Music Instruments & Supplies for NYC Kids

When Mr. Blumenthal’s 5^th grade students entered the music room they were delighted and surprised by a prominent new addition to the classroom: a skeletal model. The model on loan from the science department was used to integrate and build on the 5^th graders’ knowledge of the skeletal, muscular and respiratory systems during their newest music lesson.

At the start of class, the students participated in a series of breathing and melodic solfège* exercises. The warm-up exercises helped students connect the anatomy and mechanics of these body systems with their own breathing and singing. The students were amazed to see, for instance, how adjustments in their posture could improve their ability to sing. The students practiced standing tall, lengthening their spine and planting their heels and toes firmly, to position themselves to articulate and project when they sang.

The students then performed several rhythm exercises, which required them to listen to, think about, repeat, sight-read and identify syncopated rhythms using the syncopation builder method. The process of breaking down and reconstructing the syncopated rhythms they heard helped when the students began their next singing endeavor.

Students were divided into five ostinato* groups and assigned segments of the song “On the Bus” to practice, perform and record. After recording the five groups, who sang both in rounds and in unison, the class listened to and evaluated their performance, discussing the ways in which their ensemble could be more successful.

Throughout the lesson, students were actively participating and making valuable contributions to the class discussion. By the end, students were not only able to connect the movement of their diaphragm to their ability to sing, but also had successfully demonstrated knowledge of rhythms, accurately sung pitches, analyzed various musical situations and confidently defined key musical terms. These terms—which are highlighted in the body of this report—were added in colorful chalk to the “Music Wall’s Word of the Week” collage and joined musical concepts from prior lessons, such as ‘interlude,’ ‘cresendo,’ and ‘staccato.’

In all, through building their musical skills and knowledge, students were learning another important lesson: cooperation and coordination—which is essential when singing as a unit! We’re confident that the students’ hard work will be apparent in their upcoming—and highly anticipated—spring concert.

Building effective lessons requires access to instructional materials and supplies. This lesson, for instance, utilized a projector, ActiveBoard applications, SMART ® Board technology, a stereo, piano and percussion instruments to involve and engage all students.

We thank you for your support in helping to make the learning moments evident in Mr. Blumenthal’s 5^th grade class possible, and ask that you consider sharing this project with others who might like to support music education too.  

Terms:

*Solfege is a pedagogical technique that assigns special syllables to each degree of the musical scale to facilitate intonation, pitch memory and sight-reading (do, re, mi…).

*Ostinato is a short musical phrase or set of notes that repeats to create a sustaining pattern or to interact with other musical ideas.

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Please read below to find observations from one of ETM’s Brooklyn Partner Schools.

Fourth grade students at P.S. 84, the Jose de Diego School, in Brooklyn can hardly contain their excitement—and knowledge—when their ETM music teacher, David Blumenthal, asks them to identify rhythms. During this opening exercise, Mr. Blumenthal plays a rhythm on either the xylophone or drum and calls on students to identify the rhythm pattern they just heard. Once Mr. Blumenthal finishes the rhythm, students’ hands quickly jolt into the air; in the hopes of being selected the students fidget in their seats and a soft chorus of “Ooo Ooo” “Pick me. I know it!” fill the room.

The students’ exuberance is matched by their intellect. The students confidently approach the SMART® Board and reveal the appropriate notes which form the rhythm played, as in one instance, with “ta ti-ti tika-tika rest-ta.” Some students even refer to the symbols displayed on the board by their formal name, for example “quarter notes.” In this exercise, students are taught to identify and replicate rhythms, review and combine past lessons, and embrace their budding musicality and musical literacy. This interactive exercise serves as a warm-up to today’s real endeavor: the first day of recorders!

Students, with their recorders in rest position on their laps, sit eager to learn. In this lesson, students are taught about proper form when holding the recorder, including finger placement and mouthpiece support. Mr. Blumenthal instructs the class to keep the left thumb over the recorder’s back hole and left index finger over the uppermost hole. Once the students have mastered this critical step they are ready to gently blow into the mouthpiece—producing a B. After some practice, the students play along to a pre-recorded song called “B Great!” It’s clear from the cheers and smiling faces that the students are proud of their new accomplishments.

This observation provides both a glimpse into an ETM classroom and reflects the progress unfolding in all of our new partner schools. To continue to instill the musical skills and knowledge, which improve these students’ general development and academic achievement, ETM needs your continued support.

The recorders used in this class, for example, were funded by this project. Recorders enable students to have a tactile educational experience. This hands-on experience reinforces critical music lessons in an engaging manner. Instructional materials and instrumental supplies allow for a meaningful and participatory exploration into musical concepts—and are therefore a crucial component in the classroom.

Please consider sharing our project success at PS 84 with colleagues who might be interested in making a donation to ensure that these valuable lessons continue. In particular, Mr. Blumenthal would like to add a “world drum set” to the classroom’s inventory, including bongos, congas, tublar drums and djembes, to involve all of his students in the process of creating and replicating rhythms.  

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