Boomwhackers sometimes get a bad rap (only on the thigh or hand, please!)
Though often used in primary and junior (grades 1-3 and 4-6) classes, they are an excellent teaching tool for older elementary too! Students don’t have to worry about fingerings, blowing right, sounding funny. Anyone can play a Boomwhacker. If you structure your lesson with universal design, you can provide enrichment to those that can read notation, but also include those that never mastered the 5 line staff.One place Boomwhackers shine is with chord progressions. In Ontario, we start teaching these in grade 4 (though I rarely actually see them explicitly taught). Students playing along to a Boomwhacker video are often playing chord progressions, without even noticing. They might notice the D and the B are not played as often as other notes. This is a great springboard to building chords!
These are great because they’re not popular songs which often make the kids sing (scream) along. They’re still cool sounding though, with a drum beat backing. Students can hear how the progressions could be manipulated to make popular songs.
Another activity I do is group students by chords. So, one group is CEG, one is FAC, one is GBD, and one is ACE. Then I present short rhythms and have the groups play the rhythms in order of different progressions (Like, I-V-vi-IV and I-IV-vi-V). Students can even take over and demonstrate a rhythm and determine the progression. If you have a student confident on piano, they can add a bass line, or improvise over top!
If you have the chromatic Boomwhackers, you can build chords for all the different scales. This can be done with some play alongs from Musication especially, such as the Ghostbusters one which is in B flat major. Sound before symbols--play the song, discuss building the scale and chords, and then learn what the key signature looks like.
 |
| Regular A and G next to the low A and G tubes |
You can buy Boomwhackers that are lower than the long C, but they can be really awkward with smaller kids, and everyone wants the long ones! So using the octave caps instantly lowers a Boomwhacker down an octave. Using the octave caps on the root note of chords (the note the chord is named after) helps it stand out so we can hear the progression clearer. One drawback of Boomwhackers is that the notes above the high C and not very rich or loud and I think they only continue up to the next G, so the best option is to lower some notes.
 |
| Octave cap to make it sound like the long G |
These activities work really well if you’re introducing the 12 bar Blues (Grade 7 in Ontario). Have the class playing the 12 bar Blues, and take turns improvising over top, perhaps with glockenspiels so it stands out. If you only have the C scale Boomwhackers, don't worry about using the corresponding Blues scale--just get the kids making music. Students could even compose a 12 bar piece digitally and have the class play the chords.
I have been fine tuning the resource I use in the classroom for Boomwhackers and chords. It’s not ready to be a TPT resource, but I thought I’d share it with all of you! I know what it’s like these last few weeks! I hope it’s useful to you and your students and if you have any feedback, let me know at ontteachertracy@gmail.com
Boomwhackers Chord Progression Slides
If you enjoy receiving freebies, tips, and lesson
suggestions, please join my email list! You'll get
another freebie just for joining!
Comments
Post a Comment