Mrs. Bickley's Music
making music at the Lower School
Here's what's happening in January:
PK3
We are looking forward to sharing our Music Informance tomorrow, Wednesday, January 13th. We will gather in the Hamlet Gym at 8:30AM. This children will share songs and activities from music class. Following the informance, please join the children and their teachers for an After Glow to be held in the Hamlet classrooms. We are so excited to share our musical development!
PK4
Congratulations on a wonderful Music Informance! We hope you enjoyed our first steps in performance and the inside look into music class. In January the PK4 students will be explored barred instruments - specifically xylophones and bass bars (the bars are made of wood). We have begun learning a new song "John The Rabbit." This children love the call and response interaction of the songs lyrics and the new instrument part they are learning to play. Looking forward to sharing more as their learning unfolds!
Junior Kindergarten
We are starting to learn new songs, dances, and partner claps. We will be learning patriotic songs and poems as well as playing accompaniments on hand chimes and metallophones. Some of the songs we will be learning include: My Flag, America America, My Country Tis of Thee, Old Abe Lincoln. The children are enjoying discovering instruments that ring and the new timbres of the metal instruments.
Kindergarten
Congratulations to the Kindergarten students for a beautiful December Concert! The children demonstrated skills they have been working hard to develop. In January, we will continue to work on ensemble singing while learning new songs including: "The First Snow" and "Hi-Ho!" This children will learn call and response and echo songs. We will also explore instrument families, creating "orffestrations," improvised movement, and folk dancing!
Bickley's PICK of the month:
Looking for new music to liven and warm things up during this cold month? Check out "The Goat Rodeo Sessions." This album came out a several years ago, but it is one of my favorites. It features four string virtuosos: Yo-Yo Ma (cello), Stuart Duncan (fiddle), Edgar Meyer (Bass) and Chris Thile (mandolin). To quote a great Amazon review... "The music is both composed and improvised, funky, yet pastoral." The ensemble has an incredible range of sound, timbre, and mood.
You can check it out on Amazon or watch a clip of the video bellow. Hope you enjoy!
Yo-Yo Ma, Edgar Meyer, Chris Thile And Stuart Duncan: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert
Molly Bickley
Lower School Music Specialist
Email: mbickley@dcds.edu
Location: Detroit Country Day Lower School, West Maple Road, Bloomfield Hills, MI, United States