What says Spring more than the birds chirping? I love to use bird-inspired lessons in my music class which include sound walks, whistle practice, and soundscapes. We love to incorporate technology but we also like to go outside! Here are the three best spring music lessons we use inspired by birds. (TLDR: Download freebie lyric slides and arrangements for Bluebird and Raven lessons).
Bird Inspired Lesson #1: “Mi-Do-Do”
I love this game for reinforcing melodic concepts such as intervals. It can be as easy or as difficult as you need it to be- incorporating whichever notes that you are studying in class. This is a great game to play when you are on the bus, as a choral warmup, waiting for something, or just need an extra time filling activity.
This game is hilarious to the littles. For some reason, dodo birds are the funniest thing ever! Using solfege, play a version of Simon Says. Have your students repeat your melodies singing and using hand signs. If you sing the notes “Mi-Do-Do”, and they repeat it, then they are out.
Bird Inspired Lesson #2: “Bluebird”
Another game to use is called “Bluebird”. My favorite thing to do when I’m introducing a new song for a game is to use lyric slides! We practice singing it together, then we analyze it discussing what rhythms and notes they use.
How to play Bluebird:
Have your students standing in a circle holding hands. When their hands are up, the window is open and when they are down, the window is closed.
While the windows are open, one student walks around the circle stepping (or hopping) on the beat. On the words “pick a little partner” the student taps the person they are standing behind and they both go into the middle of the circle. On the words “hop in the garden” the bluebird makes up a dance or a funny movement, and the partner has to copy the bluebird. Then the partner becomes the new bluebird and the original bluebird joins the circle.
Bird Inspired Lesson #3: “Raven”
The third game has a few more moving parts. It begins as a duck-duck-goose game with one student marching around the outside of the circle. It works best for students to sit down for this game. The raven marches around the circle until the word “me”, and then tags the person they are standing behind.. When the raven “tags” another student, that student becomes the new raven and the original raven heads over to the instrument stations.
Raven Instruments
Station 1: The raven goes to the first station which is a (hand) drum. Here they keep the beat while the other students sing.
Station 2: The next station has boomwhackers to play the melody. This can be done two ways: each raven that comes through plays a new color (yellow, then teal, then purple) or they have one of each color and play the whole melody. Whichever works better for your kiddos.
Station 3: The third station has maracas that play eighth notes for every “raven” that is sung.
Station 4: The fourth station contains a bass xylophone, metallophone or bass bars using Do and So. The player keeps the beat by playing an ostinato with alternating notes.
Station 5: The fifth station is a glockenspiel or other higher pitched barred instrument. This is an improvisation station. Remove all bars not in the pentatonic scale and encourage the student to start and end on the same note.
After the raven has rotated through each station, they return to the circle.
Recommendation: if a student has already had a turn but is selected again, move around the circle until you get to a student who hasn’t had a turn yet.
These are our favorite bird-inspired music lessons. I’d love to know how it works for you!