Bat Facts – a Note Story About Bats!

Bat Facts

Some of my students were begging me for another note story so I made one for them.  Actually this is not a story, but 5 sentences with some interesting information about bats that children might not know.

When it comes to note stories, I’ve noticed that some students love them and some don’t care for them at all. Some students try to figure out the words by context instead of reading the notes. You are free to use this with students you think will enjoy it!

If you are having a group lesson this week, your students might enjoy working on it together. I’m going to put it in my student’s binder and let them work on it in their spare time.

Bats are actually very helpful animals, and I’ve always liked them — from a distance, of course!

Kandy Key Signatures

Kandy Keys

Here is a way to practice writing key signatures using candy corn that is in grocery stores this season of the year.

This printable is not new, but it is almost completely redrawn. A teacher left a comment that the link to the original Kandy Keys from October 2008 posting was broken. When I went in to fix it I decided to re-draw the graphic and the colors. I never did like the font of the original one I made and I think I can draw a little better now.

I’m glad she told me about this. I forgot to add this to my list of seasonal games and activities that I posted a few weeks ago. As a matter of fact, some of my students are working on key signatures now, so I’m going to go get some candy corn and do this with them. I don’t like candy corn to eat, but it makes a fun game piece. At least I’m not tempted to eat it all up like I am with chocolate candy!

Musical Memory Game 5B

Musical Memory Game Level 5B

I’ve finally found time to post the second half of the vocabulary words to the 5th level of the Musical Memory Game. The cards for the first half of the words (which I call level 5A) were posted last week and can be found here. Feel free to mix words and symbols from different levels to suit the needs of your students.

It is not necessary to print the back of the cards to play the game. Please go to last week’s post for more information. If you want an easier game, check out levels 1 – 4. To make it a little easier, I have posted the links to the earlier levels here.

Level 4

Level 3

Level 2

Level 1

Musical Memory Game 5A

Musical Memory Game 5A

This is level 5 of a memory game for music vocabulary words. Previously I posted levels 1-4.

Print the first page on sturdy card stock, being careful to set your printer to print page one only. After printing the first page, re-insert it into your printer to print the back of the cards, using the correct method for your printer. Please make certain you have your PDF printing settings to “no scaling” and you are using the latest version of Adobe Reader or you will get the egregious  “black boxes” and other odd things. Laminate, if desired, and cut along the dotted lines.

If you have trouble printing backs to fronts correctly,  and I have to admit it is confusing at times, there is a work-around. Print only the first page using colored card stock, cut out the cards, and put some  cute stickers on the back of each card. Now you have a colorful game using your own stickers. You can even make it seasonal by using different holiday stickers such as pumpkins, turkeys, Christmas trees, or snowmen.

To play, lay the cards out face down, 4 in each row. Players take turns turning 2 cards trying to match the definition with the correct word. If the words match, the student keeps the cards and gets a second turn.  The object of the game is to collect the most cards, but the objective is to learn some new music vocabulary words.

These words are one half of the vocabulary words students need to know for level 5 of the Texas theory test. Memory game 5B will be coming soon!

Bats and Cats – a Halloween Game

Bats and Cats

My students have been enjoying this Halloween rhythm game lately and I thought your students might like it, too. It is fast, and can be played the last 5 minutes of a lesson. The cards span several ability levels, so it is appropriate for  all elementary age students.  It is helpful for students to recognize that a dotted quarter + eighth equals a half note, and I think this game helps that concept. Beginning students enjoy using the first page with the easy rhythms.

The object of Bats and Cats is to match the ‘bat” card with a corresponding note or rest on the game board. This game works with one student and teacher, or it can be modified for a group. It can also be used as a rhythm activity for one student.

Directions

• Print two game boards, one for the student and one for the teacher. If playing with a group, print one game board for each student.
• Print out the bat playing cards and cut them into squares. If playing with a group, print more cards. Using your printer’s settings, print the cards with the rhythms that are appropriate for your student and omit the rhythms the student has not learned.
• Divide the cards equally among the players.
• Players take turns drawing a card, counting the rhythm, and placing it over a corresponding rhythm on the game board. If a player draws a card with the corresponding rhythm already covered, place it in a discard pile to be shuffled and used again. The game is over when the first player covers all 9 squares.
• Please feel free to make up your own rules according to the age of your students! If you have a good idea, share it in the comment section.