Abstract:
An exercise that highlights the importance of focus and isolating and listening when on stage. It involves some simple group singing.
Type of Activity: Warm-up; listening skills; focus; teamwork
How It Works:
One student is asked to leave the room. While the student waits outside, the class chooses a four syllable word (ex. 'Motivation' - mo-tiv-a-tion). Once the word has been chosen, create four groups of three. Each group is assigned one syllable
- Group 1 - Mo
- Group 2 - Tiv
- Group 3 - A
- Group 4 - Tion
Next, provide the groups with a well known, sing-song melody ('Happy Birthday'; 'Twinkle Twinkle'; 'Baa Baa Black Sheep'). Explain that each group will sing the chosen melody (let's use 'Happy Birthday'), but each word will be replaced with their assigned syllable. So, for example, group one would begin with 'Mo mo mo mo mo mo'.
Groups 1, 2, 3 and 4 sing their syllables at the same time and the student in the hallway is brought back in to the class. They must walk from group to group, isolate their listening, and identify the syllables being sung by each group. Once they think they have identified each syllable, they must unscramble the jumble in their head and identify what the chosen word is. Often, as they sound out the syllables, they begin saying the word and do not even know it.
Once the word is identified, congratulate the students for their effort, and choose a new student to leave the room.
Things to Consider:
- Try to ensure that the four groups continue singing throughout the exercise. As the student tries to decipher the word, the constant singing acts as a great distraction that the student must learn to cope with.
- If you have a smaller class, four groups of two, or even four brave solo singers will work just fine.
- For younger classes, the game can be simplified by using fewer syllables. For example, if studying compound words, have two groups of three, and assign each one part of the compound word (Group 1 - 'Snow'; Group 2 - 'Man' or Group 1 - 'Gold'; Group 2 - 'Fish').
- If the student is really struggling, rearrange the groups in to the correct, sequential order, and tell the student which group to start with and where to travel next.
- If you would like to add a level of competition, send two students in to the hall, bring them back in at the same time, and challenge them to identify the chosen word before the other.
Overall, this is a fun exercise that engages the student who is guessing to isolate their listening skills and focus on achieving their task despite the distractions. Each group of three needs to work together to ensure their particular melody is sung in sync with the other members of their group.