Recorder Karate Idea Bank

Hang your Recorder Dude on the wall. Each time a student passes a song, the student can decorate a section of one of the Recorder Dudes. Be sure to have things available (like glitter glue, markers, regular glue, sequins, etc.) If you want, you could even put a rubber band or something similar around the base of Recorder Dude, and attach recorder belts to that rubber band. You can even have the students put some beads on the recorder belts prior to securing the belt to the Recorder Dudes.

Before the student begins to decorate, have him/her think about and describe how the song just played made him/her feel. Then, have him/her decorate accordingly. For example, if the song was fast, the decorations could be numerous and very close together. If the music was in a minor key, the student could use a lot of darker colors. If the music had a melody that used lots of notes, the student could have a swaying design with lots of height and width. Then, after the student is done decorating, have him/her tell the class how the art relates to the song. By doing this, you will accomplish these five National Standards:

• Singing alone or with others,
• Reading music (because the student passed a song),
• Performing on instruments alone or with others (because the student passed a song),
• Describing music, and
• Understanding how music and art relate to mood and how they correlate.

Of course, if you want to go one step further, you can discuss the history and date of the composition and then have the student give ideas about how to “dress” or decorate Recorder Dude according to that time period and country/place of origin. Then you will accomplish the standard of, "Understanding music in relation to history and culture."