All Things Instruments

If you are joining me for the first time, be sure to check out Part 1 of this 5 Part series, where I talk about my unique approach to classroom management!  Today, I thought I’d focus on all things instrument!  Here are 5 great tips to remember about instruments!

1. Keep them VISIBLE!  I find that if my instruments are out and visible, I am more apt to use them.  My students love walking in for the first time and doing what I call and exploration walk.  They get to travel around the room and take a look at everything. I also allow them to talk to their friends about what they see.  Instruments are also easier to access if they are out and available.  I keep my instruments on open shelves, inside bins and boxes, or just out as part of the decor!  My bins are all labeled, so students not only know what the instruments are called, but how to spell each name.
2. Use them ALL.THE.TIME!  In case you didn’t know (you probably already do) kids absolutely LOVE to play instruments.  The weirder the instrument, the more they want to use it.  The bigger and louder the instrument, the more popular it is.  I try to use instruments every week. I know that might seem challenging, but instrument play, when done correctly, is the BEST behavior management tool you have.  I save instrument play for the last third of class, and I use it as an incentive for my students.  Following are 4 ways to use instruments as the culmination of your lesson:
   • Rhythm practice – are you teaching a new note or a new meter?  Have you just read a storybook with a repeating pattern that you’ve chanted with that certain rhythm?  Are you working on reading different rhythms?  The perfect extension activity is to have students play the rhythms after they say them!
   • Melody practice – Working with a tiny melody in a storybook?  Working on some new solfege melodies?  Talking about high and low; skips and steps?  Extend this by playing on your xylophones, metallophones, or recorders.
   • Dynamics practice – Discussing different dynamic levels?  I find that speaking, then singing, then playing each dynamic level is the most effective way to teach dynamics.
   •  Timbre – I love to use storybook lessons, and one of my favorite things to do is help students create a sound track for their story.  This give us the opportunity to talk about the setting and the plot.  It also gives us the opportunity to discuss timbre and how it affects the mood you are trying to set.  I love to hand out just one instrument and allow my students to explore all of the ways they can find to play the instrument.  Then we can use those different sounds to set the mood for our story sound track.
3. Keep it easy for you and your students.  You know yourself best.  If trying to direct 6 different parts is too much for you, I see no reason why you can’t simplify any lesson.  If your entire 5th grade is doing one type of activity, but you know your next class simply won’t be able to handle it, simplify for them.  If you’re just DONE playing recorders with your students, take a break or stop all together.  If you’re not enjoying teaching it, they’re not going to enjoy doing it.
4. What instruments do you use?  So I have some hard, fast rules about instrument use.  They are as follows:
   • Try to use EVERY instrument in the room AS MANY TIMES as possible.  I don’t want my 5th graders to leave the school and say there is something they never got a chance to play!
   • Try to use your instruments EVERY DAY.  Kids love playing, and playing is GOOD!  Your kiddos are going to be much more engaged during instrument play than during your teaching time.
   • I find that older students can handle several instruments and parts, while younger students can really only handle one or maybe two.  Following is my rule about the amount of instruments I use –
     • PreK & K get to use 1 type of instrument and 1 part
     • 1st & 2nd can use 2 – 3 types of instruments and 2 – 3 parts
     • 3 – 5th can use multiple instruments and multiple parts
     • Your students may perform differently than mine.  Make it easy on yourself, and go with what your students can handle.
5. Passing out instruments – Before we talk about passing out instruments, let’s be real.  It’s probably the biggest hassle that you have as a music teacher.  I try to use the same instruments with every grade level for the week.This way, I only have to pass out instruments and collect instruments once each.  I will specifically design my lessons with ease of passing out instruments in mind.  That being said, sometimes you just have to pass out or collect instruments between classes.  Here are several methods of distributing instruments, depending on what I am teaching and who is using them:
   • If I am changing instruments from grade level to grade level, students are responsible to pass out instruments during my first class of the day and collect, sort and put away instruments during my last class of the day.
   • If everyone is using the same instruments all week, the first class of the week is responsible to pass out instruments, and the last class of the week is responsible to collect, sort, and put away instruments.
   • Let the play!  So this method may not work for you, but I allow my students to play their instruments as we are passing them out.  I don’t mind the extra noise, and I give VERY specific instructions.  They only get to play if they follow the instructions.  Here’s how it works:
     • 3 – 5th graders – get to rehearse their part (we’ve already discussed and practiced the rhythm or melody they are playing using body percussion).   They are allowed to play their part softly (piano) until everyone else has their instrument.
     • PreK (yes seriously PreK) – 2nd grade – get to do instrument exploration.  They try to find as many ways as possible to play their instrument.  They can non-verbally show a neighbor.
     • Rules are as follows –
       • You never lose your instrument
       • If you play louder than piano, your instrument has to take a 5 minute time out
       • If you talk, your instrument has to take a 5 minute time out
       • If you play after I have said to stop, your instrument has to take a 5 minute time out
       • I don’t say anything.  I walk over in the middle of passing out instruments and hold out my hand.  I then place the instrument on the floor.
       • If you have a bad attitude while your instrument is in time out, your instrument gets another minute of time out
   • For kindergarten, I find that it is easiest to pass out instruments just before they use them.  This cuts down on the amount of times I have to ask them not to touch their instrument and the amount of times they get into trouble for touching or playing before they are allowed.  I have 2 methods for passing out instruments with K:
     • I pass out instruments to each student
     • We sit in a circle and pass them down.  This means that I give the student on my right an instrument.  Then I pass the next instrument to the student on my right, and they pass it to the next student.  This continues till every student has an instrument.  While we’re passing, we sing this song:        r     m   d         r    m   d      r   m    d       r      m   d

“Pass it down, pass it down, to the right, pass it down”

I hope these tips are valuable and will help guide you in your journey as a first year music teacher, or maybe just as an experienced teacher who’s looking for a reset.  Stay tuned for more great tips next week!