Musik, Serious Gaming und Konzentrationsfähigkeit – mit der App entdecken die Kinder die Magie der klassischen Musik mit interaktiven Spielen.
Activity 1
Move to music
Independently
10 min.
Teacher:
“We are going to hear a piece of music from 'The Nutcracker' called the 'Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy'. Listen carefully and move around the room freely following the music.”
Teacher:
“Now sit down and listen to the music again. Close your eyes, listen carefully, and 'dance' to the music using your arms only. Stay seated and only move your arms, hands and fingers.”
Teacher:
“Would anyone like to show their 'hand dance' to the rest of the class?"
Activity 2
Move to music
At the cinema
25 min.
Teacher:
“Now that everyone has come up with movements to dance along to the music, I will show you a special choreography which involves dancing with your hands only. As you watch the video, pay attention to the woman’s gestures.”
Teacher:
“We're now going to learn the choreography together. Let's watch a tutorial video and imitate the movements.”
Teacher:
“Now that you can do all the parts of the choreography separately, let's put them all together with the music playing in the background.”
Optional
Instead of using the soundtrack, you can play the video of the 'Sugar Plum Fairy's Dance' again and let the children follow it.
Activity 3
Talk about music
Whole class
10 min.
Teacher:
“Now that you've learned the choreography and heard the music several times, what can you notice? How do the movements and the music fit together?”
Further questions to help reflect, with solutions
The hand choreography we've just learned is an unconventional way of representing the music from 'The Nutcracker'. Gestures and movements illustrate some elements of the structure of the piece of music.
1. What sound is represented by the fingertips in the choreography?
Answer: In the 'Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy', the celesta is used to create sounds which are just like the fingertips gestures. The celesta is a special keyboard instrument which produces soft and small sounds.
2. Why are the fingers sometimes tapped alternatively on the left and on the right, and sometimes tapped more than one time on a specific side?
Answer: When you alternately tap your fingers on the right and the left, it means that different notes are being played; If you tap your fingers several times on one specific side, it means that the same note is repeated a few times.
3. Which movements are repeated? What can you notice in the music when that happens?
Answer: Many movements are repeated, such as tapping the fingers or showing the 5 fingers. Musical phrases are also repeated in different places in music.
If there's still time...
... children can work in pairs to create their own choreographies, using their whole body.
… the hand choreography can be repeated.
Skills learned in this lesson:
Students...
... move freely to the music and use their bodies rhythmically and expressively.
... learn a hand choreography to the 'Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy' and train their motor skills in the process.
... practice active listening and reflect on the connection between music and movements.