Jelly Bean Bingo:Level One

Who doesn't love jellybeans?  They are usually gone within seconds of me putting them out.  The rhythms in level one use the quarter note, half note, dotted half note and whole note.  Using jelly beans to cover your bingo board creates a fun way to play this game and of course after it is over you can eat your jelly beans.

Google Docs: Jelly Bean Bingo: Level One
Jelly Bean Bingo Level One


Google Docs: Jelly Bean Bingo Cards: Level One

Jelly Bean Bingo Cards Level One

Hopping Intervals: Level Five and Six

Hopping Intervals Level Five has the intervals 2nd through an Octave.  You can play the same as before, (See Hopping Intervals Level One for how to play) just with more challenging intervals.

Level Six is only minor and major 3rds.  I am constantly reviewing this concept with the major and minor chords.  This level and level three (whole steps and half steps) gets very repetitive unless you separate the cards into up and down piles.  I find that if we go up and then down, we aren't moving to the same two or three notes.  With this in mind, you can use just the "hop up" cards to race up the piano or the "hop down" cards to race down.

Usually when racing I start at the far end of the piano and race to middle C.  I put a little sticky flag on the note and whoever gets to the flag first wins.  Now "Hop" to it!

Google Docs: Hopping Intervals Level Five: 2nd-8th
Hopping Intervals Level Five

Google Docs: Hopping Intervals Level Six: Minor and Major 3rds

Hopping Intervals Level SIX

Awesome Giveaway

Check out the great giveaway over at Pianoantics.  Anne is giving away her great resource: Barnyard Friends.  Enter and win the following:

1. The Barnyard Friend Workbook
2. The Lamintaed Barnyard Board
3. A set of Barnyard Friends Flashcards

Her blog and website also have some great ideas.  Check it out!

Hopping Intervals Level Three and Four

Hopping Intervals have been a big hit in my studio this week.  Here are two more levels that expand the game to whole steps/half steps and 6ths.

To play you need some type of token to represent each player.  I love using erasers and collect all kinds for this very purpose. 

You can start your player on Middle C.

Then I get seven Easter eggs, one for each note on the piano.  I then put an alphabet letter in each egg. I just write the letter on a note card or post it (no printing required).  You can open the egg to see the surprise letter at the beginning of the game, but I have found it is fun to be surprised at the end of the game.


Now for flat and sharp you can add more eggs or an easier way is to pick a card out of a hat that has a sharp or flat on it.  
Now you are going to need a place to record what notes you land on.  I use my ever handy white board, but you can use a simple piece of paper. You want to record how many times you land on a certain note.

Start by drawing an interval card and follow the instructions.  Record the letter you land on.  Keep playing through the cards as many times as you like.

Then at the end open your Easter egg and see what the secret note was. Whoever has landed on that note the most wins!  You can reward the student with jellybeans or a sticker.


Google Docs: Hopping Intervals Level Three: Whole Step/Half Step





Google Docs: Hopping Intervals Level Four: 2nd-6th
Hopping Intervals Level Four

Hopping Intervals: Updated with Staff Notation

I recently have been teaching intervals in Faber and Faber Level 1 Piano Adventures and wanted to review the 2nd, 3rd and 4th concept with my student.  I have used cards to move across the keyboard before, but this time I inspired by our Easter season with "Hopping Intervals."

To play you need some type of token to represent each player.  I love using erasers and collect all kinds for this very purpose.

You can start your player on Middle C.

Then I get seven Easter eggs, one for each note on the piano.  I then put an alphabet letter in each egg. I just write the letter on a note card or post it (no printing required).  You can open the egg to see the surprise letter at the beginning of the game, but I have found it is fun to be surprised at the end of the game.

Now you are going to need a place to record what notes you land on.  I use my ever handy white board, but you can use a simple piece of paper.  You want to record how many times you land on a certain note.

Start by drawing an interval card and follow the instructions.  Record the letter you land on.  Keep playing through the cards as many times as you like.

Then at the end open your Easter egg and see what the secret note was.  Whoever has landed on that note the most wins!  You can reward the student with jellybeans or a sticker.

Google Docs: Hopping Intervals Level One Steps and Skips
Hopping Intervals Level One

Google Docs: Hopping Intervals Level Two 2nd-5th
Hopping Intervals Level Two

Swag Bucks

I have loved using the swagbucks search engine to earn free prizes.  I just recently earned enough points to get a $50.00 gift certificate to Amazon.  All I do is use swagbucks to search. You can also answer daily polls, play games, watch videos and complete tasks to earn swagbucks.  It is an easy way to earn free money.  I do still use my google search engine for things I really need to find, but mainly I use swagbucks to search and get a few swagbucks here and there.  One things I do is instead of using my bookmark to visit a page like facebook, I search swagbucks for it and click on the link.  It is an extra step, but only takes 5 seconds and I sometimes will get 5 or 10 swagbucks for the search.  Click and try it out!

Animal Songs

Habitat Song Sung to “Skip to My Lou”

Who are the animals that live in the rainforest?

Who are the animals that live in the rainforest?

Who are the animals that live in the rainforest?

Name an animals that lives in the rainforest

Monkeys live in the rainforest

Monkeys live in the rainforest

Monkeys live in the rainforest

Monkeys live in the rainforest

Other verses: Who is the animal that lives in a nest? hive? cave?

Teaching Idea:

1. Have the students list different animals that live in the jungle and sing about them.  Act out any motions the animal makes for fun.

2. Use a different habitat "Who are the animals that live on a farm?"

Habitat Song Sung to “London Bridges”

Zebras and Giraffes live in the Grasslands

In the grasslands, in the grass lands

Zebras and Giraffes live in the Grasslands

In the Grasslands

Other Verses: Elephants and Lions live in the Grasslands

Frogs and Crocodiles live in the Rainforest

Teaching Idea:

1. Have students list the animals that live in different habitats and sing about them.

Mama and Baby: Sung to "Muffin Man"

Mama Cow calls baby cow

Moo, moo, moo, moo, moo, moo, moo

Mama Cow calls baby cow, 

Moo, moo, moo, moo, moo, moo

Other animals: Horse/foal, Dog/puppy, Cat/kitten, Hen/chick, Goat/kid, Pig/piglet, Sheep/lamb, 

Mommy and Babies

Mama tiger, mama tiger

What do you see?

I see a baby cub looking at me.

Sing with other animals

The Animals Go  . .  Sung to "The Wheels on the Bus"

The lions at the zoo go roar, roar, roar

Roar, roar, roar

Roar, roar, roar

The lions at the zoo go roar, roar, roar

All day long

Other verses: monkey go ooh, ahh, ooh, hyenas go ha, ha, parrot in the rainforest, the pig on the farm, snakes in the desert go hiss, 

If I were Sung to "The Mulberry Bush"

Oh, if I were a tiny snake

Tiny snake, tiny snake

If I were a tiny snake I'd slither around the desert

Oh if I were an elephant,

Elephant, elephant

If I were an elephant

I'd march around the grasslands

Oh if I were a kangaroo

Kangaroo, Kangaroo

If I were a kangaroo

I'd hop around the zoo

Teaching Ideas:

1. Come up with other animals and movements for the song.

Check out these resources!