Musical Activities in the Classroom

Foundation Stage

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Web Site Download

Margaret Gough
Peter Millar
Peripatetic Classroom Music Teachers
Revised March 2012

Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Musical activity provides children with the opportunity to explore feelings and express themselves in
ways that support or go beyond verbal communication. . . . .
Children should have opportunities to be involved in musical activities as a whole class, in groups,
individually and during play . . . . . .
The Northern Ireland Curriculum - Primary

Statutory requirements:

Work Creatively with Sound

Explore, discuss and record a variety of vocal / body, everyday or environmental

(reclaimed junk) sounds

Explore a range of sound sources including classroom percussion instruments, simple

home made instruments etc

Save compositions using Graphic Scores

Add sound effects or atmosphere to songs, poems and stories

Sing and Perform with Simple Instrument s

Action songs, counting songs, singing games

Add simple accompaniments to songs

Discuss how the songs should be sung, loud / quiet / happy / sad etc

Listen and Respond to their Own and Others Music-making

Activities to improve listening skills

Listen to variety of music and respond to beat using actions and movement

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Adding sounds to a poem

Say poem to class with dramatic feeling
Discuss and experiment with sounds to accompany parts of the poem
dont overdo the sounds
Sounds can be with percussion / body / voice / reclaimed junk
N.B. Instruments are not always necessary
The sounds do not need to be an exact representation of the words but
used to create an atmosphere, e.g.
Sunshine has no sound use something to give the impression of
brightness triangle / Indian bells or happiness laughing sounds
Perform poem as its said add appropriate sounds

How to perform sounds without words

Graphic Score
Symbols to represent sounds e.g.
long sound getting louder
short quiet sound

short loud sound

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Graphic Score

Graphic scores are a way in which we can write music without

having to write musical notes. You can use shapes and symbols in
your graphic score to represent the sound
When using a graphic score, you need to assign each instrument /
sound a symbol.

The symbols can be simple or complex, it is up to you! e.g. clap

could be a drawn hand or simply an X. Encourage children to
create own symbols thinking about the sound - long / short; loud
/ quiet

Each symbol should be different so that the score is easy to read.

Once you have chosen your symbols, you will need to put your
symbols into a score i.e. put them in order

Clap

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Hum
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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Just Listen
Some listening games to start you off

Get child to cover eyes/ go behind screen/turn back on class. Another child says
Good morning/afternoon Can the first child recognise the voice?
Helpful questions
Was it a boy or girl?
Did it sound loud (close by) or quiet (far away)?
Which side of the room did it come from?

Use various objects around the room to make sounds to include hit, shake and
scrape. To start make the difference very obvious, making the sounds more alike
as the class progress eg: Tap teachers desk/shake pencil pot/run pencil (not lead side!) along
radiator as starting sounds
Tap desk/window: shake pencil pot/scissor pot: scrape air vent on
computer/scrape nails on back of chair.

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

The last two games can lead to introducing the untuned percussion instruments.
Identify whether an instrument is hit, shaken or scraped. NB some instruments
can be played in more than one way.

As above only have two of each instrument, one set

hidden from the class. Start by playing an
instrument (from hidden set) and one child has to play same
instrument. Progress to playing a rhythm/a pattern of 2 or 3 sounds

Identity sounds heard in a box/bag eg paper, keys,

pebbles, crisp bags, bubble wrap, bottle with
water/rice/peas

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Class close eyes when they hear the sleigh bells when the sound stops, class
shout Boo

Chant a well-known nursery rhyme. Control volume with hands

Hands close together whisper chant
Hands apart say chant in normal voice
Hands wide apart shout chant
Hands together say chant in head, not out loud

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

The children are numbered 1 -6 round the

circle. One group of 6 children are each
given an instrument, and the other groups are given a
corresponding vocal/body sound, eg
Child no 1 tambourine shaken/whoosh sound
Child no 2 woodblock/knocking floor or chair etc
When card No 1 is held up all the No 1 children play their instrument or make
their sound, and continue playing until the card comes down. This continues
through a series of numbers.

The children stand in a circle. The class becomes the reflection of the
leader (the teacher).
The leader responds to the music using arm movements, eg gliding / high /
low / falling / swirling / smooth / jerky / fast / slow.
The children reflectors try to follow the movements of the leader.
One of the children can become the leader.
Suggested listening - Canon by Pachelbel, The Swan from Carnival of the
Animals by Saint Saens, Walking in the Air from The Snowman by Howard Blake.

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Choose an instrument
Tune: London Bridge
Choose an instrument you can play,
You can play, you can play,
Choose an instrument you can pay,
Whats your favourite?
Peter plays the tambourine,
Tambourine, tambourine,
Peter plays the tambourine,
Thats the favourite.

The children sit in a circle with a selection of percussion in the

centre. A beanbag is passed round during verse 1. Whoever is
holding the beanbag at the end, chooses an instrument and
plays it while verse 2 is sung.

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

I have sounds
Tune: Tommy Thumb
I have sounds, one and tow,
Hide away!
Listen now, carefully!
Which shall I play?
Introduce two dissimilar-sounding instruments. Hide them
behind a screen, and at the end of the song, play one of them.
The children have to identify the instrument. When the children
can distinguish two different sounds easily, either use pairs of
similar-sounding instruments or increase the number of sounds

I have sounds, one, two, three

I have sounds, there are four

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

What is the weather today?

Tune: Hickory dickory dock
Leader:
All:
Leader:
All:
All:

What is the weather today?

What is the weather today?
Its warm and dry,
Its warm and dry,
That is the weather today.

Change lines three and four to suit the weather e.g. Its cold
and wet
Change lines one and two to what you can do in different kinds
of weather e.g.
Now we can go out to play
We can wear wellington boots

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Some sounds are short

Tune: Pease pudding hot
Some sounds are short,
Some sounds are long,
Which sound will you make
After this song?

The children sit in a circle with a selection of percussion in the

centre. A beanbag is passed round during the song. Whoever
has the beanbag at the end goes and picks an instrument and
plays either a long or short sound.
Instead of using instruments, let the children make up a long or
short vocal or body sound.

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Autumn
The autumn leaves have fallen down,
The wind he came and blew them around.
Lets find a brush and start to sweep,
And make them into a great big heap.
Then light the bonfire and burn them away,
And now its tidy well dance and play.

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Five little leaves

Five little leaves so bright and gay,
Were dancing about on a tree one day.
The wind came blowing through the town
Ooooooo oooooo
One little leaf came tumbling down.
Four little leaves so bright and gay, etc.

Icicles
Five long icicles hanging on a wall,
But as the sun begins to shine,
One melts and starts to fall
Drip-drip-drip-CRASH.
Four little icicles hanging on a wall, etc.
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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Winter
Softly, softly falling so,
This is how the snowflakes go.
Pitter-patter, pitter-patter,
Pit pit pat,
Down go the raindrops
On my hat.

Tadpoles
In a pond beneath some trees
Five tadpoles swam about.
Wriggle, squiggle, wriggle, squiggle,
Then a frog jumped out.
In a pond beneath some trees
Four tadpoles swam about etc.

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Spring
Flowers grow like this,
Trees grow like this,
I grow
Just like that!

Summer
Im busy, busy, busy, said the bee,
I shant be home for dinner or for tea.
It makes me very dizzy, to be so very busy,
Im busy, busy, busy, said the bee.
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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Sandcastle Fun
Im going to build a castle
Right here by the sea.
First of all its very small,
And then it grows like me.
Ill add some towers and windows,
Give a final pat.
Then run, jump and sit on it,
And knock my castle flat!

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Lets stretch up tall

Lets stretch up tall like a lighthouse,
Lets curl up small like a snail.
Lets spread our wings like a seagull,
And then be a boat with a snail.
Lets gallop along on a donkey,
Lets go for a swim in the sea,
Lets dry ourselves all over
And then have a picnic tea!

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(drum)
(sleigh bells)
(tambourine)
(triangle)
(claves)
(maracas)
(guiro)
(mouth pops)

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

A Mouse
A mouse lives in a little hole,
Lived softly in a little hole.
When all was quiet as quiet can be (Sh! Sh!)
When all was quiet as quiet can be (Sh! Sh!)
Out popped HE!
Creep, little mouse, come along to me,
Creep, little mouse, Ive a cake for tea.
Puss, Puss, Puss, Puss, where is the little mouse?
Safe, safe, safe, safe, safe, in his little house!

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Little brown rabbit

A little brown rabbit popped out of the ground,
Wriggled his whiskers and looked around.
Another wee rabbit who lived in the grass,
Popped his head out and watched him pass.
Then both the wee rabbits went hoppity hop,
Hoppity, hoppity, hoppity, hop,
Till they came to a wall and had to stop.
Then both the wee rabbits turned themselves round.
And scuttled off home to their holes in the ground.

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Hands
I can knock with my two hands;
Knock, knock, knock!
I can rock with my tow hands;
Rock, rock, rock.
I can tap with my two hands;
Tap, tap, tap!
I can clap with my two hands;
Clap, clap, clap.

The Park
What shall we do when we all go out,
All go out, all go out,
What shall we do when we all go out,
All go out to play?
We shall play with the skipping rope
We shall ride our tricycles

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Roundabouts
Roundabouts go round and round,
Slow, then fast, then slow.
Round and round, round and round,
Come and have a go.
Roundabouts go up and down,
Slow, then fast, then slow.
Up and down, up and down,
Come and have a go.
Roundabouts go in and out,
Slow, then fast, then slow.
In and out, in and out,
Come and have a go.

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Ring the bell

Ring the bell,
Ting-a-ling,
Knock at the door,
Rat-a-tat-tat.
Turn the knob,
Clickety-click.
Walk right in,
How dyou do?

The Suns Game

The cloud and the sun
Were having a game.
First it was sunshine,
Then shadow came.
Spreading and closing,
Yellow then blue,
Flowers in their pots
Didnt know what to do!

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Noise
Billy is blowing his trumpet,
Bertie is banging a tin,
Betty is crying for Mummy,
And Bob has pricked Ben with a pin.
Baby is crying out loudly,
Hes out on the lawn in his pram,
I am the only one silent,
And Ive eaten all of the jam!

Ideas for Graphic Score

Key
Billy

Bertie

Betty

Bob

Baby

Leaves

Birds

Bees

Jam

Yum

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Snails bed
Snails crawl around
With their homes on their backs.
And wherever they go
They leave silver trails.
I know when theyre asleep
They pull in their heads
But how
Do you think
They curl up in
Their beds?
Picnic Tea
We found a shady spot under a tree.
Heres what we had for a picnic tea.
We had ants in the sandwiches,
Wasps in the jam,
Slugs in the lettuce leaves,
Beetles in the ham,
Midges in the orange juice,
Flies on the cheese,
Spiders on the sausages,
Ice-cream full off bees!

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

My house
Come and help me build my house,
This is what we do.
First we dig a patch of ground,
Then flatten it too.
Next we pour over some concrete
And when the base is done,
We get the bricks for the walls,
And lay them one by one.
Nail down the floorboards,
Put in the windows and doors,
Fit in the sinks and cupboards,
Then decorate indoors.
Now my house is ready,
And Im as proud as can be,
Lets move in the furniture,
Then we can have some tea.

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

When the giant comes to breakfast

When the giant comes to breakfast
He eats Corn Flakes with a spade,
Followed by a lorry load
Of toast and marmalade.
Next, he takes a dustbin
Fills it up with tea,
Drinks it all in a gulp,
And leaves the mess for me!

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Tiny Caterpillar
Tune: Shell be coming round the mountain

Theres a tiny caterpillar on a leaf, wiggle, wiggle,

Theres a tiny caterpillar on a leaf, wiggle, wiggle,
Theres a tiny caterpillar, tiny caterpillar,
Theres a tiny caterpillar on a leaf, wiggle, wiggle.
He will eat the leaves around him til hes full, munch, munch
A cocoon is what hes spinning for his home, spin, spin
Then hell be a butterfly and flap away, flap, flap
So that tiny caterpillar went like this, wiggle, wiggle,
munch, munch,
spin, spin,
flap, flap
Find sounds to represent each verse and add to song.
Draw pictures of the different stages and perform with sounds
instrumental / vocal / body / junk without the song.

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Musical Activities in the Classroom Foundation Stage

Here are a few suggestions of books that you might find useful

A&C Black Early Years Series includes CD and cross curricular activities
Clap your hands follow me action songs
I hear the band listening and talking songs
Five little monkeys counting songs
www.acblack.com

Out of the Ark Music

My World series
Collection of topic-based song books with
teaching ideas for each song. The life saving CD is also available!
Includes themes on Toys and Games; People who help us; Wonderful
Water; On the move; Animals.
The Song and Story Series Traditional and well-loved tales which
includes script, song lyrics, piano arrangements, easy percussion parts.
CD with the story narrated with songs, vocal tracks sung by children
and backing tracks. Titles include The Three Little Pigs; Little Red Riding
Hood; The Princess and the Pea; Jack and the Beanstalk.
www.outoftheark.com

There are many more books and resources available, but

sometimes less is more dont get obsessed with books. Find
something simple and adapted it to suit your own class, be
creative. Most of all enjoy it.

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