Barefoot Books- LadyD: The Sunday Showcase

Showing posts with label The Sunday Showcase. Show all posts

How To Make Rainsticks

Rainsticks for my Kindergarten Music Class

"Many traditional cultures believed the sound of falling rain that rainsticks made could produce a storm. Although that belief has faded from contemporary society, rainsticks are still used to this day. The instrument is usually made from a long, hollow tube filled with pebbles or beads. Walls of the tube are stick with iron nails, cactus needles or something similar. When the stick is turned over, it produces the sound of falling rain.

Rainsticks may also be made with other common materials like paper towel rolls instead of cactus, and nails or toothpicks instead of thorns and are often sold to tourists visiting parts of Latin America, including the Southern United States."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainstick

For instructions on making Rainsticks, visit Kinderart.com

Here are the steps I used in making these fun instruments:

Paper Towel Holder and Duct Tape

1. First seal off one end of the tube. I suppose fancy duct tape would like nice.

2. Take a strip (like 2" wide) of aluminum fol and bend it like a ladder with many steps.

3. Place inside the tube and adjust the fit.

4. Add a scoop of rice. Not too much, not even 1/2 cup.

5. Wrap some type of paper around. I used card stock (what I had) but any type of scrap book paper.

6. Seal off the top with tape and decorate.

7. I used multi-color yarn that I had on hand.


Paper Wrap. Rainforest theme would be nice here.

Secure top to keep rice inside!

With just a little bit of falling beads or rice, making it's way through a piece of folded aluminum foil, will produce the desired effect of gently falling rain.

So, I had all the boys and girls form a circle. They were very gentle with their new instruments. I went to the piano and played "Aloha Oe", Queen Lili'oukalani, while they swayed to the music with their rainsticks.

Children's Book for ages 4-10

We're Roaming in the Rainforest

Three children embark on a day-long trek through the rainforest, discovering all sorts of exotic creatures in their natural habitats. The charming, rhyming text highlights an adjective for each creature. The story is complemented by educational end notes about the creatures in the story, and the peoples of the rainforest.

Written By: Laurie Krebs
Illustrated By: Anne Wilson

You can order this book online at, http://ladyd.barefootbooks.com

This Barefoot Book, along with other jungle themes, goes well with rainsticks. I have wooden ones and have seen them at the Dollar Store, too. Have you ever made them before? I'm so pleased that the kids were gentle with them and loved the sound of falling rain. All in all, it was a very peaceful, soothing time at music class!

InLinkz.com

“You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me.” — C. S. Lewis

Just Rest

Half Rest Pillows

RESTS are symbols which represent periods of silence. There is a rest sign which corresponds to each of the basic note values.

Whole Rests

Care must be taken not to confuse the whole rest with the half rest. The whole rest hangs from the fourth line of the staff. The half rest sits on the third line of the staff.

Half Rest and Whole Rest Pillows/Sachets

A whole rest = 2 half rests. Whole rests gets 4 counts and a half rest receives 2 counts.

The hardest thing in group participation of a rhythm band, consisting of 5 year olds, is to just rest and hold your instrument and do not play while you count to yourself the number of beats you are resting for. My students and I have been working on Patriotic songs. Last week we used these pillows to play a game with. Students marched around a circle and when the music stopped, they had to rest on the pillow. I suppose next year I will make them larger to sit on! Aren't they cute and just right for Valentine's Day!

They're super easy to make. I had on hand a remnant of cotton fabric that already had a printed heart on it. The little sachet is stuffed with lavender from my garden but you could use sand or cedar chips or anything, really. Then with a marker pen, I drew the rest on them. So, when you turn the half note upside down, or right side up, you now have a whole rest. We had fun learning and playing with rhythm.

How many times have I heard my mother say, "Just rest." In this case, everyone in music class must pause and rest from playing for just a couple of beats and then play again!

InLinkz.com

“You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me.” — C. S. Lewis

Katie Kazoo

Kazoos for Kindergarten Music Class

This is a very easy craft to make, in no time at all! First, I asked the parents to save empty toilet paper rolls. Then I covered them with scrap book paper. I used Zotz instead of glue to hold the seam together. You'll need to use a paper punch for the hole on when end of the tube. You can experiment with the sound and add more, if you like. Then I cut out a circle of wax paper larger than the end of the roll. I found that thin rubber bands work best in securing the wax paper. You'll want to make sure the wax paper is on tight and most important of all, cut the wax paper a little bit over the hole. That way you're creating an airspace.

What is a Kazoo you ask? It's a toy musical instrument with a membrane that produces a buzzing sound when a player hums or sings into the mouthpiece. Back in my day, we used a plastic comb and a piece of wax paper. Now, you can find plastic kazoos at the Dollar Store. This was fun to make for the children. We will have a ball practicing and singing our Patriotic Songs with Kazoos. It will sound just dandy!

At the end of the video, you will hear a demonstration of the audio for a Kazoo. This week we will be working on "This Land Is Your Land," "I've Been Working on the Railroad," and "Erie Canal." These cute songs remind me of another Barefoot Book, available in paperback with CD.

We All GoTraveling By

We All Go Traveling By

Hop aboard the yellow school bus as it makes its way through town. Different modes of transportation are each paired with a color in this educational and fun selection.

Enhanced CD edition includes an animated video and audio singalong sung by Fred Penner.

Ages 3 to 7 years
Written By: Sheena Roberts
Illustrated By: Siobhan Bell
Sung By: Fred Penner

You can see the lyrics and chords at Woody Guthrie Tabs and Erie Canal Song

InLinkz.com

Have fun,

“You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me.” — C. S. Lewis

Little Missy Tutu

How to make a no-sew tutu

6" wide strips of toile, 30" long. My 15 month granddaughter has a 17" waist. Sew elastic down.

Strips of toile tied with a slip not

Then add all of the strips with slip knots. I chose alternating colors of fabric.

Felt wand and tutu

Cut out star patterns on 2 different colors of felt. Use blanket stitch, sew on button and stuff with batting. You'll need one wooden dowel and some ribbon.

The Princess


For ages 8 and up, written by Jane Yolen and Heidi E.Y. Stemple

Say it with dance! This gorgeous collection will enchant young dancers with stories from eight cultures, including the Polka in the Czech Republic, Limbo in the West Indies and the Waltz in Germany. Book with CD editions include stories read by actress Juliet Stevenson.

For ages 6 and up, written by Jane Yolen and Heidi E.Y. Stemple

Watch the curtain rise on these dramatic and beautiful ballets. The stories in this collection feature magic and comedy, drama and adventure, and are accompanied by a brief history of classical ballet, as well as historical details of the composition, choreography and early performances of each ballet. Book with double CDs edition includes stories read by actress Juliet Stevenson.

These wonderful books can be purchased online at http://ladyd.barefootbooks.com

Looking back over 2011 and celebrating a New Year, I thank you for these most popular posts:

1. Ship Shapes Board Book Review

2. Board Books and Babywearing Week

3. International Talk Like A Pirate Day

4. Green Elephants Garden Sculptures

InLinkz.com

Wishing you a happy and healthy New Year!

“You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me.” — C. S. Lewis

Chocolate Pretzels: Yoga Pretzels!

'Tis the season for gift-giving and I'm on my way to making little token gifts for my students. I found a fun and easy treat to make! Have you made these before? I'm sure you're familiar with them. The creative potential is endless!

This is the first step, starting with a bag of pretzels that are dipped in white chocolate. I decided to go with soft pink and green food coloring. To keep the clean up to a minimum, there are no added frills to the melted chips. (my choice!)

There are many professional sites where you can order pretzels dipped in chocolate. Here are a few:

http://www.chocolate.com/chocolate-covered-pretzels/

http://www.chocolatepretzelheaven.com/

Kids love pretzels and I'm pretty sure one of my students (with mom) at the Kindergarten Music Class will enjoy the sweet-salty taste. Stay tuned for another simple food craft to add to the bag of pretzels.

Barefoot Books offers a very cool book that show yoga positions.
Read more at http://barefootbooks-ladyd.blogspot.com/2009/10/barefoot-books-ladyd-yoga-pretzels.html

InLinkz.com

“You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me.” — C. S. Lewis

Safari Shakers

Safari Shakers

Fill small water bottles with a variety of beans

Glue tops closed and glue scrapbook paper on outside

I'm having a giveaway for free photo software, stay tuned!

We are so fortunate to live close by the San Diego Safari Park. It is one of our favorite outings. You can easily spend the entire day seeing all the animals and taking in the very informative animal shows. The park is huge and an amazing animal sanctuary for so many varieties of animals and birds.

With Thanksgiving approaching, I decided to share my homemade Safari Shakers with my kindergarten music class. It was a huge success. We placed the shakers in the middle of the room. The boys and girls took turns choosing which one they wanted to take home. Immediately the kids began to shake and twirl around.

Of course, you can make them all the same but have you noticed all the variety of safari scrap booking paper that is available? Plus, there's zebra duct tape! How cool is that?!

Barefoot Books publishing company is a natural when it comes to safari animals and rainforest books. Have a look: