TeachersFirst - Featured Sites: Week of Sep 22, 2024
Here are this week's features. Clicking the tags in the description area of each listing will present a list of other resources with this topic. | Click here to return to the Featured Sites Archive
Virtual Online Piano Keyboard - muted.io
Grades
K to 12
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Practice piano and keyboarding skills online with the Virtual Online Piano Keyboard, which includes several options for customization. Select from three choices for range, display all...more
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Practice piano and keyboarding skills online with the Virtual Online Piano Keyboard, which includes several options for customization. Select from three choices for range, display all notes, c-notes, or no notes, colorize keys, and highlight scales.
In the Classroom
Virtual Musical Instruments open the world of music to students who may not have access to an instrument at home. In your music class, offer the virtual piano as an option for students to learn about notes and scales without having access to a real piano. Allow your students to make their compositions to share with their peers. Challenge them to determine how to give the directions for their design to another person so they can repeat the original piece. Begin using the virtual piano with the names of notes displayed, then challenge students to begin playing without note labels. Ask students to use a screen recording tool such as Free Online Screen Recorder, reviewed here to demonstrate their ability to play scales or short compositions.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Reading Treks: Ada's Violin: The Story of the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 3
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Take a virtual field trip with this Reading Trek based on Susan Hood's book Ada's Violin. This Reading Trek includes a Teacher Guide that uses Google My Maps, reviewed...more
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Take a virtual field trip with this Reading Trek based on Susan Hood's book Ada's Violin. This Reading Trek includes a Teacher Guide that uses Google My Maps, reviewed here as the basis for a virtual journey that tells how music transformed the lives of children and teens living on the edge of a landfill just outside Paraguay's capital city. Activities correlate to Common Core Standards, National Standards for Social Studies and Visual Arts, and Social Justice Standards. In addition to teaching ideas for working with the map, this Reading Trek also includes extension activities and links to additional helpful resources.
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the many lesson ideas in the Teachers' Guide to bring this story to life and provide activities that correlate with the book's theme of recycling and reusing materials. As students read the book, create a timeline of events using a simple timeline creation tool such as the one provided by Read, Write, Think, reviewed here to help students follow the sequence of events in the story. After engaging students in learning by creating recycled instruments, have students write and record a short soundtrack to accompany the story. Share boomy, reviewed here with students to create and record music from their computers using virtual tools.
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Comments
Great resource to engage students in reading!Kelly, IN, Grades: 0 - 5
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Music Games - Crazy Games
Grades
K to 12
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Experiment and interact with music and music theory through the many different games shared on this site. Play a virtual trombone, try playing a song with Rhythm Race, or test ...more
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Experiment and interact with music and music theory through the many different games shared on this site. Play a virtual trombone, try playing a song with Rhythm Race, or test your knowledge with Song Trivia. Select any game from the thumbnail offerings to begin. Some games include tutorial activities and options for multiplayer games. Some games direct players toward other sites; check before sharing with students.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
In the Classroom
Before sharing these games with students or including them on classroom computers, demonstrate how to identify and avoid ads in some games. Then, use the games to engage students in learning about different musical instruments, understanding rhythm and beat, or supplementing current music class instruction. Make it easy for students to find shared games using Symbaloo, reviewed here. Create a Symbaloo mix that links to shared games and add it as a resource on classroom computers. If students have difficulties understanding instructions, ask other students to create tutorials using Free Online Screen Recorder, reviewed here, then share a link to the tutorial on classroom devices and your class website.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Resources for Instruments and Vocal Music - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12
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Technology offers teachers many new opportunities in music and the arts. This collection highlights resources related to instruments and vocal music. Some tools in this curated list...more
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Technology offers teachers many new opportunities in music and the arts. This collection highlights resources related to instruments and vocal music. Some tools in this curated list include virtual instruments, video tutorials, vocal instructions, and more. Share these resources during Music In the Schools Month or any other time throughout the year. Remember, our "In the Classroom" suggestions give you ideas about using these tools in your classroom.
In the Classroom
Help to deepen your students' understanding of vocal music and instruments using this curated collection. Share these resources with your colleagues and students by emailing the page or sharing the link from your school web page and in your school newsletter. Find resources to incorporate into your music lessons.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Paint With Music - Google Arts and Culture
Grades
K to 12
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What if you could hear a painting? This experiment from Google Arts and Culture offers four different canvases to use brushstrokes that translate into music. First, create your unique...more
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What if you could hear a painting? This experiment from Google Arts and Culture offers four different canvases to use brushstrokes that translate into music. First, create your unique piece by selecting a canvas, then choose an instrument to draw on your palette. Next, if desired, toggle the scale on or off to view the placement of your strokes. Finally, share completed works onto Google Classroom, with the URL created or other social media options.
In the Classroom
This Google Arts and Culture Experiment is an engaging tool to introduce painting and musical composition. Share this site for students to explore in the computer lab or as part of computer center time. If you have Google Classroom, ask students to share their favorite compositions directly into your classroom. If you don't use Google Classroom, show students how to find the URL for their creation and create a Padlet, reviewed here, for students to share their links. Create columns in the Padlet for different canvases offered on the experiment and ask students to reflect upon their creation and why they chose it as a favorite. Encourage students to turn the scales on and off to understand what happens with the different placement of paint strokes on their composition.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Groove Pizza - NYU Music Experience Design Lab
Grades
K to 12
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Groove Pizza is a drum sequencer app that offers you the opportunity to experiment with drum sounds, rhythms, tempo, and more. Choose one of the "Specials" to begin with a ...more
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Groove Pizza is a drum sequencer app that offers you the opportunity to experiment with drum sounds, rhythms, tempo, and more. Choose one of the "Specials" to begin with a premade pattern then manipulate different features to create a new sound experience.
In the Classroom
Groove Pizza is an entertaining way for students to experiment with music. After building a sequence, have students paste the URL into this sheet music generator app to view their work in musical notation. Integrate Groove Pizza into Language Arts activities to teach counting syllables, recognizing rhythm in poetry, or creating rhythmic sounds to accompany reading materials. Use a screen recording tool like Free Online Screen Recorder, reviewed here, to create a short video demonstrating how to use Groove Pizza and share it with students. Enhance learning by asking older students to create their own demos and share their creations with their peers.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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boomy - Boomy Corporation
Grades
K to 12
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boomy uses artificial intelligence to help you personalize and create original music, even if you never created songs before. The more songs you create, the more boomy personalizes...more
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boomy uses artificial intelligence to help you personalize and create original music, even if you never created songs before. The more songs you create, the more boomy personalizes offerings based on your preferences. Begin by selecting the option to create a song then choose a style. Style options include Beats By You, Relaxing Meditation, and Advanced. When ready, create your song. It may take a minute or more, so be patient as boomy works it magic. Once your song is ready, listen to the preview and make additional adjustments. Use the Try Again option to make a different mix or use the edit option to adjust the settings. When finished, save your song to your library. Next time you use boomy, the site uses your preferences and saved music to create new music. Download songs to your computer, choosing from a variety of audio file choices or share using the URL or links to social media sites.
In the Classroom
Offer students the option to explore their creative side with boomy. Ask students to make soothing music to play during study and quiet times, have them create audio to accompany their class presentations, or challenge students to make music that sets the mood for dramatic moments in literature. This site is an excellent way to appeal to your musically inclined students. Enhance student learning by asking them to share ideas on how to create different types of music by recording their screen using Free Screen Recorder Online, reviewed here. Have students share tips and advice on how to create different moods by adjusting settings within music created with boomy.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Jamzone - Music Will
Grades
K to 12
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Learn to write music, play instruments, and sing with Jamzone. To start, choose from links to learn a song, take a lesson, or practice. Choose from the song list of ...more
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Learn to write music, play instruments, and sing with Jamzone. To start, choose from links to learn a song, take a lesson, or practice. Choose from the song list of popular music and artists to learn to play a song using options for different instruments. Narrow your choices by a level of difficulty, title, or artist. Use the Take a Lesson link to learn to play several different instruments. Short videos start at beginner levels and move up in difficulty. Practice skills using games and song jams. Under News Feed you'll find New Ukulele Warm Up Series and Lesson Plans for Substitute Teachers.
In the Classroom
Be sure to check out the Teacher Zone and its free lesson plans and resources; type Teacher Zone into the search bar. This site is perfect for differentiation in the music classroom. Allow students to choose an instrument and learn at their own pace and level. Share a link on your classroom website for students to practice at home. Take advantage of the vocal lessons to learn about songwriting. After watching videos, have students write a song to summarize a novel, share information on climate change, or sing about an event in history.
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Chrome Music Lab - Google
Grades
K to 12
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Experiment with music using interactive instruments and animations at Chrome Music Lab. Different tools teach the basics of chords, harmony, and rhythm. Choose any image to view the...more
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Experiment with music using interactive instruments and animations at Chrome Music Lab. Different tools teach the basics of chords, harmony, and rhythm. Choose any image to view the concept taught, then click to explore the interactive. Some interactives require access to your computer's microphone.
In the Classroom
Share Chrome Music Lab on your interactive whiteboard (or projector), and turn up your speakers. Use these activities to practice rhythm, rests, and more in music class or to illustrate basics about sound in a science class. Share a link on classroom computers for students to experiment with different music concepts (with headphones, of course!). Have students choose different interactives to explore then share with class members. Use a tool such as ScreenPal (formerly Screencast-o-matic), reviewed here, to record student work and share with others.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Learn to Play the Piano - Hoffman Academy
Grades
2 to 12
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Learn to play the piano through a series of video tutorials offered by Hoffman Academy. Participate in over 100 lessons sequenced to build ability and understanding. Each lesson includes...more
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Learn to play the piano through a series of video tutorials offered by Hoffman Academy. Participate in over 100 lessons sequenced to build ability and understanding. Each lesson includes instructions and opportunities for self-paced practice. On the top menu click More and slide down to the link For Teachers to find advice, games, video lessons with printable sheet music, and more. The videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable; be sure to look at alternatives for sharing the videos on classroom computers.
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This site includes advertising.
In the Classroom
If you don't have access to a piano, don't worry, you can still learn how to play! Take advantage of the online virtual piano, reviewed here, to practice just like you would on a real piano. Share with your school's music teacher as an excellent resource for teaching students notes and piano keys. The self-paced videos offer a great opportunity to differentiate for different ability levels while achieving success for all. Share a link to this site on your class website for parents to use at home.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Justin Guitar - Justn Guitar
Grades
4 to 12
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Pick up the guitar and go to your free online video lessons. Begin your free study by discovering how to choose the best guitar for you. Learn the correct body ...more
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Pick up the guitar and go to your free online video lessons. Begin your free study by discovering how to choose the best guitar for you. Learn the correct body posture and fingering while discovering the optimal practice schedule. Progress into beginners' lessons on chords, music theory, and rhythm. Challenge yourself in the intermediate course with scales, chords, and many different musical patterns. Move forward to blues, jazz, folk, rock and metal, and songwriting modules. Along the way, products are available for purchase. The videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.
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This site includes advertising.
In the Classroom
Spark students' interest in guitar playing by encouraging free online guitar lessons. Offer as a challenge to gifted students, and have them teach other students. Highlight students multiple intelligences and let them shine! Make up a tune to go along with a multimedia presentation. Then, show students how to embed media transforming their work by uploading it to a digital storytelling using Presentious, reviewed here, or a digital story using a video tool like Adobe Express Video Maker, reviewed here, and then you have no worries with copyright. Tune up after school clubs with a little music. Make your music class come alive with guitars and free lessons. Share a link to this site on your class website for parents to use at home.
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Virtual Musical Instruments - Virtual Musical Instruments
Grades
K to 12
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Bring the world of music and instruments into your classroom. With Virtual Musical Instruments, you can explore the guitar, piano, pan flute, drums, bongos, and several others. Select...more
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Bring the world of music and instruments into your classroom. With Virtual Musical Instruments, you can explore the guitar, piano, pan flute, drums, bongos, and several others. Select the instrument, and follow the directions for using the keyboard to play the different notes. Create different melodies using different notes or rhythms. Use the guitar tuner to be sure you are in tune. There is no record option on this tool. If you want to record your beat, there are many alternative options (such as using a cell phone, or an old-fashioned recorder). You can hear notes using your computer, but having a touch screen device would create the full experience, by touching several keys/strings, etc. at one time.
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This site includes advertising.
In the Classroom
Virtual Musical Instruments opens up the world of music into many other subjects. In music class, discover the different instruments, sounds, and rhythms the virtual instruments can produce. Allow your students to make their own compositions. Challenge them to determine a way to give the directions for their composition to another person so that they can repeat the original piece. In language arts class, discuss mood in literature. Determine the instruments used, the rhythms, and sounds needed to make that effect. During Readers' Theater, add a musical score for more excitement and engagement with further analysis of the text. Have students create a musical composition that tells a story. Now, play that musical story for the class, and turn it into a writing prompt. Use musical sounds and beats to illustrate the concepts of literature and the use of plot. Determine a melody for each character. Write to explain why each character has that musical composition. Math class brings the study of fractions with types of notes: whole note, half note, quarter note, and eighth notes. Let students create a musical sentence that represents them and write to explain why. Use whatever recording option is most practical in your classroom.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Classics for Kids - Cincinnati Public Radio
Grades
2 to 8
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This companion to a weekly radio show by Cincinnati Classical Public Radio is a virtual musical playground for elementary students. The site describes, defines, illustrates and provides...more
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This companion to a weekly radio show by Cincinnati Classical Public Radio is a virtual musical playground for elementary students. The site describes, defines, illustrates and provides audio samples for more than fifty instruments, a collection of engaging multimedia games, and a "Hear the Music" feature that introduces students to selected examples of musical classics. Headphones are needed.
In the Classroom
Incorporate this resource into your classroom music program. Use this site to introduce music eras (baroque, classical, romantic), lives of composers, or families of musical instruments.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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