5th Grade Archives (previous years)

Thank you, FIFTH GRADERS, for the amazing ukulele playdates! Click to this page to see two slideshows of the THANK YOU cards written/drawn by the kindergartners to the fifth graders thanking them for the playdates! http://blogs.darienps.org/ktheisen/thank-you-5th-graders-from-the-kindergarteners/

2015-2016 School Year

February 2016:

The fifth graders worked on BEAT BLOCKS in class. We have a SmartNotebook file that we can use to create rhythms. Ms Theisen also took some MegaBlocks and drew music notes on them. The one-bump MegaBlocks are one-beat rhythms. Two-bump MegaBlocks are 2-beat rhythms. etc. In these videos, the students did some rhythmic dictation and also created some of their own original rhythms. Then students combined their 4-beat rhythms into a rhythm 'train' and the other students spoke the rhythm.

Here is another video:

Another video:

January 2016:

The fifth graders have been working on the ukulele since school began and are now ready to SHARE what they've learned! The fifth graders will have ukulele 'playdates' with the Kindergarten classes between January 15-22. These will take place during the regular 5th Grade Music Class blocks. Each kindergarten student will sit next to one of the 'big kids' and sing along to the ukulele songs that the 5th graders will be playing. These are mostly nursery rhymes, and include: I'm a Little Teapot; The Itsy Bitsy Spider; Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes; Home on the Range; Ring Around the Rosie; and more. The 5th grade will even assist the Kindergarten in learning how to hold and strum the ukulele for the 'red C Chord' on the song Ring Around the Rosie. (Our ukulele system is color-coded.) We bid 'adieu' to the ukuleles on January 22nd and then will move on to more drumming, recorder, composition, xylophones, etc. It's been quite the treat to have about 27 classes to learn 'uke!'

"Ukulele Playdate" schedule:

Friday, January 15, "B DAY" - 1:15-2:00 block - Mr. Satter's 5th Grade/Mrs. Martin's Kindergarten

Tuesday, January 19, "C DAY" - 1:15-2:00 block - Mrs. Rosen's 5th Grade/Ms. Boeglin's Kindergarten

Wednesday, January 20, "D DAY" - 1:15-2:00 block - Mr. Squeo's 5th Grade/Mrs. Cerabino/Mrs. Smith's Kindergarten

Friday, January 22, "F DAY" - 8:45-9:30 block - Mrs. Rosen's 5th Grade/Mrs. Roesing's Kindergarten

Fall 2015:

Our fifth grade classes are working on UKULELE this fall! We are excited to be using a new program called FUN MUSIC FOR BEGINNERS: http://www.funmusicforbeginners.com. The color-coded chords give the students a quick start to playing the C, F and G7 chords. We will also continue to play xylophones, drums, recorders, and all of our other instruments!

Here is a 5th Grade class working on the C and F Chords!

Here is another 5th Grade Class playing SKIP TO MY LOU for the very first time!

This is 5-R playing The Hokey-Pokey and Skip to My Lou on the ukuleles on OCTOBER 9th!

2014-2015 School Year:

The fifth grade music classes will present a "Night at the Oscars" show on Friday, June 12, 2015 at 2PM in the COMMON ROOM. This is a show that they are putting together on their own. It features music from the silver screen and will include announcers, singers, dancers, and instrumentalists. We hope that you can join us for this final performance at Royle!

The fifth grade classes have had a busy spring, including a lot of work on composition and 7 weeks of learning to play chords and melodies on the ukulele. Here are a few informal videos we made in class. One class even made a "Happy Birthday" video for Mr. McCully (their former teacher from last year!) and we sent it to him on his birthday!!!!

5-SQ Ukulele Songs: https://youtu.be/3vn1Emf31D4

Another video of 5-SQ: https://youtu.be/fNK8kH2_h5o

5-K Ukulele on Happy Birthday: https://youtu.be/mXKyyeyugYs

Mid-April 2014:

Welcome back from SPRING BREAK! The fifth graders are wrapping up our ukulele unit with 2 more classes each on the ukes. The students have done a great job learning the C, G7 and F chords and can accompany themselves singing the song HAPPY BIRTHDAY :) (One of the classes even made a video of themselves performing Happy Birthday on ukes and xylophones, while singing, for Mr. Margolus's birthday earlier this month!)

We are also getting REALLY GOOD at singing MY DOG HAS FLEAS (G, C, E, A) for the uke tuning notes.

We also continue to work on our original compositions, with tools that include repetition, sequence, retrograde, Question & Answer phrases, and more.

April 2014:

The 5th graders have been working a lot on composing their own tunes. We are using the xylophones and a variety of rhythm patterns to create 4-measure phrases, and then an overall ABA form for longer compositions. We started off the composition process by imitating patterns and analyzing if they used repetition, sequence or other composition devices. Then we used some basic rhythm cards as a starting point for writing our own tunes. After the students felt comfortable improvising and writing down their patterns, they were able to write tunes totally on their own, making up both rhythm patterns and tonal patterns for their pieces. We will soon be doing the district-wide 5th Grade Composition Assessment, where the students will spend 2-3 classes writing a composition in ABA form. The entire process has been really fun and has unleashed a lot of creativity in each class. Some students have even written lyrics to go with their compositions.

All classes learned the DANCE that goes with the popular song called HAPPY. We hope to do this at a school-wide event and have all 400+ students dancing together on this fabulous song! A video link is available on the GLEE page above.

March 2014:

The "ukes" have arrived and the 5th graders have begun to work on ukulele music! Students have already learned how to hold the instruments, how the tuning pegs work, and that the tuning of the 4 strings is G-C-E-A or "MY DOG HAS FLEAS." In our first week, students have learned the C chord and the G7 chord and have played some simple rhythmic patterns while strumming.

February 2014:

To welcome the Olympics, the fifth grade classes sang One Moment in Time, which was premiered at the 1988 Olympics. Another Olympic song we will sing this month is The Games are Coming, from the Music K-8 curriculum.

All of the 5th Grade classes are also working hard on their karate belts! Many of the students have already earned their white and yellow belts. Some have also earned the orange belt! The students are so excited to earn their belts!!!!!

To prepare for our composition unit, we are spending time writing out tunes on the dry-erase music lap boards and practicing echoing the teacher on short melodic phrases. This expands into Question and Answer phrases and then original composition!

We will also continue our study of BROADWAY tunes and themes this month, as we work on If I Were a Rich Man from Fiddler on the Roof. We will be singing it and accompanying the song on the BOOMWHACKER TUBES and xylophones.

5th Grade Class - Everyone has earned his/her WHITE BELT! This short video features everyone playing the white belt piece - HOT CROSS BUNS - together!

http://youtu.be/ysJ9g4Vz8WQ

This short video features everyone playing the yellow belt piece together:

http://youtu.be/qy2MYgRoWtc

January 2014:

The fifth grade classes are now working on RECORDER KARATE! This is curriculum that includes several 'levels' of 'belts' that can be earned for playing recorder songs. 5-M and 5-Sq have had the opportunity to play for their white belts this week. Students who earned their white belt now have a white fuzzy stick adorning the end of their recorder! (A few students also earned their yellow belt this week, as well!) 5-Sa learned to play the entire C scale, starting on the lowest C of the recorder and going up eight notes to the C in the middle of the music staff. To prepare for this, we have been reviewing all of the notes on the recorder and the notes in the treble clef. The students have played along with tunes in the program called Smart Music, which displays the music on the Smart Board and has a built-in orchestral accompaniment for each song. (This program can also 'assess' and record the students' performances, but we are not currently using the assessment feature during class. Many of the students who are in band or orchestra have used this program at home while practicing!)

Since Martin Luther King Day is coming up next week, we have also been singing songs of freedom, including We Shall Overcome and For Children (based on We Shall Overcome, but with an up-tempo feel).

They are singing 'canons,' as well, including the song Welcome All. (A canon is a piece of music that uses one melody, but has the performers starting at different times, creating a song with melody on top of melody, with staggered starting times. Frere Jacques is another example of a 'round' or 'canon.') The classes all learned to play this canon on the xylophones, as well, and were able to play it both in unison and as a true canon.

We are also working hard on RHYTHM CARDS to be able to decipher and speak rhythms that include whole notes, half notes, quarter notes, 8th notes, 16th notes and rests! The students are really becoming 'experts' at these cards and are able to add words to the rhythms instead of using the Ta and Ti-Ti language that is normally used in class.

We have also spent some time with the BOOMWHACKER TUBES this month! We accompanied the tune Miss Mary Mack with tonic and dominant harmonies using the tubes!

Throughout the next few weeks before February break, the 5th grade students will be taking all of this knowledge and applying it to COMPOSITION for recorder and/or xylophone. They will be writing THEIR OWN SONGS!

December 2013

Here is a short clip of 5th Grade playing HOT CROSS BUNS along with the SMART MUSIC PROGRAM on December 19, 2013:

Here is another short clip of 5th Grade playing Jingle Bells on the BOOMWHACKERS the very first week they had arrived!

http://youtu.be/1EG-0Vj1EZM

November 2013:

The 5th grade music classes will continue their study of Recorder this year! Recorder study helps children learn to read music and apply their skills to an instrument. Playing recorder will strengthen your child’s knowledge of rhythms as well as the notes in the treble clef. This year, we will be combining the recorder with a variety of other instruments - including Xylophones, Metallophones, Ukelele and Drums - to create small ensembles during music class. 4th and 5th Grade students will be playing music from Recorder Karate, a highly motivational method for young players. They will also be earning their karate ‘belts’ (colored strings that will be tied to the bottom of their recorder) as they progress in their playing.

If your child has a recorder from last year, please send it to school as soon as possible in a case or Ziploc bag with your child’s name and class clearly marked. Recorders will be kept in the music room and will not be sent home with the students this year.

If your child misplaced his/her recorder or is new to Royle this year and doesn’t have a recorder, please let me know so I can order one. The price will be $8.00 if ordered through the school. Please click on the link at the bottom for a copy of the RECORDER LETTER that was sent home.

Please also send in a 1-inch 3-ring binder with 20 plastic sleeves (sheet protectors) to hold the music. This will become your child’s recorder and composition portfolio as they progress through 4^th and 5^th grade. They may decorate the cover of the binder however they wish. Binders will remain in the music room.

CLICK HERE FOR A COPY OF THE LETTER THAT WAS SENT HOME:

RecorderLetter2013

Please contact me at ktheisen@darienps.org if you have any questions or concerns.

Regards,

Kathleen Theisen

Royle School Music Teacher/Choral Director

203-655-0044 x8279

Thank you, FIFTH GRADERS, for the amazing ukulele playdates! Click to this page to see two slideshows of the THANK YOU cards written/drawn by the kindergartners to the fifth graders thanking them for the playdates! <a href="http://blogs.darienps.org/ktheisen/thank-you-5th-graders-from-the-kindergarteners/" target="_blank">http://blogs.darienps.org/ktheisen/thank-you-5th-graders-from-the-kindergarteners/</a>

2015-2016 School Year

February 2016:

The fifth graders worked on BEAT BLOCKS in class. We have a SmartNotebook file that we can use to create rhythms. Ms Theisen also took some MegaBlocks and drew music notes on them. The one-bump MegaBlocks are one-beat rhythms. Two-bump MegaBlocks are 2-beat rhythms. etc. In these videos, the students did some rhythmic dictation and also created some of their own original rhythms. Then students combined their 4-beat rhythms into a rhythm 'train' and the other students spoke the rhythm.

Here is another video: <iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/oCTTw4MFav4" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

Another video: <iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/d0tf8FWsaIA" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

January 2016:

The fifth graders have been working on the ukulele since school began and are now ready to SHARE what they've learned! The fifth graders will have ukulele 'playdates' with the Kindergarten classes between January 15-22. These will take place during the regular 5th Grade Music Class blocks. Each kindergarten student will sit next to one of the 'big kids' and sing along to the ukulele songs that the 5th graders will be playing. These are mostly nursery rhymes, and include: I'm a Little Teapot; The Itsy Bitsy Spider; Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes; Home on the Range; Ring Around the Rosie; and more. The 5th grade will even assist the Kindergarten in learning how to hold and strum the ukulele for the 'red C Chord' on the song Ring Around the Rosie. (Our ukulele system is color-coded.) We bid 'adieu' to the ukuleles on January 22nd and then will move on to more drumming, recorder, composition, xylophones, etc. It's been quite the treat to have about 27 classes to learn 'uke!'

"Ukulele Playdate" schedule:

Friday, January 15, "B DAY" - 1:15-2:00 block - Mr. Satter's 5th Grade/Mrs. Martin's Kindergarten

Tuesday, January 19, "C DAY" - 1:15-2:00 block - Mrs. Rosen's 5th Grade/Ms. Boeglin's Kindergarten

Wednesday, January 20, "D DAY" - 1:15-2:00 block - Mr. Squeo's 5th Grade/Mrs. Cerabino/Mrs. Smith's Kindergarten

Friday, January 22, "F DAY" - 8:45-9:30 block - Mrs. Rosen's 5th Grade/Mrs. Roesing's Kindergarten

Fall 2015:

Our fifth grade classes are working on UKULELE this fall! We are excited to be using a new program called FUN MUSIC FOR BEGINNERS: <a href="http://www.funmusicforbeginners.com">http://www.funmusicforbeginners.com</a>. The color-coded chords give the students a quick start to playing the C, F and G7 chords. We will also continue to play xylophones, drums, recorders, and all of our other instruments!

Here is a 5th Grade class working on the C and F Chords!

Here is another 5th Grade Class playing SKIP TO MY LOU for the very first time!

This is 5-R playing The Hokey-Pokey and Skip to My Lou on the ukuleles on OCTOBER 9th!

<hr />

2014-2015 School Year:

The fifth grade music classes will present a "Night at the Oscars" show on Friday, June 12, 2015 at 2PM in the COMMON ROOM. This is a show that they are putting together on their own. It features music from the silver screen and will include announcers, singers, dancers, and instrumentalists. We hope that you can join us for this final performance at Royle!

The fifth grade classes have had a busy spring, including a lot of work on composition and 7 weeks of learning to play chords and melodies on the ukulele. Here are a few informal videos we made in class. One class even made a "Happy Birthday" video for Mr. McCully (their former teacher from last year!) and we sent it to him on his birthday!!!!

5-SQ Ukulele Songs: <a href="https://youtu.be/3vn1Emf31D4">https://youtu.be/3vn1Emf31D4</a>

Another video of 5-SQ: <a href="https://youtu.be/fNK8kH2_h5o">https://youtu.be/fNK8kH2_h5o</a>

5-K Ukulele on Happy Birthday: <a href="https://youtu.be/mXKyyeyugYs">https://youtu.be/mXKyyeyugYs</a>

<hr />

Mid-April 2014:

Welcome back from SPRING BREAK! The fifth graders are wrapping up our ukulele unit with 2 more classes each on the ukes. The students have done a great job learning the C, G7 and F chords and can accompany themselves singing the song HAPPY BIRTHDAY :) (One of the classes even made a video of themselves performing Happy Birthday on ukes and xylophones, while singing, for Mr. Margolus's birthday earlier this month!)

We are also getting REALLY GOOD at singing MY DOG HAS FLEAS (G, C, E, A) for the uke tuning notes.

We also continue to work on our original compositions, with tools that include repetition, sequence, retrograde, Question & Answer phrases, and more.

April 2014:

The 5th graders have been working a lot on composing their own tunes. We are using the xylophones and a variety of rhythm patterns to create 4-measure phrases, and then an overall ABA form for longer compositions. We started off the composition process by imitating patterns and analyzing if they used repetition, sequence or other composition devices. Then we used some basic rhythm cards as a starting point for writing our own tunes. After the students felt comfortable improvising and writing down their patterns, they were able to write tunes totally on their own, making up both rhythm patterns and tonal patterns for their pieces. We will soon be doing the district-wide 5th Grade Composition Assessment, where the students will spend 2-3 classes writing a composition in ABA form. The entire process has been really fun and has unleashed a lot of creativity in each class. Some students have even written lyrics to go with their compositions.

All classes learned the DANCE that goes with the popular song called HAPPY. We hope to do this at a school-wide event and have all 400+ students dancing together on this fabulous song! A video link is available on the GLEE page above.

March 2014:

The "ukes" have arrived and the 5th graders have begun to work on ukulele music! Students have already learned how to hold the instruments, how the tuning pegs work, and that the tuning of the 4 strings is G-C-E-A or "MY DOG HAS FLEAS." In our first week, students have learned the C chord and the G7 chord and have played some simple rhythmic patterns while strumming.

February 2014:

To welcome the Olympics, the fifth grade classes sang One Moment in Time, which was premiered at the 1988 Olympics. Another Olympic song we will sing this month is The Games are Coming, from the Music K-8 curriculum.

All of the 5th Grade classes are also working hard on their karate belts! Many of the students have already earned their white and yellow belts. Some have also earned the orange belt! The students are so excited to earn their belts!!!!!

To prepare for our composition unit, we are spending time writing out tunes on the dry-erase music lap boards and practicing echoing the teacher on short melodic phrases. This expands into Question and Answer phrases and then original composition!

We will also continue our study of BROADWAY tunes and themes this month, as we work on If I Were a Rich Man from Fiddler on the Roof. We will be singing it and accompanying the song on the BOOMWHACKER TUBES and xylophones.

5th Grade Class - Everyone has earned his/her WHITE BELT! This short video features everyone playing the white belt piece - HOT CROSS BUNS - together!

http://youtu.be/ysJ9g4Vz8WQ

This short video features everyone playing the yellow belt piece together:

http://youtu.be/qy2MYgRoWtc

January 2014:

The fifth grade classes are now working on RECORDER KARATE! This is curriculum that includes several 'levels' of 'belts' that can be earned for playing recorder songs. 5-M and 5-Sq have had the opportunity to play for their white belts this week. Students who earned their white belt now have a white fuzzy stick adorning the end of their recorder! (A few students also earned their yellow belt this week, as well!) 5-Sa learned to play the entire C scale, starting on the lowest C of the recorder and going up eight notes to the C in the middle of the music staff. To prepare for this, we have been reviewing all of the notes on the recorder and the notes in the treble clef. The students have played along with tunes in the program called Smart Music, which displays the music on the Smart Board and has a built-in orchestral accompaniment for each song. (This program can also 'assess' and record the students' performances, but we are not currently using the assessment feature during class. Many of the students who are in band or orchestra have used this program at home while practicing!)

Since Martin Luther King Day is coming up next week, we have also been singing songs of freedom, including We Shall Overcome and For Children (based on We Shall Overcome, but with an up-tempo feel).

They are singing 'canons,' as well, including the song Welcome All. (A canon is a piece of music that uses one melody, but has the performers starting at different times, creating a song with melody on top of melody, with staggered starting times. Frere Jacques is another example of a 'round' or 'canon.') The classes all learned to play this canon on the xylophones, as well, and were able to play it both in unison and as a true canon.

We are also working hard on RHYTHM CARDS to be able to decipher and speak rhythms that include whole notes, half notes, quarter notes, 8th notes, 16th notes and rests! The students are really becoming 'experts' at these cards and are able to add words to the rhythms instead of using the Ta and Ti-Ti language that is normally used in class.

We have also spent some time with the BOOMWHACKER TUBES this month! We accompanied the tune Miss Mary Mack with tonic and dominant harmonies using the tubes!

Throughout the next few weeks before February break, the 5th grade students will be taking all of this knowledge and applying it to COMPOSITION for recorder and/or xylophone. They will be writing THEIR OWN SONGS!

December 2013

Here is a short clip of 5th Grade playing HOT CROSS BUNS along with the SMART MUSIC PROGRAM on December 19, 2013:

http://youtu.be/7HYPjPmCNfU

Here is another short clip of 5th Grade playing Jingle Bells on the BOOMWHACKERS the very first week they had arrived!

http://youtu.be/1EG-0Vj1EZM

November 2013:

The 5th grade music classes will continue their study of Recorder this year! Recorder study helps children learn to read music and apply their skills to an instrument. Playing recorder will strengthen your child’s knowledge of rhythms as well as the notes in the treble clef. This year, we will be combining the recorder with a variety of other instruments - including Xylophones, Metallophones, Ukelele and Drums - to create small ensembles during music class. 4th and 5th Grade students will be playing music from Recorder Karate, a highly motivational method for young players. They will also be earning their karate ‘belts’ (colored strings that will be tied to the bottom of their recorder) as they progress in their playing.

If your child has a recorder from last year, please send it to school as soon as possible in a case or Ziploc bag with your child’s name and class clearly marked. Recorders will be kept in the music room and will not be sent home with the students this year.

If your child misplaced his/her recorder or is new to Royle this year and doesn’t have a recorder, please let me know so I can order one. The price will be $8.00 if ordered through the school. Please click on the link at the bottom for a copy of the RECORDER LETTER that was sent home.

Please also send in a 1-inch 3-ring binder with 20 plastic sleeves (sheet protectors) to hold the music. This will become your child’s recorder and composition portfolio as they progress through 4th and 5th grade. They may decorate the cover of the binder however they wish. Binders will remain in the music room.

CLICK HERE FOR A COPY OF THE LETTER THAT WAS SENT HOME:

<a href="http://blogs.darienps.org/ktheisen/files/2013/10/RecorderLetter2013-1q2flav.pdf">RecorderLetter2013</a>

Please contact me at <a href="mailto:ktheisen@darienps.org">ktheisen@darienps.org</a> if you have any questions or concerns.

Regards,

Kathleen Theisen

Royle School Music Teacher/Choral Director

203-655-0044 x8279