A Final Program Review--With Puppets!

Invite puppets to come hear the children sing. My favorite Sunday of the year is almost here.  I can't wait for the children's Primary program!  (Yes, it was my favorite Sunday before I had either this calling or children of my own....)  Here is my plan for the last Singing Time before our program practice in the chapel. Goals for This Singing Time Overall goal:  Familiarize the children with all musical aspects of the program so the practice in the chapel can focus on other areas. Breakdown of that goal: Sing through each song once as a final review. Teach the children my cues for standing up and sitting down for each song. Rehearse the program format of each song (soloists, special accompaniment, sign language, etc.). Turn the children's attention to the words of the songs, so they can sing with feeling. Practice standing and sitting enough times so they can almost do it in unison. Don't bore the children to death. :)   Plan for Each Goal's Fulfillment Beforehand, place your songs in order according to difficulty level (not according to their actual placement in the program), placing last the song with which your children are most comfortable.  This is insurance, in case you don't have enough time to get through all the songs. At the beginning of Singing Time, teach the children your particular version of signals to stand up and sit down.  I count a silent 1-2-3 on my fingers and then raise both my hands up, for standing.  I simply lower flat palms for sitting.  Give your cues and have the children practice a few times. For each song, pretend as though it's the day of the program, and sing straight through that song without stopping or talking. In between a few of the songs, point out how you can feel the Holy Ghost as the children sing, and ask them to sing the next song while they really think about the words.  A song can be a testimony--when you mean it! Before each song, give your signal to stand and have the children sing while standing.  After every song, signal them to be seated again.  With so much repetition, they can't possibly forget your cues on program day. :) Here is where the puppets come in.  Before we start the songs, I tell the children that I was telling one of my friends about how great their singing was, so he wanted to come hear them. I pull out a puppet and have him say hi to the kids.  I ask the children to sing their best, so my little friend will know I was telling the truth. Then, I set him on top of the piano, so the kids can see him while we sing.  After the song, the puppet comes back up and says the singing was so great that he wants to invite another friend to come hear.  Up comes a new puppet to join him.  Repeat.  By the end you have a whole line of puppets listening to the kiddos.  I try to make the puppets' remarks short, so this doesn't eat up all the time.

This is definitely an atypical Singing Time, but singing in front of a large group is unnerving for many children.  I consider it my job to help them feel as comfortable as possible by letting them know what to expect.  Good luck with all of your programs!




Happy singing,

Beat vs. Rhythm--a Movin' and Shakin' Activity

Beat vs. Rhythm--which one will it be?

   Sometimes it's fun to prepare nice pictures, word puzzles or codes for Singing Time, and sometimes it's nice to have an activity that requires no preparation at all!  Beat vs. Rhythm is a simple activity with zero preparation that still engages the children while they sing.  This activity is full of movement, so I use it for a change of pace between activities that tap into the visual or word learning styles, as in my Singing Plan, here.  I find that Beat vs. Rhythm works best with quick songs with a strong beat, such as "The Church of Jesus Christ" (p. 77) or "Follow the Prophet" (p. 110).  I have done this activity with egg shakers or just with hand tapping, and both work well.

The Basics

"Let's pretend we're drummers, and we have to step on the pedal for a bass drum with our foot, once for every beat."  Immediately start singing, and tap one foot on the beat.  If children in the back can't see your feet, you could nod your head or pat your lap to help them stay with the beat.  

Once they have that down (perhaps after one time through the song), switch to only hand tapping, and tap on your lap the rhythm of the melody, one tap per syllable sung.  

Challenging Junior Primary

For Junior Primary, here are a couple ways to add a challenge, and thus make repeating the song fun.  Challenge One:  Choose a couple confident, older children to lead half the room in tapping their feet on the beat. At the same time, you lead the other half of the room in tapping their hands with the rhythm of the words.  Switch halves of the room and repeat. 

Challenge Two:  Ask one child to stand by the light switch and prepare to turn it off and on while you sing .  Have all the children start tapping the beat with you as you start the song.  When the lights go off, switch to tapping the rhythm.  When the lights come back on, switch back to tapping the beat.  

Challenging Senior Primary

Challenge One above will likely bore your Senior children to tears, but Challenge Two is still fun for them.  Here is the real challenge, though:  tap both the beat and the rhythm at the same time. Crazy hard! I normally mess up a couple times, but that's okay.  The older children love doing something that is actually difficult to master.  Just have fun with it!

Happy singing,