Howdy, folks! We are smack dab in the middle of the holiday season, and I’ve done a run down of some of my favorite go to songs for each grade level. I hope you find something you enjoy!
Kindergarten
Song: Feliz Navidad
Why: I love doing this song because we are learning about about the steady beat, and we are learning about classroom instruments. We learn the song and during the refrain, we shake maracas to the beat.
Song: Jingle Bells
Why: Again, this song is great to introduce a classroom instrument (jingle bells). During the first part we play to the big beat and during the “Jingle Bells” part, we play to the little beat. It’s a great way to start introducing big beat verse little beat.
First Grade
Song: In the Window
Why: The main reason is because one of our standards in first grade is singing a song with multiple verses. In this song you sing a verse for each night of Hannukah. However, I also like this song because it is about Hannukah, and I like to represent holidays other than Christmas. And I like that this song is in minor tonality.
Song: First Snow by Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Why: It’s FUN! You’ve got to let loose some of that ENERGY the last week.
Second Grade
Song: Trepak (Russian Dance) from the Nutcracker
Why: Gameplan has this awesome dance that can be learned very easily and helps kids bust out some energy before break. OR If you need a calming activity, I found some awesome listening glyphs on TeachersPayTeachers that they can color along with as they listen. Also, second grade is going on a field trip to see the Nutcracker, so it lines up perfectly!
Third Grade
Song: March from the Nutcracker
Why: Artie Almeida’s Kidstix book has a great activity to this song. Students get to have their own little drumming kit and play along with the famous song by Tchaikovsky. And it works out perfectly has Tchaikovsky is one of the composers we learn about in class this time of year.
Fourth Grade
Same as third grade. I try and keep things simple by having my 3rd and 4th graders learn the same composers each year. Then, I flip to a 2nd group of composers the next year, and then back to the first group. That way, I don’t have to work twice as hard, but over the course of two year, my students still learn two different groups of composers. Working smarter, not harder.
Fifth Grade
Song: Jingle Bells (recorder)
Why: We are working on our recorder skills right now, so this can tie in. Kids love to bring it home to share with their family too! Jolly Old St. Nicholas is a good one as well.
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