Fillers

**MAKE RAIN** - this is a popular sound activity. The students have to watch the person in front of them and copy what they do. The teacher stands at the front of the line and starts a movement. When it gets to the end of the line, start the next one. The idea is for the sounds to overlap and morph into each other. *Remind them to NEVER STOP A MOVEMENT until the very end.

A. Rub palms together B. Snap fingers C. Pat knees D. Stomp feet E. Pat knees F. Snap fingers G. Rub palms together H. Softly blow out and return hands to your side. It sounds like a rainstorm!

**GOODBYE RHYTHMS** - I got this idea from the girls at What the Teacher Wants . They shared a list of fun rhymes to read/say together in line. I copied the rhymes and added the rhythm under each. Have the students clap the rhythm and say the rhyme together. I'm going to start them as echoes, then have them read them after they become familiar. This is a great way to reinforce the connection between words and rhythm. I can't wait to use it next year!

  =Flashcard Attendance= Have a pile of flashcards that you want to assess. Call a students name, and that student reads the flashcard that you hold up. Assess how well they read the card and mark it on your class list. Call the next students name and hold up a different flashcard. You can assess an entire class rotating between 5-6 flashcards in about 5 minutes. You can assess either rhythm reading or melody reading.

=Which Rhythm Did I Clap?= Place 2 rhythm flashcards on a stand. Clap one of them. Have the students identify which flashcard you clapped.

Separate the children into groups by 7. Give each child within each group a different note to sing, "Do", "Re", "Me", "Fa", etc. But do it quietly so the other groups don't know who got what note.
 * Match The Sound **

When all the children of each group have a note to sing, gather them together in a big group. When you tell them to start, they each start singing their note over and over again, until they find another child with their note. The first group to gather all their "Do"s together, (or "Re"s) wins.

Practice round is over. The tough part: give them a note, only they sing an animal sound:

Frog – ribbit Horse – neigh Monkey – eh, eh, eh Lion – roar, roar Bird – caw, caw Mouse – eek, eek Dog – woof, woof Fish – glub, glub Cow – moo, moo Pig – oink, oink


 * Opposite Echo Game **

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Arial,Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Whatever I chant to the students, they must chant back using the opposite words. If I say “no,no yes-yes-yes”, they say “yes,yes no-no-no”. Keep mixing up the words and rhythms. You could also use: <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Arial,Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">hot vs cold, <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Arial,Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">black / white <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Arial,Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Spring / Fall <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Arial,Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Summer / Winter <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Arial,Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Loud / Soft <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Arial,Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Fast / Slow <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Arial,Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">left vs right.