Bump Up Tomato
If you aren't doing this singing game with your 5th graders yet, you are truly missing out. My students ask to play this game on almost every free choice day they earn once they've learned it in class. It never gets old! Here's a video showing the song and accompanying game:
To introduce the game, I always teach them the moves and the singing first without standing in a circle- students do the motions mirroring me- to get them used to which hand is moving on the beat and which hand stays still. Once they can do the song with the motions, we get in a circle and I explain how to do the fist bumps at the beginning with the people next to them (always adding the warning to be gentle *ahem*). Then I show them the game with me in the middle of the circle first.
Here are the ground rules I've developed over the years to keep it fun for everyone:
- When you are in the middle, you cannot touch anyone, and anything you say and do must (obviously) be school-appropriate and respectful
- In the beginning, whoever laughs is the next person in the middle. But I keep track of who has already gone, and if the same person laughs again, I have them choose someone who hasn't gone yet to be "it" next (I do encourage everyone to do it even if they're shy, but if they are really resistant I let them pass)
- When you are frozen, if you move or make sound other than genuine laughing (fake laughing, at my discretion, counts as an "other sound" and not laughing) then you are out for the next round
- The person who is it has to see and point at someone laughing. If someone on the other side of the circle laughs while they are facing away but they stop themselves before the person in the middle turns around to see them, the round continues
Black Snake
This is another super fun singing game my students request over and over again, and a simpler one to start with if you're just introducing the rhythm. Here's a recording of the song, and here is a description of the game that's similar to the one I use:
The main thing I do slightly differently than this video description is I tell the running students they have to high five rather than greet each other. It may seem like a strange thing to add to the rules of the game but whether they have to greet each other or high five, having them meet in some way as they go around forces them to look for the other person and prevents people from running into each other, which would definitely happen if they didn't have to look for them.
I was a little worried to use this game in my classroom the first time I did it because there isn't a ton of space around the outside of the circle I have marked off on my floor for students to run around the outside, but it has worked just fine and nobody has gotten hurt or run into anything. It's like a big kids version of duck duck goose- they absolutely love it!
My 6th graders commented recently that 5th grade has the best singing games and I agree, largely because of these two games! The best part is by the time they've sung the songs over and over again to play the game so much, they definitely get the feeling of what the rhythm pattern sounds like, and my students consistently have no problem reading and performing the rhythm after that.
Want all the lessons like this I use to keep my 5th graders engaged while also learning at a high level, with all the visuals and materials to teach them? You'll find that in my 5th grade curriculum set!
Did you know that I have a whole resource page with general rhythm teaching strategies for different ages and specific ideas for specific rhythms like this one? If you're looking for more engaging and effective ideas for teaching other rhythms, be sure to bookmark this page:
What are your favorite songs for teaching syncopa? There are so many great ones I love to use but these are definitely my top two favorites- I'd love to hear about yours in the comments!
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