Category Archives: Composition

30/60 Happy Birthday to me

Posted on November 6, 2017 by

It isn’t my birthday just yet, but I am teaching ALL my piano and keyboard students to play “Happy Birthday” at the moment. Preferably from memory, as part of my “Active Repertoire” project. Easy-Peasy, for beginners who know the letter … Continue reading →

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99/100 We’re Going on a Bearhunt

Posted on December 29, 2016 by

I watched the animation of this famous children’s classic story on television over Christmas. It’s been written down by Michael Rosen and illustrated by Helen Oxenbury. I say “written down” rather than “written”, because, as Michael Rosen says himself, it … Continue reading →

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65/100 Pentatonic Composition

Posted on October 28, 2016 by

Here’s an idea for call-and-response pentatonic song composition. I started by teaching the song “Hill ‘n’ Gully Ride-a” – but you can skip this step if you like. The children just need to understand the concept of call-and-response; here’s an example; … Continue reading →

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60/100 The Rhythm Clock

Posted on October 15, 2016 by

A rhythm clock is a pattern of 12 rhythms arranged in a circle like the hours on a clock. Like this:   You can project this image on a whiteboard, and then start all kinds of fun learning activities. First … Continue reading →

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5/100 Easy Peasy Composition (and evaluation)

Posted on January 24, 2016 by

I’m teaching composition to primary classes from Reception to Year 6 (and even a one-off inset session for Primary School Teachers) this term. Here’s how I’m going about it. First, I’ve explored dynamics (loud and soft, and changing between them) with the class. … Continue reading →

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Issue 148: The Tale of Jeremy Fisher

Posted on February 24, 2015 by

Here’s a lesson plan that I emailed in to a primary school where I was due to teach class music, before I was felled by the chest infection that just about wrote off the first half of this term. It … Continue reading →

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Issue 148: Making a Thunderstorm

Posted on February 24, 2015 by

Here’s another lesson emailed in from my “sick-bed”. The same considerations as before; suitable for all classes in the primary school, easy to collect the resources and deliver, easy for me to type up and send in! Thunderstorm Simulation Short … Continue reading →

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Issue 147: A Recorder lesson, but with NO recorders

Posted on January 9, 2015 by

I was half expecting this to happen; first lesson with a new year 2 class, and the recorders weren’t ready. They were going to re-use the recorders from last term’s lessons, but what with one thing (Christmas Nativity Shows) and another … Continue reading →

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