Trevor and I were in a wintery mood this week with our first snowfall of the season. Our kiddos were out the door bright and early to make a Frosty in our front yard. Sure… it was just a dusting but it was enough to make a pretty good snowman 🙂
So, with our new wintery mood, we hopped on over to the computer to bring you a snowman-inspired composing printable!
With today’s activity, you’re getting everything you need to inspire your young students to get creative AND compose a gift for someone special (or for several someones!).
Creating A Wintery Composition Gift
Today’s printable can be found at this link. Download, print, and then follow along with the steps below:
- Print one copy of the printable for each gift your student will create.
- Read the poem to your student.
- Follow the step-by-step directions to the right of the poem to help your student create a motive.
- On the music page that follows, you will find several blank measures indicated with a colored box. Write your student’s motive into each colored box. More advanced students can then add a bass clef part to match their motive.
- The B Section comes with a predefined rhythm. Have your student experiment with different note combinations (in C major) to match the rhythm and then write her notation choices into the measures directly below the rhythms.
- With your student, add any finishing touches to the piece such as dynamics, articulation, and pedal markings.
- Practice, practice, practice, so your student can easily perform her composition for her “special someone”.
- Send the Composition Gift home!
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Take Your Composing Gifts To The Next Level
When my own students create a Composition Gift, I like to mark it as a special moment by finding a way to turn “just a page of music” into something special.
In the past, I have framed their compositions in inexpensive picture frames, rolled their compositions into scrolls (tied with a beautiful ribbon), and recorded video performances. If you come up with a creative way to gift your students’ compositions, we’d love for you to share it on Instagram or Facebook and then tag us @teachpianotoday so we can see your masterpieces!
If your students love our composing activities then keep those creative wheels turning and start them on a composing adventure with The Curious Case of Muttzart and Ratmaninoff! This hilarious, 12-lesson book provides you with everything you need to teach beginning composing skills Find out more here.
Melissa Longworth says
Another great resource! Thank you for sharing! I cannot wait to use it after the Christmas recital. 🙂
Andrea says
Hi Melissa – perfect time for it 🙂 Those “post-recital” lessons need something to spice them up after the excitement of a performance!
patsy Clark says
Thank you! My students will love this composition activity. I’m saving it for those cold KY days in January.
Andrea says
Hi Patsy – perfect! Yes, we intentionally created it so it could be used after the holidays as well for teachers who were busy in December 🙂
Liz says
Thank you for all the time you put in and the wonderful creations that come out of it! Love the snowman! We had an unexpected small blizzard of snow. Looked like a winter wonderland! Thanks again and God Bless you and you family.
Andrea says
Hi Liz – we’re still getting snow today! Our kids are so excited (this rarely happens on the West Coast of Canada… and it’s hard to build a snowman out of raindrops ) Thanks for your kind comments and for reading our blog!
Sylvia White says
This is so great for that last lesson of the semester. The recital is over; what to do? Compose a song about snow even tho’ here in Texas we rarely see it!
Andrea says
Love it! Wish we could share some of your Texas sunshine! We’re supposed to get almost a foot of snow tonight!
Whitney Hawker says
Love gifting compositions and helping students prepare something personal for parents. Thanks for the cute printout!
Patricia says
Love this, thank you! Do you have anything similar at the primer level?
Nancy Plotkin says
What a great activity! Thank you so much! I am sure kids have lots of fun learning the piano.