This has been one of the roughest weeks of my life. It got to the point where I truely felt numb from the reality around me because I just could not handle it at the moment. Thanks to good friends and supportive members of my PLN who have given me some confidence in myself again,  I am spending the weekend rebuilding my psyche and preparing for my last week of the year at my current school. It is time to truly in a matter of speaking go “balls to the wall”. I’m going to the leave this school for the year with truly no regrets. I plan on spending a lot of time outside, I plan on making lots of noise, and I plan on just making sure to leave these kids with a lasting love of music. 

I’m sort of using this post as an excuse to lesson plan this activity out, so bear with me if any mistakes come up.

 Materials:

• Plastic empty easter eggs
• Decorations for the eggs
• Markers
• Basket for found eggs
• Clues
• Signs
• Map of instrument families

Procedure:

•       Our precursor to this is that we have been working on the Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra listening adventure from Carnegie Hall http://listeningadventures.carnegiehall.org/ypgto/index.aspx .
• Before your class comes, find 4 secure places outdoors on the playground or inside that have good hiding spots for your eggs and hang up a sign labeling each of the 4 areas: Woodwind Pond, Brasslands, Percussion Paradise, and String Savannah.
• Decorate your eggs to look like the little monsters from the adventure (I’m using markers, paste on eyes, and feathers) and label it with a name of the instruments on your hunt. Place a clue to the next instrument inside the egg and a little “You found me!” slip with the picture of the instrument. My clues are:

Flute-

   I like to hang around with a lot of my friends near the pond, I have no reed but I’m still where I belong. Musicians play me while standing straight and tall, I sound the second highest of them all.

Oboe-

     I’m black and look a lot like a clarinet but I’ve got a reed a lot like the bagpipes that helps me play when wet. 

Clarinet-

       I can play waaayyy down low to waaayy up high. My flat reed helps me make all of my friends at the pond jealous with the range of notes I can blow.

Trumpet-

         A musician buzzes into me to make sound. I’m the highest gold looking instrument to be found.

Trombone-

         There was a song made that sang about 76 of me. My slide  that goes up and down makes my notes stay  on the beat.

Tuba-

         I’m the lowest instrument in the Brasslands that can be found. I can be found a lot in a band that marches around.

Cello-

          I’m one of three instruments in my family that have to sit on the ground. Using a bow or fingers, a musician can make my sound.

Violin-

           A musician plays me by putting part of me under their chin. Playing me with a bow or fingers, everyone wins!

Harp-

             I am the old lady of my family standing as tall as a room. My beautiful melodies made with my many strings can make anyone swoon.

Snare Drum-

               Rat-atat-tat goes my sound when a musician taps me with sticks. I’m a snare with great tricks.

Timpani-

           Rolling on me can sometimes sound like thunder. There are usually 2 or 3 different sounding versions of me in an orchestra. 

Xylophone-

             I have bars on my body and can be played with many mallets at once. My name begins with a letter of the alphabet absent from many words.

•  After all of the eggs are ready, go hide those eggs around each of the 4 sections. Make sure they stay in the proper section though, trumpet in the Brasslands, Oboe at Woodwind Pond, etc.
•  Once students come in and get settled,ready to go on to the next section of our adventure. I will calmly break it to them that the adventure is BROKEN! (oh noes!) but Uncle Ollie left us a note

   Oh my Safariers! I thank you for all of your help from afar. Our communication line is broken! I am still in need of your help to round up my instruments! Are you ready for some fieldwork?

~Uncle Ollie

•  Have a map of the 4 areas for students to look at to know where to go and have their first clue ready that will lead to the first instrument in egg form. Let the kids lead as much as possible.
• After the hunt is complete, I’m going to have an orchestra seating map I have traced from the adventure ready for them to color.

What activities do you do outside for music class?