First Day With Boomwhackers

Submitted by Dee Truelove, Weatherford, Texas Idea posted 2002-11-01 I lay down the rules first before they ever touch them. Once we cover how to play them and what is acceptable and what will lose them the privilege of playing, I tell them what note to get. This way, it is evenly spread out among the class. They go bac to their seats and place

the !oomwhac er" on the floor #hands in their lap$. We go over the rules again. If a student touches the !oomwhac er" before told, I immediately ta e it away. It usually only ta es once, then it never happens again. I am very, very strict, but it ma es it more en%oyable for me.

Boomwhacker Questions & Answers

Submitted by &riscilla Whalen, Ohio Idea posted 2002-07-19 '. Will a student only be whac ing one !oomwhac er" , that is, one tube per student opposed to handbells where they have two bells each( ). If you have enough, each student could have two. *sually, one is enough. '. Is floor whac ing the better choice over arms, legs, etc.( )nd if so, then should I prepare to move chairs and have students sit on the floor #I !oomwhac ers", boo ). -xperiment. Whac tubes vertically and whac has circle formations on the floor$( around and find what you li e best. I decided to have them hold the the floor with the end that has the cap. I have carpet in my room. now the +un With

Whac ing each other or self sounds li e a bad idea to me. '. In the regular diatonic set offered in catalogs, is the . note #lowest in the set$ middle .( If so, then the bass set extends down to the lower octave ., right( O/, what are the Octavator0 Tube .aps for, and do I need these if I have the bass set( ). 1es, I thin what you are as ing the answer is middle .. The caps cause the note to be it improves the tone.

an octave lower. I put caps on all of them because I thin

'. 2ow do you facilitate the use of the !oomwhac ers" with larger classes, say 34( Does everyone have a tube to play #doubling up notes and having to use multiple sets$( If not, what are the non5whac ing ids doing(

). Sometimes the non5whac ers play other instruments6 drums, bells, xylo., recorder, etc., etc., etc. I also have two or more on the same note in big classes.

'. 7astly, if the

ids are sitting on the floor #say in a circle$, where is their music( On the

floor in front of them #and they %ust avoid whac ing the music when it8s their turn to whac the floor$( ). I have the The younger ids standing in a curved row in order of the scale. I use the music stands.

ids do not use music. I teach them by rote.

Don8t get too cerebral about methodology. -stablish some clear rules from the beginning %ust li e for any other instrument use. +or example9 Do not use the !oomwhac ers" for crutches. #!est not to call them whac ers, especially for upper grades.$ Do not use the booms as swords or guns. Do not reach out and touch someone with a boom. Do not spit in the booms or place your lips, nose, ear in the end of the boom. I8ve found that you get a better sound if you hold the thing loosely and let it bounce bac up from the floor. It8s sorta li e the difference between holding the mallet tight and stiff, and holding it loosely to let it bounce bac . This of course ta es a little practice, so allow some time for general chaos, however long your nerve is, and let them get it out of their systems before you actually try to direct them.

Boom-A-Rhythm
Submitted by Tami :angusso, )urora, .olorado Idea posted 2004-06-03 2ere is an activity that I have been using to assess my students in note reading and rhythm reading. !oom5a5;hythm Materials: Two sets of diatonic !oomwhac ers" , note cards, rhythm cards Ob ecti!e: To play the rhythm with the correct !oomwhac er" Divide the class into two teams. -ach team will set the !oomwhac ers" on the floor in order. I stand in the middle of the playing area, and I have one team on either side of me. The teams have their bac s towards the middle of the playing area. One team member from each class comes and sits in front of their !oomwhac ers". The teams start by facing the teacher. The teacher shows a note card. The students then grab the appropriate !oomwhac er". #+or example, if the card was line -, they must grab the yellow - !oomwhac er".$ Once the students grab what they thin is the correct

!oomwhac er", they hold it up in the air. #It8s o ay if they have grabbed the wrong one at this point.$ The teacher then shows the players a rhythm card. #I let the team who grabbed the !oomwhac er" first go first this time.$ )fter each student has played the rhythm #the

same one$, the teacher as s the class to give a thumbs up or down if &layer One<Team One whac ed the rhythm correctly. If they were correct, their team gets a point. The teacher will also as the class to give a thumbs up or down if the team played with the correct

!oomwhac er". If they did use the correct !oomwhac er", their team gets another point. *se the same point application with &layer Two<Team Two. .ontinue the game until everyone has had a turn. :y goal for this activity was to assess every individual, so I needed both players to play. 2owever, if your ob%ective is %ust to have fun, here are some variations to ma e it more of a challenging game9 =. &layers bu>> in before they play. #I use different rhythm instruments for bu>>ers.$ Only the team that bu>>es in first may play the rhythm. The teams must be ready to play before they bu>> in #i.e., they must have the !oomwhac er" selected$. 3. &lay with more teams. The number of teams would depend on how many sets of !oomwhac ers" you have or on your level of patience. ?. *se chords9 2ave three players at a time and assign them a number #i.e., one, three, and five$. The teacher shows three cards, and each player must find the appropriate !oomwhac er". #I put numbers on each card so that the student nows which card is for

them.$ &layers can help each other find the correct !oomwhac er". Then the teacher shows a rhythm card, and the three players play the rhythm together. )s the teams if they now

what chord they have and give bonus points for identifying the correct chord. 1ou can also %ust show the cards and not assign numbers. 2ave the three players wor together to get the

appropriate !oomwhac er". Once the teams have the !oomwhac ers" and have decided who will play which one, have them bu>> in to indicate they are ready.

To make music, cut out notes from foam in the different colors and note values, put cardboard on the back or not and then a magnet on each Chopsticks Do Re Mi