- Parent Category: Lesson Plans
- In: Pre-K to 1st Grade Lesson Plans
Title: Dynamic Strips / Tempo Strips / Expression Strips
Submitted By: James Berry, North Conway, NH
Objective: Students will use visual identifications of dynamic, tempo and expression to understand the respective vocabulary.
National Standards Covered: Listening to, analyzing, and describing music (6)
Materials:
- Printouts of all of some of the Tempo Strips (download), Expression Strips (download), Dynamic Strips (download)
- Live or recorded contrasting styles of music with differences in tempo, expression and dynamics.
Procedure:
1. This is a great warm-up activity for K-3 listening once the students get used to it.
2. The first time you do this lesson start with one category such as dynamics.
3. Demonstrate the different volumes using live examples and then recorded examples. Once students can tell the difference, play something to test their ability.
4. Repeat step 3 for tempo and expression.
5. Once they clearly understand the words, reinforce this by putting the strips on the board (with magnets).
6. As a critical listening activity, have the students listen to a recorded excerpt and circle which tempo, dynamic and expression match the music the most.
7. See below for a more challenging activity.
Assessment/Extension:
Break students into small groups and see if they are able to as a group demonstrate a particular combination of tempo, dynamics and expression. Give them rhythm and Orff instruments to attempt this task. Have other students evaluate if they did the task correctly.
Download in Microsoft Word Format
