Lesson #: Cycle 31
Grade #: 4
PA State Standards: 9.1.3B, 9.1.5C, 9.1.5H
Primary Objective: Increase understanding of syncopation
Secondary Objective: Sing “Funga Alafia” while playing Ensemble 1 drum parts
Skills: Sing Play Listen Move Improvise Compare Read Write Notate Arrange Compose
Identify Derive Evaluate
Materials: Classroom drums
Vocab: Syncopation
LEQ(s): What is syncopation? Can I identify the rhythms I hear?
Warm-up: “Bump Up Tomato” Game
-T sings song and does motions
“Bump up tomato, (hammering) I like the weather (wave).
Bring back my heart to me (hammer).
And every (clap) minute, minute, minute, (hammer)
my heart goes criss-cross (arms cross over chest) tomato sauce (palm out).
Criss-cross (arms cross over chest), my heart is (tap chest) lost (arms fall with hands up).
Bump up tomato, Bump up tomato, (hammer) FREEZE!”
-T speaks through text and motions with Ss
-T has Ss form a circle
-Ss form fists with both hands and places their right hand on top of the left fist of the person
to their right This is the position they make the “hammering” motion in, keeping their left
hand still while their right hand hammers
T: “We’re going to play a game that goes along with this song. While we complete our
motions in the circle, someone will be standing in the middle. At the end of the song when
we freeze, that person is going to try to get someone else in the circle to laugh. They are
allowed to do anything to make the person laugh except touch them. Whoever they can get
to laugh will end up being the next person in the center of the circle.”
T & Ss play game and sing song
T asks Ss to be seated in the circle
High Concentration:
T: “Would you describe the rhythms we sang in ‘Bump Up Tomato’ as even or uneven?”
 Uneven
T: “Were there rhythms that came off the beat that we stressed or emphasized when we
sang? What words or syllables were stressed that were off the beat?”
Yes/ Up, like, back, min”ute”, criss-“cross”
T: “What musical concept did we talk about last class that causes rhythms that aren’t
normally emphasized to be stressed?”
Syncopation
T: “What was the rhythm word we learned for syncopated rhythms?”
Syn-co-pa
T: “Does ‘Bump Up Tomato’ have some syncopated rhythms?”
Yes
T: “I’m going to sing a line from ‘Bump Up Tomato’ and I want you to figure out what
rhythm words you would use instead of the lyrics to match the rhythm.”
Shannon Cullipher
Lesson #: Cycle 31
Ss identify rhythms for various parts of the song
T dismisses Ss to grab a drum and return to circle
Moderate Concentration:
Review rhythm words for “Funga Alafia”
T & Ss play Low drum part and sing “Funga Alafia”
T & Ss play High drum part and sing “Funga Alafia”
T divides group into 2 parts (High, Low)
T cues low part first and high part second
T prompts everyone to sing while playing high and low ensemble parts
T does countdown (Rotate)
Ss switch roles (Low  High, High  Low)
REPEAT
Ending: T dismisses Ss by row to line up at the door
Shannon Cullipher
Grade #: 4