest Celebration in November to showcase their work. 5th grade sang “Count on Me” and 6th grade sang “Give Peace a Chance.”
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Preschool & Kindergarten learned to play a passing game called Pass the Pumpkin. It’s a fun game to play to keep a steady beat! They also got to practice their ensemble skills by learning to play music on instruments as they sing, using correct tempo and dynamics. Along the way, we are also continuing to practice responding to music through movement with a weekly dance party! 1st Grade recorded their rendition of Mairzy Doats and started practicing Don’t Worry Be Happy. They’ve also been exploring how instruments make sound through vibration, and even got to make their own woodwind instruments using straws and plastic bottles! Then, they learned how to make their own homemade percussion instruments using bottles, soup cans, buckets, and cups. Along the way, we are also continuing to practice responding to music through movement with a weekly dance party! 2nd Grade recorded their rendition of Raining tacos and started practicing It’s in Everyone of us. They’ve also been exploring how instruments make sound through vibration, and even got to make their own woodwind instruments using straws and plastic bottles! Then, they learned how to make their own homemade percussion instruments using bottles, soup cans, buckets, and cups. Along the way, we are also continuing to practice responding to music through movement with a weekly dance party! 3rd Grade recorded their rendition of Country Roads and started working on My Kinda People. They have also explored more genres of music, including Country, Rock, Jazz, Blues, and Hip Hop, and Country. The week of halloween we also played a fun passing game called Pass Around the Broomstick! 4th Grade recorded their rendition of This Land is Your Land and started working on Always Look on the Bright Side of Life. They have also explored more genres of music, including Country, Rock, Jazz, Blues, and Hip Hop, and Country. The week of halloween we also played a fun passing game called Pass Around the Broomstick! 5th Grade recorded their rendition of Over the Rainbow and started working on Count On Me. After spending a few weeks working on writing their songs, we’ve switched gears to practicing instruments, including ukuleles, guitars, xylophones, and keyboards. They are learning how to play these instruments along with the song Count On Me. Once they are confident with their instrument of choice, over the next few months they will continue to practice these instruments by coming up with music to add to their song! Also, on the week of halloween we also played a fun passing game called Pass Around the Broomstick! 6th Grade recorded their rendition of Stand by Me and started working on Give Peace a Chance. After spending a few weeks working on writing their songs, we’ve switched gears to practicing instruments, including ukuleles, guitars, xylophones, and keyboards. They are learning how to play these instruments along with the song Give Peace a Chance. Once they are confident with their instrument of choice, over the next few months they will continue to practice these instruments by coming up with music to add to their song! Also, on the week of halloween we also played a fun passing game called Pass Around the Broomstick! October Music Update!
Access recordings of class performances: Preschool and Kindergarten learned to sing Farmer’s Apple Tree and play the game Farmer Farmer Where’s Your Apple, and along the way they practiced playing steady beats on various percussion instruments, including egg shakers, drums, tambourines, rhythm sticks, and xylophones 1st Grade recorded their rendition of Down by the Bay and started working on Mairzy Doats. They’ve also been exploring how instruments make sound through vibration. Their exploration has included making their own musical instruments with items they can find around the home! 2nd Grade recorded their rendition of Catch a Falling Star and started working on Raining Tacos. They’ve also been exploring how instruments make sound through vibration. Their exploration has included making their own musical instruments with items they can find around the home! 3rd Grade recorded their rendition of Find Your Light and started working on Country Roads. They’ve also started exploring various genres of music by listening to samples of various styles, identifying what kind of music each sample represents, and describing the sound. So far we’ve listened to examples of country and classical music. 4th Grade recorded their rendition of When You’re Smiling and started working on This Land is Your Land. They’ve also started exploring various genres of music by listening to samples of various styles, identifying what kind of music each sample represents, and describing the sound. So far we’ve listened to examples of country, classical, hip hop rap, and rock music. 5th Grade recorded their rendition of What a Wonderful World and started working on Over the Rainbow. They’ve also been learning about the various elements that go into writing a song…by writing their own song! Students are given the option to work alone or with partners. After they finish writing the words, they will then add music using the instruments of their choice. 6th Grade recorded their rendition of When I’m Gone and started working on Stand by Me. Many students are choosing to not sing, which demonstrates a lack of teamwork, communication, and resilience skills. Learning to sing music as a group has many benefits, including:
Moving forward, we will continue to practice these skills using various music games and activities. This class has also been learning about the various elements that go into writing a song…by writing their own song! Students are given the option to work alone or with partners. After they finish writing the words, they will then add music using the instruments of their choice. Welcome to a new school year in the music room!
These past few weeks we have been learning about instrument families—how they produce sound and what they sound like:
Students even got to bow a cello and violin! They loved it!
Soon, students will be recording these songs to begin the process of creating their own music class album! Along the way, we’ve been reinforcing the music room expectations: Safe, Kind & Responsible.
Please consider reviewing these expectations with your students. Next month, music classes will be divided into different levels, and each level will have their own path through the rest of the school year:
To cap off the school year, each grade prepared a song to present at the spring recital. Students were responsible for memorizing the lyrics to the song as well as adding musical instruments into the final performance. You can listen to the progress they made by listening to their practice recordings:
Preschool worked on the song Listen Listen, Here I Come this semester, combining singing with creative drum solos. Students were challenged to listen to each other and then create their own rhythms and sounds on the drum! In addition, we continued to practice listening and responding to sounds by identifying sounds and moving our bodies to the beat. Kindergarten students worked on the song I’m a Potato this semester, where they were challenged to not only memorize the lyrics, but also come up with creative movements in response to the lyrics and rhythms. This is a challenging song, as it’s in a triple time signature, which isn’t as intuitive to their ear as a duple meter. In addition, we continued working on identifying sounds, recognizing that many things in our world make similar sounds, which is why it’s important to practice listening to understand rather than jumping to conclusions. First Grade worked on El Coqui this semester (except for R.H. Conwell, which worked on Catch a Falling Star). The coqui is a type of frog indigenous to Puerto Rico and students were challenged to memorize lyrics in both English and Spanish! To make it even more fun, we used guiros shaped like frogs to mimic the sound of the coqui! In addition, we continued working on identifying sounds, recognizing that many things in our world make similar sounds, which is why it’s important to practice listening to understand rather than jumping to conclusions. Second Grade worked on Catch a Falling Star this semester. Students were challenged to memorize the lyrics and add percussive and melodic instruments to complement the tune, including the glockenspiel, triangle, egg shaker, tambourine, and djembe. In addition, we continued working on identifying sounds, recognizing that many things in our world make similar sounds, which is why it’s important to practice listening to understand rather than jumping to conclusions. Third Grade either worked on Funga Alafia (New Hingham) or Toom-Bah-Ee-Lero (R.H. Conwell and Chester). Funga Alafia by LaRocque Bey and Babatunde Olatunji is written in three West African Languages; and Too-Bah-Ee-Lero by Ella Jenkins is written in a nonsense language that mimics the sound of West African Drums. Both songs use a call-and-response technique reminiscent of the music by the “Hi Dee Ho Man” Cab Calloway. In addition, students also practiced playing the recorder this semester, learning to play the notes D, E, G, A, and C from the pentatonic scale, allowing them to practice playing Doggy Doggy Where’s Your Bone by ear. Using these same pitches, students can also play both Funga Alafia and Toom-Bah-Ee-Lero! Fourth Grade worked on This Land is Your Land this semester (except for R.H. Conwell students, who worked on Toom-Bah-Ee-Lero). Students learned the history of the song, including why Woody Guthrie was inspired to write the song in critical response to Irving Berlin’s God Bless America, and how it is a contrafactum of When the World’s on Fire by the Carter Family. After memorizing the lyrics, students practiced adding percussion instruments to the song to complement the beat. In addition, students also practiced playing the recorder this semester, learning to play the notes D, E, G, A, and C from the pentatonic scale, allowing them to practice playing Doggy Doggy Where’s Your Bone by ear. Fifth Grade worked on Stand By Me this semester (except for R.H. Conwell and Chester students who worked on Lift Every Voice & Sing). Students listened to various versions of the song, discussed their likes, dislikes, and preferences of the various musical choices the artists made in their versions, and then they created their own rendition of the song, adding light percussion instruments along the way. In addition, students practiced playing the ukulele, learning how to tune it, how to strum it, and learning the chord shapes for the chords C, Am, F, and G7. Sixth Grade worked on Lift Every Voice & Sing this semester, learning about the history of the song—who wrote it, their inspiration for it, and how it’s on the cusp of becoming the National Hymn of the United States of America. Students listened to various versions of the song, including by Alica Keys, Andra Day, Ray Charles, and Beyonce. They discussed their likes, dislikes, and preferences of the various musical choices the artists made in their versions, and then they created their own rendition of the song, adding light percussion instruments along the way. In addition, students practiced playing the ukulele, learning how to tune it, how to strum it, and learning the chord shapes for the chords C, Am, F, and G7. As the semester wrapped up, I also asked students to reflect on what they learned this school year in the music room, what they enjoyed the most, what they might change about their music classes, and what they hoped to continue learning next year. As part of this reflection, I invite you as a family to submit your feedback on the music program. Click the link below that corresponds with your school to access the survey:
Your responses will be used to improve the music program. Thank you for your support! Students have been busy in the music room advancing their musical knowledge and skills by identifying the sources or various sounds, exploring how to respond to music through movement, and playing music as an ensemble—and upper grades are even learning how to play melodic instruments including the recorder and ukulele! In addition, all students have begun practicing writing their own music by composing a school song for the school!
Finally, students are also getting ready for their spring showcases next month! Here’s the lineup of performances and the pieces they will be performing: R.H. Conwell Elementary: June 5 @ 6:00pm
Chester Elementary: June 11 @ 2pm
New Hingham Elementary: June 12 @ 9:15pm
We hope to see you at the showcase! It’s been a busy start to spring in the music room!
To finish out the school year, students will spend the next several weeks preparing for the spring showcase. Each class will select a song and students will be responsible for learning, practicing, and honing their emerging music skills to present at the recital. The chase will be held on:
This month in the music room each class wrapped up their work on the songs they have been working on:
Most classes were ready to record their songs, and you can find their recordings using the links below: Most recently, preschool through 2nd grade began working on Bluebird Through My Window while practicing playing half notes and quarter notes on percussion and melodic instruments. Also, 3rd through 6th grade reviewed Sing Together, which will be featured as part of a whole-school singalong at the spring recital. In addition, they have begun the process of learning about songwriting which they will use to begin writing a school song! I am also excited to see so many students interested in borrowing instruments to practice and play at home! Learning to play an instrument can help students gain valuable skills that they can use in all aspects of life, including perseverance, responsibility, confidence, and much much more. I’ve noticed, however, that some instruments have taken a while to come back to the music room, which prevents students from using them in their music classes. To help students remember the expectations, I typed up a letter for each school that you can find here for New Hingham, here for RH Conwell, and here for Chester. This letter outlines the two key expectations:
Please review this letter with your student, and then sign and return a copy to school. Once a signed copy has been returned, your student will be free to borrow instruments again. Thank you for your help encouraging students in their passion for music! This month students have been practicing their ensemble skills, by working on their singing voices, listening to each other, starting and ending with silence, and following the conductor. It’s a work in progress, and many classes are making great progress!
Preschool is working on Sing Together, a simple round. Kindergarten is working on Two Merry Geese, a Russian Folk Song. 1st Grade is working on The Chickens Song, a Palestinian Folk Song. 2nd Grade is working on The Gray Cat, a Ukrainian Folk song. 3rd - 6th Grade is working on The Star Spangled Banner. Next month, all classes will be working on We Come to Greet You in Peace, a simple yet beautiful Hebrew Folk Song. Not all classes were ready to try a recording of their work yet, but for those that were ready, you can find their recordings in the links below: 3rd - 6th grade has also been working on their rhythm skills by practicing listening to and copying rhythms, as well as reading and writing rhythmic notation. Some students are progressing quickly in this competency, while for others this has been a challenge. I keep reminding students that what we are looking for is an honest effort and progress. Last month, students at New Hingham Elementary were treated to a guest presentation by James Kitchen and friends, including local resident Nan Clark (turing 95 this year!) who demonstrated the victrola; opera singer Claudia Waite from the Metropolitan Opera who shared stories from her career; Dave Abbott who played songs on the tuba; and Cynthia Jirak who accompanied everyone with various percussion instruments. I even made a special guest appearance by playing solos on the recorder and the saxophone! To cap everything off, students got to play many of the instruments and ask questions from our special guests. You can check out the article about the event from the Country Journal here. I’m hoping to bring this presentation to Chester Elementary and R.H. Conwell as well. Fingers crossed! We’ve certainly been busy in the music room, and the hard work is paying off. Many students have been asking to borrow musical instruments to bring home, and I have worked out a procedure to sign instruments out—with the understanding that students bring the instrument back to school the next day. If your child brings an instrument home, great! That means they are excited about music! Please ensure your child brings their instrument back to school the next day. If they forget, I’ll send a slip home as a gentle reminder. It’s my hope that this procedure will help reinforce their excitement for music, while also teaching them responsibility skills. This month in the music room, students worked on not just playing music, but also writing music, by learning the basics of music notation.
They have also worked on recognizing the differences between pitches and their relationship with each other in the context of a melody. We’ve played with this idea using Boomwhackers to play various songs, including Jingle Bells and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. Listen to samples of their performances by clicking on your student’s school from the list below: Students have also been working on their listening skills by identifying various sounds. They have even had the opportunity to get creative by choosing various musical instruments and challenging their peers to identify what instrument makes those sounds. They’ve had a lot of fun with this game! Next week, students at New Hingham will have a special treat when local musician James Kitchen comes to the school to demonstrate various musical instruments! This is going to be a lot of fun! |
Mr. Cain, M.Ed.
AuthorMr. Cain studied music education at UMASS Dartmouth and Westfield State College under the guidance of saxophonists Rick Britto and Ted Levine. Archives
January 2026
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