<strong>January</strong>/<strong>February</strong>, <strong>2012</strong> [<strong>MMTA</strong> NEWSLETTER] 12
Bridges! Lois Muelich, Program Director BRIDGES! Here is a brain teaser to play To brighten your day As <strong>2012</strong> plans you survey ------ Student skills and projects to portray. BRIDGES is the way Creativity to display. Fun and 100 Points is part of the pay For each student - HOO - RAY! Use paper, paints, or clay To partner with Dennis Agay. To each of you I say, Plan a BRIDGES program TODAY! (Answer on page 23) Fun and Fantastic Fingers Fern Davidson, NCTM, Early Childhood Program Chair BRIDGES! [<strong>MMTA</strong> NEWSLETTER] <strong>January</strong>/<strong>February</strong>, <strong>2012</strong> SUDOKU E R I B G S E D E B D R G E G D S S R E E I S D B S Young children often have an active imagination. Take advantage of their creative minds with some fanciful activities. Good hand position: Buy Matchbook cars that will fit under a small child’s hand for them to drive under their rounded hand. Playing on fingertips: Tell children to use their “froggie pads”. I learned this one from one of my young students! To introduce forearm rotation and good hand position, use fingers 1-5, playing back and forth on tips, saying “Roly-poly ever so slowly, roly-poly ever so slowly, roly-poly faster, faster, faster, faster, stop.” Slurs: To teach drop-roll two-note slurs, pretend that finger 2 is the deep-sea diver, and finger three hooks the fish. Other finger combinations could be used later. Weight change: A Fitball� Activa disc can be used as a ball to stand on to feel weight change from side to side. At the piano it can be used as a cushion to allow the student to sit higher for better tone control. Because it is filled with air, the student can get the feel of weight change as they move from side to side. Have students play fingers 1-2-lift off, as they rock back and forth in the direction of their playing. They can progress to 1-2-3 and longer motions. http://www.balldynamics.com/index.php/cPath/32/sort/2a C Scale, intervals, and simple pieces: Use Boomwackers�, colorful tuned percussion tubes. See www.boomwackers.com. They can be used like a xylophone, though not as good tone, to demonstrate or to play simple pieces. Other uses include using them hear the sound of tapping them on objects around the room, removing them from the sleeve and having children play individual tubes to create a tune as a group, playing them as rhythm instruments. Feel free to email me with any ideas you have for working with young children so I can share them. fbdavidson@comcast.net ! ! ! 13 !