Music Maker Week

I got to teach a “Music Maker Week” at our Summer Camp. I had about 10 kids Kindergarten-5th grade. Each day we did a Body Percussion song, STEM activity, and made an instrument. For younger kids we watched Little Einsteins.

Day 1:  Wind Chimes

Homemade Instrument: Wind Chimes

  1. Paint your stick if you choose and let it dry.
  2. Tie a string or pipe cleaner to a jingle bell and add several pony beads. You will need to make 3-5 of these.
  3. Tie the other end of the beads to your stick.
  4. Twist 1 pipe cleaner around each side of the stick to hand the wind chimes with.

YouTube Body Percussion video: Pink Panther 

STEM Activity: Paint on a Sheet Music

  1. Print out some sheet music. We chose some easier ones, like the ABC’s; and some longer ones about a rose and about sunshine.
  2. The kids used watercolors to paint on the music.

Day 2: Egg Shaker Maraca

Homemade Instrument: Egg Shaker Maracas

  1. Place rice in an Easter egg.
  2. Place the egg inside of 2 plastic spoons.
  3. Tape the spoons and eggs together.
  4. Dance to Spanish music.
  5. Play Freeze Dance

Egg Shaker Songs:

We Don’t Talk About Bruno

Surface Pressure

YouTube Body Percussion video: Happy 

STEM Activity: Dancing Oobleck

Oobleck comes from the Dr. Seuss book called Batholomew and the Oobleck. It is a non-Newtonian liquid; which means that Oobleck has properties of both liquids and solids. You can look at the mixture sitting there as it appears like a liquid, you can even stick your fingers in it and it will feel like a liquid. You can also grab a handful of it and squeeze it into a ball, then it feels and looks like a solid until it relaxes again.

Here is a video of The Big Bang Theory doing the same experiment.

You need about 2 cups of Corn Starch to 1 cup of water, and then add food coloring for fun.

  1. You can search for “subwoofer test MP3” and download different test tones and play to see what works best.  Use 40 Hz, 50 Hz, and 63 Hz, and turn the volume way up.
  2. Place a cookie sheet onto the speaker of a subwoofer, and pour in the Oobleck.
  3. Before you play the MP3 you will need to place your fingers on the edge of the cookie sheet with gentle pressure to hold it flush against the sub.
  4. Turn on the music and watch the Oobleck jump and dance.

Day 3: Jingle Bell Anklet

Homemade Instrument: Jingle Bell Anklet

  1. Place the jingle bells and pony beads on the pipe cleaner.
  2. Dance with music that moves your feet, to hear the jingles.
  3. Play Freeze dance

YouTube Body Percussion video: I Like to Move It 

STEM Activity: Colored Ice Drums

You need about plastic tubs of different sizes (we mostly used large ice cream tubs), Just add water and then add food coloring for fun. Put in the freezer for a day or two.

  1. Freeze water colored with food coloring in different-sized food containers and bowls.
  2. When frozen, remove the ice shapes from their molds and place them in a tub (we used a plastic kiddy pool).
  3. Add drumsticks and objects for beating the ice drums.

Day 4: Spin Drum

Homemade Instrument: Spin Drum 

  1. Cut the tube into 1 or 2 inch pieces (each child gets 1 pieces)
  2. Take the tube and trace its circumference on the cardboard sheet twice, to make two circles.
  3. Cut out the circles from the cardboard. 
  4. Use a sharp object to cut a slot on the side of the cardboard tube ring. The slot should be big enough to insert a straw through it.
  5. Insert a straw through the slot of the tube section. Apply glue to the areas where the straw and the cardboard tube meet to attach them firmly.
  6. Take a long piece of yarn and attach a jingle bell to one end of the strand. Tie a knot to secure the bell.  
  7. Use something sharp to poke a hole on each side of the tube.  The holes should be on either side of the straw.
  8. Place some tape around the end of the yarn to poke it threw the hole, twist around the straw and poke it though the hole on the opposite side. (the bell should be just long enough to wrap around the drum and hit the drum in the middle)
  9. Pull the yarn through the other side of the roll. Add a jingle bell to this second side. Make a knot to secure the bell and cut off any extra yarn. Try to keep a roughly equal amount of yarn on this side as you have on the other side of the roll.
  10. Glue your cardboard circles to both sides of the ring to close it
  11. Use colored craft papers or paint to decorate the plain cardboard parts of the spin drum. Embellish as you’d like.

YouTube Body Percussion video: We will Rock You 

STEM Activity: Musical Chairs

  1. Make a circle with chairs. Have one less chair than there are students.
  2. Play the music for about 20-30 seconds and then stop it.
  3. As the music plays the children walk in a like around the circle of chairs, and when the music stops the children need to find a chair.
  4. The person without a chair is eliminated.
  5. Remove one chair and repeat until there is only one student left.

Day 5: Paper Plate Tambourine

Homemade Instrument: Paper Plate Tambourine

  1. Decorate 2 paper plates with crayons.
  2. Use a hole punch to punch holes around the paper plates.
  3. String yarn through the holes adding a jingle bell every once in a while.
  4. Add a few dry beans in the middle if you want.
  5. Play with Tambourine music.

YouTube Body Percussion video: Try Everything 

STEM Activity: Water Xylophone

You can use the water xylophone to teach kids about pitch.

  1. Fill 6 mason jars or glasses with different levels of water. Each should have slightly more water than the previous one. We added food coloring for fun.
  2. Have your children to use their drumsticks or a spoon to gently tap on the jar.
  3. You should hear different pitch for each jar that is tapped.
  4. This tap creates a vibration sound wave that travel through the water. The sound waves change with different amounts of water in the jar. Higher sounds have less water because the sound waves travel closer together. Lower sounds are in the jars with more water producing a lower sound.

Kids Henri Rousseau Mixed-Media Jungle Art

First we read the book The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau by Michelle Markel and looked at some of Henri Rousseau’s jungle pieces. We noticed that he painted a variety of animals and very large jungle leaves.

Next I had the kids watercolor green background: We talked about how Henri Rousseau used many different shades of green. Show kids how to use just a bit of water so the paper doesn’t take too long to dry. Show them how to mix green with yellow, blue, white, black, and brown to make different shades of green.

Next we found some tutorials for kids to draw animals:

  • Tiger by Messy Little Monster
  • Sloth by The Crafty Cucumber
  • Lion by Art Projects for Kids
  • Toucan by Art Projects for Kids

Draw your animals and then paint or use colored pencils to color them. After it dries, use a black sharpie to outline them and the cut them out carefully.

I found some tropical leaf outlines to enlarge and print on cardstock to use as tracing templates. Teach the kids how to trace the leaves on the edge of the paper so not to waste paper. Cut out the leaves and then use sharpie to outline and add veins.


Glue the animal and leaves to the green watercolor background.

Crumple little pieces of brightly tissue paper as the flowers and fruit. Glue them to the jungle scene.

ad

4th Grade Class Auction Project

My 4th grader now attends a private school, and the class worked together to create a class project for the school fundraising auction. The parents of the class also put together an auction basket too.

Collaborative Class Art

I had each child trace their hand up to their elbow (as close as they can). Then they decorated their hand with markers in any way that they wish. Then the children cut them out. I placed the cut out hands around a large black canvas. I stuck them to the canvas with Mod Podge. I then cut out and added some stars to the canvas around the hands. In the middle I used my Cricut cutter to add the quote to the middle of the canvas: “YOU have within you the strength, the patience, and passion to reach for the STARS!”

BBQ/ Grill Auction Basket

We purchased a small charcoal grill and sauces, spices, and rubs to fill it with. We also added 2 fun aprons that say, “King of the Grill” and “Always Cook with Wine”!

Latchkey Art Show

We saved the kids art work at our after school program and put on an art show for the community. We has art stations set out along with displaying the kids art work. We had cookies and juice for refreshments too.

Art Work Display

We folded the tables up and hung up the children’s artwork that we has been saving.

We also displayed 3-D artwork onto boxed that I covered with colored paper.

Family Art Stations

We had 6 stations set up. Each station took up half of a table.

Coloring Station
Dot Art Station

Living Photo Frame

I painted a living photo frame out of 2 large cardboard boxes that I found. I put chairs in it so that kids can sit there while they get their pictures taken.

Kids Art Show

We saved the kids art work at our after school program and put on an art show for the community. We has art stations set out along with displaying the kids art work. We had cookies and juice for refreshments too.

Collaborative Art Project

Art Work Display

We folded the tables up and hung up the children’s artwork that we has been saving.

We also displayed 3-D artwork onto boxed that I covered with colored paper.

Family Art Stations

We had 6 stations set up. Each station took up half of a table.

Paint Pallet Cookies

Preschool “Love, Joy, Peace” Canvas Painting

I placed letter stickers in the bottom corner of the canvas to spell a word. Then I had the kids choose their colors of paint and make long strokes of paint all the way across the canvas.

After they were happy with their canvas, I gently peeled off the letter stickers.

Their finished canvas’s turned out beautifully…

I have other fun Preschool posts too:

Preschool Clown Shapes

He painted a different color each day and I cut them into shapes. He LOVES painting! I wrote the name of the shape on each one and then I placed the shapes on the wall with a clown juggling them.

He cut the different shapes from playdough too. I also made felt shapes (look in the background of the picture below) for him to play with.

Teaching him brings me such joy… I absolutely love see him learn new things. Don’t forget to check out my Preschool Clown Colors post as well.

Preschool Clown Colors

I love learning and teaching new things with my boy; he’s so smart, he already knows all of his colors at 2 and a half. He painted a different color each day… Blue + Yellow = Green

I cut each painted paper into a balloon shape for him and wrote the color word on the balloon with a black sharpie. Then I placed the balloons on the wall with a clown holding them. I used normal balloon sting to give a bit of a 3-D effect.