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Note to Teachers: I’ve done my
best to provide some basic information as well as discussion starters
and a few simple activities that could be used to integrate my
performance into your classroom. Because I work with such a large age
span I aimed somewhat down the middle. So feel free to use whatever you
find helpful. I also welcome ideas and suggestions so please don’t
hesitate to write or call me. I also appreciate letters and drawings and
e-mails from students. Follow the links at left for handy info about the
drums and sound effects instruments I play and make as well as how to be
a genius. Thanks!
Discussion Starters and Activities
1. What was your first thought when you
heard the "overtone singing" and the "Wooo Sound"?
2. What was your favorite drum?
3. What was you favorite Story? What did
you like about it? Which character did you like the most? Why?
4. What was your favorite Song? Can you
still hum the tune? Have you ever written a song?
5. What else do you want to be or do when
you grow up? (hint: you don’t have to do just one thing in life). Why?
6. Is there anything else you would like
to do when you grow up? Is there any way you can start to do it now? If
you can’t do it now, is there anything you can do to get ready for
what you want to do later?
7. Tell a story about something that
happened to you.
8. Tell a folktale you know in your own
words.
9. What’s your favorite kind of food?
10 What is your favorite animal?
11. What’s your favorite color?
12. A lot of traditional societies
believe that each of us has a guide or protector in the form of an
animal, kind of like a guardian angel. If you had a animal protector
what would it be?
13. Write a song from the point of view
of a rock, or a bug, or the neighborhood bully.
14. Spend the next 5 minutes just looking
at a flower or a rock or a bug or a piece of bark or your hand or a
blade of grass. What did you learn about that object? Write it down,
check your spelling and hand it in for extra credit.
15. Spend the next 5 minutes day
dreaming! Take notes. write them up, check your spelling and hand them
in for extra credit.
16. Think of a) one thing you love to do
b) one thing you like to eat c) one thing you like about your self.
(example: you like basket ball, eating pizza and you like that you are
kind to animals)
17. Combine them into a name (example: basketball
playing, pizza eating, cat lover) or you could get really creative
and assign sounds or emotions to the things like "swish-extra
cheese please-here kitty kitty!"
18. Make up your own language to say your
name: "Shoom-Shallah-Shoom-Zooop!" In other words have fun
with it! Try to make it sound exotic yet still be easy to say.
19. By describing all the
"human" things that birds don’t do, the song,
"Birds" actually tells us as much or more about human beings
than it does about birds. Can you write a poem or song using your
favorite animal (or your least favorite animal, bug, real or imaginary
creature etc.) using this idea?
20. We often describe people by traits
that remind us of animals. Not all of these descriptions are nice. Some
examples I can think of are: "Hawk-eyed", "Weasel
faced", "Squirrelly", "Wolfish",
"Foxy", "Bird-like", "Elephantine,"
"fishy", "He ratted on me", "he looked
sheepish", "He was like a bull in a china shop",
"cat-like", "Busy as a Bee". What do they mean? Can
you think of any others? Can you make some up?
21. Draw a picture of your favorite
animal eating your favorite food or doing your favorite activity.
22. If you could "shape-shift"
and become an animal what would it be? If you could be that animal for a
day, what would your do? Where would you go? What predators would you
have to look out for? What would you eat? Would you be by your self or
with other creatures of your kind? What would your environment look
like? Answer these questions in a story form.
23. Create a rhythm from the words on the
school lunch menu. Experiment with adding or taking away words to create
an easier or more interesting rhythm.
24. Experiment with putting water in a
metal bowl or a soda bottle and gently tapping it. What happens when you
add more or take it away? Can you create your own rhythm/melody by
combining several bowls/bottles with different amounts of water in them?
Record your rhythm with a cassette recorder.
25. What’s your favorite color? Why?
26. If all of a sudden you were in charge
of your own education what would you choose to learn? How would that be
good? How might it be bad? Would you stop learning? Would you learn
more?
27. I’m thinking of changing my name
officially to "Mark DrumSongStory". Do you think I should? Why
or why not? What would you change your name to if you
could?
28. What do you want to be or do when you
grow up? Why? |