BRIDGES TO THE COMMUNITY SERIES: PART 4: ASK ME NOTES
Lillie H. Feierabend, FAME Teacher Trainer
Often a single experience will open the young soul to music for a whole lifetime.
This experience cannot be left to chance. It is the duty of the school to provide it.
Zoltan Kodaly, Children’s Choruses, 1929
I take this charge to heart. Teachable moments do not always happen in the music classroom. Regardless of the excellence of our materials, sequencing and passion, we have no guarantee that students will be moved by music in the short amount of time they are with us. But, if we look just beyond the limits of the music classroom, we can create other experiences capable of engaging and influencing, not only our students, but our greater school community, as well, and most significantly, our families.
Over the course of this year, I will share twelve ideas to help build bridges from your music classroom to your students’ homes, from your school to your community, and offer parents the opportunity to musically engage with their children while learning about your curriculum and the powerful role music plays in the growth and development of their children. I have found that the more information parents have, the more likely they are to support our music programs. At the end of this article, you’ll find a link to an article written by John in 1997, outlining each of the Bridges.
In this fourth article, I would like to share Ask Me Notes. If I told you that you could turn your students into teachers at home, sharing music activities with family and friends on a consistent basis, and send information about your curriculum home on a consistent basis, and keep parents informed about what their child is doing in the music classroom on a consistent basis, and show integration among subjects, and extend the learning from school to home on a consistent basis, you would jump at the chance. And if, in addition to all that, I told you it cost absolutely nothing, you’d begin tomorrow. Ask Me notes do that, and so much more.
Once students have mastered an activity, we usually assess either on a formal or informal basis. And once assessed, we usually put the activity away. How many times throughout the school year do you revisit Frog in the Meadow? Or the beautiful folk song picture book, Momma Buy Me a China Doll? Or revisit Listening Lessons? Once students have demonstrated mastery on one activity, we are thrilled then quickly move on to the next; there is so much to learn. Ask Me notes are a lovely way to share and extend the joy and learning into the home with the child as leader.
Anything that works for your school is perfect. Once a week, twice a month or even once a month will work. The point is to start with whatever time frame is comfortable for you and set up the expectation; be consistent, make it a habit. At our first Open House, I share their importance with my parents and set up the expectation. I tell them to keep the notes together and create a book. Since they are 8 ½ X 5 ½ they can easily be tossed in the kitchen drawer or the glove compartment. Then, when dinner is taking too long, or the child is bored, or they have run out of games to play on a long car ride, parents can simply take out their Ask Me booklet and say, “dinner will be ready in 15 songs,” or “sing the whole book and we’ll be there!” I have heard those comments and these, as well, “we sang you all the way to Cape Cod,” and “we all sang Mother Gooney Bird in the produce aisle of the grocery store.”
At the beginning of the school year, I take time to carefully establish the routine with my students. I explain that because they can sing and perform Mother Gooney Bird (or whatever the first one is) so beautifully, they are now “Official Teachers of Mother Gooney Bird” and they must teach it to someone they love over the weekend. I’ll ask, “Who can you teach it to?” I call on every hand that goes up, “my mom, my dad, my gran, my grandpa, my uncle, my aunt, my cousin, my dog, my baby sister, my big brother.” I make it a point to follow up with them when I see them next, “Who did you teach it to?” Again, I call on every hand. They are excited to tell me who they taught. I do this consistently at the beginning. Once the routine is established, perhaps after three times, I begin to ask intermittently. True story, child sang for the Pizza Delivery Man….Mom said she gave him an extra $5 for standing there holding three pizzas while the child sang!
Start with one grade level. Don’t be overwhelmed and think you have to do this for every child you teach. I started with just kindergarten and worked on those for a year. The following year I had about thirty Ask Me notes, I tweaked a few and added a few I had not done the previous year. Then, when kindergarten was established, I started on first grade. The expectation had been established in kindergarten, so my first-grade parents were eager to see how their child would grow and develop musically in this new year. After kindergarten and first grade were pretty well established, I began with second grade, then third, each year tweaking the old, creating the new and adding an additional grade level. It grew organically and did not take a lot of time.
Remember, especially in the youngest grades, we may use the same material but look for different levels of accomplishment and at different times of the year. Your Ask Me, in this situation, can do double duty. Now, after all these years, I access the appropriate Ask Me, run it off and hand it out. The hard work has already been done, but I continue to tweak and refine, a better word or graphic here, a clearer instruction there.
Students come to mastery on multiple activities each week, but I only select one to send home. Occasionally, for whatever reason (early closing, delayed opening, three snow days in a row, field trips, teacher absence, shortened conference schedule) I don’t see all my students consistently, I still send home an Ask Me. This is the perfect opportunity to reach back in my lesson plan and supply an oldie, but a goodie. You may also want to include information about your curriculum and the important part it plays in music development. If it is a Pitch Exploration activity, make parents aware of the importance of warming up the voice prior to singing and remind them that we do this each and every time we meet. There is so much we can offer them, why Pitch Exploration is so important, why Fragment Songs are so important, the difference between Echo Songs and Call and Response Songs. I want my parents to become as comfortable with our curriculum as my students are.
By putting pertinent information in the hands of your parents, you are also giving them a wealth of conversation starters. Questions such as, “What did you do in music today?” or, “Tell me about that instrument” provide a catalyst to conversation and discussion. The Ask Me gives them up-to-date information about what their child is doing in the music classroom. When you send these home on a consistent basis, parents are amazed at the breadth and depth of the curriculum and the musical growth and development of their child.
Here is the initial note I send home to parents:
Dear (Kindergarten) Family,
Each Friday your child will bring home an ASK ME note from Music Class. It will contain a new song, finger play or movement activity that was learned that week. Please save them. At the end of the school year, your child will have a book of about forty favorite songs and activities from their year in Music. Please ask your child to sing or perform it for you. Better yet, see if he or she can teach it to you. Have fun!
My original intent was to provide an opportunity to turn students into teachers and share music with their family by highlighting a song or activity that the child had mastered over the preceding weeks. Our repertoire included songs, chants, finger plays, action songs, passing games, play parties, arioso ideas, and dances. As the school year progressed, however, I realized that this format could also accommodate many types of music learning while still focusing on the child as teacher. Following are a few ideas about the possibilities. I have included several examples at the end of this article.
- Songs, Chants, Finger Plays, Action Songs, Passing Games, Play Parties, Arioso Ideas, Dances
(“You only need two to have a dance, and one of them can be a Teddy Bear!”)
Once assessment has taken place, either formally or informally, and children have demonstrated mastery, I send all the pertinent information home; text, motions, directions for a singing game, a picture of an instrument learned. I do not include notation; students know the tunes and teach in the oral tradition. Words are there to act as a catalyst for parents, and it is just plain wonderful to have your own personal Music Book!
- Books
Think of all the wonderful folk songs you sing to your students and the beautiful picture books you share with them. Let parents know; some may check them out of the library, or find them at their local bookstore, or order them online, extending the learning while reinforcing the bonds between parent and child and educating our parents about quality musical literature.
- Listening Lessons
Each year when I take students to the Hartford Symphony, that repertoire becomes our listening focus for several weeks. After that information is sent home, I hear wonderful comments such as, “I played that piece in middle school,” or “I studied that piece in high school.” or “We downloaded it.” You never know where an Ask Me sheet will take them. My job is to give them the information; they determine how they will use it. The Ask Me does not simply state the title and composer but reflects the learning from the music classroom, again putting the child in a position to teach.
- CDs
Share with parents the wealth of CDs that you share with your students; a particular musician, or genre, or composer, or country. Parents tell me that they either have the recording, or have heard of the recording, or bought the recording to share at home.
- Instruments
Have your students played a maraca lately? Finger cymbals? Recorder? Autoharp or ukulele? Glockenspiel? Include a picture and remind students to accompany themselves as they sing the highlighted song, or play the highlighted instrument, or demonstrate how to open the case and put the instrument together. Let parents know there is a sequence to learning that goes from knowing how to handle the instrument (and the case and cleaning!) to performing like a member of a symphony or jazz band.
- Composer/Country/Culture/Theme/Unit
If a grade level is studying a specific country, send home an Ask Me that highlights the song, finger play, action song, passing game, instrument, listening lesson, CD, book, or dance learned in the music classroom. Let parents know of the collaborative, cross discipline learning that takes place and how organically and authentically integration occurs.
- Concerts
There is nothing like live performance. I am fortunate to be on the campus of a university where there are over 400 concerts each year and most of them are free. Between freshmen guitar recitals, jazz band concerts, senior vocal recitals, sophomore saxophone recitals, and percussion concerts, there is plenty to choose from. I send home an additional Ask Me at the beginning of each month with a listing of the opportunities for that month. If a child has been asking about a guitar, this is a perfect opportunity to get a closer look. I tell my parents to make a 15-minute investment. Sometimes the child is so rapt that the 15-minute expectation extends through the entire recital. I also send home Listening Tips which give a few ideas about what to expect and how they can help their child (and themselves) enjoy the experience.
- Catalogs
Parents, grandparents, family members purchase birthday and special holiday gifts so give them the names of catalogs that would enhance and support music making at home. Give them the tools to make informed decisions. I have heard stories about Granma buying a beautiful lap harp, or parents purchasing kazoos or harmonicas as birthday prizes. With the wealth of what is available, parents may not know where to turn for quality musical materials. I only send home information about a few of my favorites. If a child sees a photo of an instrument they played in class, the parent may say, “Oh it’s just $5, let’s get it.” Then the child comes to school, excited to share what they now own. To have something at home that we play regularly at school is thrilling. They’re going to play them at home, practice them at home, and again, engage their families and show what they have learned.
As if all of this were not enough, the Ask Me notes have taken on a life far beyond what I could ever have imagined. I will continue singing their praises in my next article; Ask Me, The Sequel!
Beyond the Music Class: Expanding the Musical Influence of the Elementary School by John Feierabend
ASK ME about my frog song
Frog in the meadow, Stir the frog around your nose, toes,
Can’t get him out, knees, ears, head, legs, etc.
Take a little stick and What other places can you think of to stir?
Stir him about.
Don’t forget to use your other hand, or both hands.
We played a guiro, a ribbed, wooden instrument that when rubbed with a mallet actually makes a sound like a frog.
ASK ME about my clapping chant
Peas porridge hot, Keep a steady beat on your knees while
Peas porridge cold, speaking the chant.
Peas porridge in the pot
Nine days old. Where else can you tap the beat?
Some like it hot,
Some like it cold,
Some like it in the pot Logical/Mathematical Connection: Create AB Patterns
Nine days old. Lap-lap-clap-clap…
Head-shoulders-head-shoulders…
My mommy likes it hot, Head-toes-head-toes…
My daddy likes it cold, This knee, this knee, that knee, that knee…
And I like it in the pot Tap toe, tap knees, clap, tap head…
Nine days old.
See how many different combinations you can create.
Don’t forget to keep speaking the chant.
ASK ME about my echo song
Leader Echo
Charlie over the ocean, Charlie over the ocean,
Charlie over the sea, Charlie over the sea,
Charlie caught a big fish, Charlie caught a big fish,
Can’t catch me. Can’t catch me.
Child A skips around the outside of the circle and sings the Leader part. Class echoes each line. On “me”, Child A gently taps the person closest to them (Child B) who then begins skipping around the circle trying to catch up to Child A. Child A keeps skipping until he/she arrives at the empty spot left by Child B. Child B becomes the new leader.
Verbal Linguistic, Naturalist, Visual Spatial Connection:
Ask your child to name as many animals as they can that live in the ocean or the sea, then substitute that animal instead of big fish (Charlie caught a hermit crab….or Charlie caught a jelly fish….). Have your child draw those creatures. The students came up with an ocean full of sea creatures.
ASK ME about my counting song
Johnny had one friend, Make a flat bed with one hand, tap
One friend, one friend, on it with one finger of the other hand
Johnny had one friend,
Johnny had two. hold up two fingers at end of verse
Johnny had two friends…three. tap two fingers; hold up three at end of verse
Johnny had three friends…four. tap three fingers; hold up four at end of verse
Johnny had four friends…five. tap four fingers; hold up five at end of verse
Now, switch hands
ASK ME about the PERCUSSION FAMILY
If you can TAP it, SHAKE it, or RUB it, it is a Percussion instrument. There are hundreds of Percussion instruments and we have been studying and playing many of them.
Ask me to name two of each category and show you how to play them.
Tap: claves, finger cymbals
Shake: maracas, jingle bells
Rub: sandblocks, guiros
We played them by themselves, in groups, and even with a band!
Some percussion instruments need a mallet to tap or rub.
You have many percussion instruments around the house. Just look for something that you can tap, shake, or rub. Happy Music Making!
. ASK ME about VARIATIONS
We are getting ready to go to the Bushnell to hear the Hartford Symphony Orchestra. Their special concert, just for us, will be
“The Probably Untrue Story of Mary Who Had a Little Lamb”
It’s a story with music about Mary, her lamb Petunia, and their Uncle Antonio Vivaldi, who wrote beautiful music and also taught Petunia to play the cello. This concert is all about VARIATIONS. They will take the tune Mary Had a Little Lamb and perform it many different ways. We have created our own variations. Ask me to “sing” it in many different ways:
Sing it with words, sing it high, sing it low, sing it fast, sing it slow
Hum, sing on “la”
Sing it jazzy, sing it operatic, sing in cow or cat
Clap with my hands, stomp with my feet, jump it, walk it across the room
What other ways can you “sing” it?
ASK ME about my PLAY PARTY from Alabama.
People didn’t always have instruments to accompany their dancing, so sometimes they sang to accompany themselves. Your voice is always with you; always handy, not expensive and nothing to carry.
Two straight lines, facing each other with an alley between. Alternating sides, first person in each line moves down the alley in any way they wish (jump, walk sideways, skip, gallop, sashay, dance backwards, crawl, disco …..). Each line should alternate in rapid succession and all students should continuously take a step toward the head of the set.
Come through ‘n hurry, Come through ‘n hurry, (‘n is a contraction for in a)
Come through ‘n hurry, Alabama Gal.
I don’t know how-how, I don’t know how-how,
I don’t know how-how, Alabama Gal.
I’ll show you how-how, I’ll show you how-how,
I’ll show you how-how, Alabama Gal.
Ain’t I Rock Candy, Ain’t I Rock Candy, (students know this is not proper English, but in true folk song
Ain’t I Rock Candy, Alabama Gal. style, we sing it as it was handed down through oral tradition)