Lessons 4 and 5: Weevily Wheat

Grade: 3

Musical Concept: Singing games, play party

3rd Grade Concept:  Multiplication

Time: 45 minutes.

Element:  Connection to history

3rd Grade Element: Math

Materials: Stickers for right hands

Specific Music Standard:  Utah Standard 1.3.c:  Play singing games, enjoy traditional folk dances, patriotic songs, and musical stories that have originated in the cultures of the community. Explain what they mean personally.

Specific 3rd Grade Standard: 3.OA.C.7: Fluently multiply and divide within 100, using strategies such as the relationship between multiplication and division (e.g., knowing that 8 x 5 = 40, one knows 40/5 = 8) or properties of operations. By the end of Grade 3, know from memory products of two one-digit numbers.

Objectives:

1. Students will be able to sing Weevily Wheat with accurate pitches and rhythms.
2. SWBAT relate multiplication tables using this piece as memory tool.
3. SWBAT keep the beat through the dance accompanying the piece, and using body percussion.

Procedure:

1. Discussion: What do you guys like to for fun? (watch TV, play on the computer, ipod, ipad, listen to music)
1. If you didn't have a TV, what would you do for fun? If you didn't have an ipod to listen to music on, how could you listen to music? (Have to make your own!)
2. A long time ago in the 1830s, people didn't have TV or ipods.  Instead, the had play parties where children got together and sang songs and danced for fun.
3. Play parties where people sang and danced were very popular until the 1950s.
4. Today we are going to learn a singing game that children would have played at a play party called Weevily Wheat.
2. Stimulate recall of prior learning
1. I’m going to sing, I want you guys to listen and keep the beat on your laps.
3. Present the content
1. Sing Weevily Wheat.  At the end, comment on how the students were able to find the beat.
2. 2nd listening - have students keep the beat, following (mirroring) your body percussion pattern.  (LH first phrase, RH second phrase, LH/RH 3rd phrase, RH/LH 4th phrase)
3. 3rd listening - this time listen closely for the words, what do you think this song is about?  Do body percussion again.  At the end, explain that flour, wheat, and barley are all grain used in cooking, but you can only make a cake with flour!  That's why we say we don't want the wheat or the barley.
4. 4th listening - sing along if you think you know it!
4. Guided learning - Break down
1. Break down the song 1 phrase at a time.
2. Do 2 phrases at a time.
3. Do the whole song at one time.
5. Guided learning - Dance Demonstration
1. Invite 3 students come up to help you teach the dance.  Put a sticker on their RH.
2. Tell them we're going to put our right hand in and walk around to the beat, and then we're going to put our left hand in and walk to the beat.
3. Do the first two lines, demonstrating with the small group.  Ask students to sing!
4. Repeat, asking remaining students to listen for the word we switch directions on.
5. 2nd two lines - This is the tricky part!  Assign small groups numbers 1-4, explain we're going to put in our hands one at a time, sticker hand first. "My, your turn, your turn, your turn, left hand, left hand, left hand, left hand"
6. Then we're going to take our hands back out!  Top hand goes first, "left hand, right hand"
7. Have rest of class keep the beat using established pattern and sing, while small group demonstrate last 2 lines of song.
6. Guided learning - Class dance
1. Explain that now we are going to divide into groups to do the dance.  In a moment, you will line up at the door, and I will divide you into groups.  When you have your group, you may quietly find a spot in the room.  Then we will go through the dance as a group.  If your group is talking,  or not following directions, or disturbing other groups, I will ask you to sit down.
2. Have students line up like they are going to leave the classroom, give them stickers and divide them into groups of 4.  Tell each students to remember their number.
3. 1st/2nd line - Sticker hand in, what word do we switch directions on? Take! Sing first and second lines, stop.
4. Now we're going to practice putting our hands in (sticker hand first): 1st person, 2nd person, 3rd person, 4th person. Left hand, left hand, left hand, left hand
5. Now let's practice taking them out: Left hand, left hand, left hand, left hand, right hand, right hand, right hand, right hand
6. Now let's try it singing!  Repeat as accuracy and fun needs/will allow.
7. Integrated - Multiplication
1. Write different multiplication tables on the board and sing the song using different multiplication tables. Keep the beat while singing.
2. Have students clap the rhythm a few times (rhythm is the way the words go).
3. Play with dynamics and tempo, different body percussion, etc.

AS TIME ALLOWS:

1. Explain what an ostinato is - a rhythm that is repeated throughout the whole song.
1. Clap the rhythm and stop after "don't want your barley"
2. Let's clap the rhythm of don't want your barley several times in a row while we say it
3. Now can we clap the rhythm without saying the words out loud?
4. Now you keep clapping the ostinato while I sing the rest of the song.
5. Can you guys join me in singing the rest of the song?
6. Have some students keep the beat while others clap the ostinato.  Repeat with rhythm.
7. Have some students keep the beat while some clap the rhythm and some clap the ostinato.
2. Perform/Assess Performance
1. Teacher observation: listening to pitch and rhythm, watching students keep the beat.
2. Students raising hands and verbally answering multiplication tables, singing .

Reflection:  I discovered that the students had not yet started multiplication in the math units yet.  I decided to re-visit this activity when they began multiplication next semester.  The did a great job with the song and dance though!  We didn't have time for anything below "As time allows," but it's still something I'd love to try at a later date!

Weevily  Wheat part II

Grade: 3

Musical Concept: Singing games, play party

3rd Grade Concept:  Multiplication

Time: 45 minutes.

Element:  Connection to history

3rd Grade Element: Math

Materials: Stickers for right hands

Specific Music Standard:  Utah Standard 1.3.c:  Play singing games, enjoy traditional folk dances, patriotic songs, and musical stories that have originated in the cultures of the community. Explain what they mean personally.

Specific 3rd Grade Standard: 3.OA.C.7: Fluently multiply and divide within 100, using strategies such as the relationship between multiplication and division (e.g., knowing that 8 x 5 = 40, one knows 40/5 = 8) or properties of operations. By the end of Grade 3, know from memory products of two one-digit numbers.

Objectives:

1. Students will be able to sing Weevily Wheat with accurate pitches and rhythms.
2. SWBAT relate multiplication tables using this piece as memory tool.
3. SWBAT keep the beat through the dance accompanying the piece, and using body percussion.

Procedure:

1. Stimulate recall of prior learning
1. Do you remember what a play party is?
2. Remind what it is.
3. What was the song we learned that children used to sing at play parties? Can anyone hum a part of it?  Remember what is was about?
2. Present the content
1. Sing Weevily Wheat.
1. Invite students to keep the beat.
2. At the end, comment on how the students were able to find the beat.
2. Break down the song, phrase by phrase, my turn, your turn.
3. Have students keep the beat by:
1. Dividing the class into 4 groups
2. Each group will tap on the beat in turn (Group 1 on beat 1, group 2 on beat 2, etc)
4. Sing along, you know it! Keep the beat using a different body percussion for each group
3. Dance Demonstration
1. Invite 3 students come up to help you teach the dance.  Put a sticker on their RH.
2. Tell them we're going to put our right hand in and walk around to the beat, and then we're going to put our left hand in and walk to the beat.
3. Do the first two lines, demonstrating with the small group.  Ask students to sing!
4. Repeat, asking remaining students to listen for the word we switch directions on.
5. 2nd two lines - This is the tricky part!  Assign small groups numbers 1-4, explain we're going to put in our hands one at a time, sticker hand first. "My, your turn, your turn, your turn, left hand, left hand, left hand, left hand"
1. Put hands in one at a time, just like we kept the beat one at a time when we learned it.
6. Then we're going to take our hands back out!  Top hand goes first, "left hand, right hand"
7. Have rest of class keep the beat using established pattern and sing, while small group demonstrate last 2 lines of song.
4. Guided learning - Class dance
1. Explain that now we are going to divide into groups to do the dance.  In a moment, you will line up at the door, and I will divide you into groups.  When you have your group, you may quietly find a spot in the room.  Then we will go through the dance as a group.  If your group is talking,  or not following directions, or disturbing other groups, I will ask you to sit down.
2. Have students line up like they are going to leave the classroom, give them stickers and divide them into groups of 4.  Tell each students to remember their number.
3. 1st/2nd line - Sticker hand in, what word do we switch directions on? Take! Sing first and second lines, stop.
4. Now we're going to practice putting our hands in (sticker hand first): 1st person, 2nd person, 3rd person, 4th person. Left hand, left hand, left hand, left hand
5. Now let's practice taking them out: Left hand, left hand, left hand, left hand, right hand, right hand, right hand, right hand
6. Now let's try it singing!  Repeat as accuracy and fun needs/will allow.
5. Integrated with Ms. Grgich - Multiplication
1. Ms. Grgich - Write different multiplication tables on the board and sing the song using different multiplication tables.
1. Keep the beat the first time using the new multiplication numbers, then try to do the dance while singing.
2. Ms. Grgich or Gerilyn sing a multiplication problem and children sing the answer one at a time.
1. Assess multiplication tables knowledge and pitch accuracy.

AS TIME ALLOWS:

1. Explain what an ostinato is - a rhythm that is repeated throughout the whole song.
1. Clap the rhythm and stop after "don't want your barley"
2. Let's clap the rhythm of don't want your barley several times in a row while we say it
3. Now can we clap the rhythm without saying the words out loud?
4. Now you keep clapping the ostinato while I sing the rest of the song.
5. Can you guys join me in singing the rest of the song?
6. Have some students keep the beat while others clap the ostinato.  Repeat with rhythm.
7. Have some students keep the beat while some clap the rhythm and some clap the ostinato.
2. Perform/Assess Performance
1. Teacher observation: listening to pitch and rhythm, watching students keep the beat.
2. Students raising hands and verbally answering multiplication tables, singing .

Reflection:

This lesson went very well!  The students were engaged and remembered the song and dance from when we had practiced it before.  But there were a couple new students in the class, so I was glad that I had planned to review the song and dance.  The students loved fitting new multiplication problems into the song.  I realized after the first time we changed the multiplication tables that some did not fit as well as others, so adding an extra word or syllable was necessary.  When I realized this, I decided to sing the multiplication tables for the students before we sang them all together as a class.  This was successful at helping the students confidently sing rather than stumbling over how to make the words fit the melody.  The students were able to successfully sing the melody and keep the beat while walking during the dance.   I was pleased with the co-teaching the occurred during this lesson, with Ms. Grgich guiding the students to add new multiplication tables to the piece.