Focus Activities

I was hooked the first time I experienced Dalcroze Eurhythmics.

My very first Dalcroze class was in college.  At that time, I had no idea what Dalcroze Eurhythmics was.  I entered the classroom not knowing what to expect. However, after the one-hour session, I was hooked.

I couldn’t help but asking myself: “Why didn’t I know this earlier?  I wish I learned music this way when I was a child!” 

The class, taught by Eurhythmics Master Teacher Dr. Frego, was MAGICAL.   I remember the smiles on everyone’s faces.  Abstract music concepts became EASY as we stepped and moved to the music.  What amazes me is that I can not only feel the beat, but SEE the beat through the body movement.

I wish that every child could learn music this way.  It is just that good. 

If you are wondering what Dalcroze Eurhythmics is,  what better way to experience it than watching the master teachers in action?

I am so excited to share a series of videos by Dr. Marla Butke and Dr. David Frego.

Video 1 “Walking Bass/Clapping Treble”

Concepts: Steady beat, pitch range recognition, durations, quick reactions

Instead of filling out boring music theory worksheets, the kids internalize these music concepts in a musical and engaging way.

This activity is great for
*both group and private lesson settings
*children and adults

If you would like to see the lesson plan and detailed instruction, make sure to check out Dr. Marla and Dr. Frego’s book Meaningful Movement.

Here is a sample lesson plan

There are 3 more lesson plans for “Walking Bass/Clapping Treble” that goes from beginner to advanced level.  ( lesson plan #38, #42, 68, and #99 )

You’ll find all the Lesson plans in the book Meaningful Movement.

Your Ultimate Guidebook to Dalcroze Eurhythmics

What’s in Meaningful Movement?

• 206 lessons from beginners to advanced
• 31 videos of live sessions
• 79 pieces of music literature categorized by genre
• Complete lesson plans with easy to read bullet points
• Outcome assessment plan
• Tailored to both Young students and Adults
• Great for both large classroom and individual lesson

Insider’s View – Dr. Frego talks about the book

• Focus Activities
• Purposeful Movement
• Rhythmic Solfège
• Improvisation

Learn More about Dalcroze Eurhythmics!

Stay tuned for video #2

While you wait for video 2, come check out how I apply Dalcroze Eurhythmics in the private lesson!

My students LOVE the Focus activities!  They are short, fun and spontaneous. Click to see my TOP Teaching Tools.

• Thumb Tappers
• Hip Hop
• Coke Pepsi
• Pass the Eggs
• Up Down Upsidedown

Grand Finale Focus Activity

Today’s Grand Finale Focus Activity is a special post that concludes my blog series “The Number One Teaching Tool I Cannot Live Without.”   I have prepared for you not just 1 but 2 videos!

I’m super excited to feature a video by my fellow Texas colleague and a dear friend, Dorothy Yan.  In this video, Dorothy shares one of the “Brain Warm-up” activities that she presented in her session “Engage the Brain: Cognitive Warm-Up for Effective Music Lesson” at MTNA National conference a few years ago.

In fact, her session had such long lasting impacts that one of the teacher who went to Dorothy’s session a few years ago asked me about Dorothy’s works in last month’s MTNA conference.   The teacher still vividly remember Dorothy’s presentation and commented on how much she enjoyed these activities and how she has been applying them in her own studio.

In “Engage the Brain: Cognitive Warm-Up for Effective Music Lesson”, Dorothy compares the mental game of sports to the mental game of the music and highlights the importance and benefits of the Dalcroze eurhythmics “Brain Warm-up” activities.

Dorothy’s Thumb Tappers

How it Works:

• Subtract each number by 1 (excluding number 2).  After the mental subtraction,  3 2 4 3 5 3 becomes 2 2 3 2 4 2
• Variation:  Add each number by 1 (excluding number 5). After the mental addition, 3 2 4 3 5 3 becomes 4 3 5 4 5 4

Catch the Ball, Catch the Rhythm

– Rhythm is caught, not taught

Have you ever struggled to get the rhythm just right when you tried to play a tricky passage on the piano? Instead of drilling and practicing repetitively, why not stepping away from the piano and trying to “Catch the Ball, Catch the Rhythm?”

Watch this 2nd video that features this smile-guaranteed focus activity “Catch the Ball, Catch the Rhythm. Are you ready to feel the rhythm with your whole body, catching the ball and singing along to the music?

The music in this video is Monkey Blues from Piano Safari.  The rhythm is tricky because there is a rest on beat 1.   With some help from the bouncy ball, the student will surely say proudly: “I’ve got rhythm.”

One tip for younger students: try rolling the ball on the floor instead.  Sit across from the student and roll the ball back and forth on the beat(s) of your choice.

More Focus Activities for You to Enjoy

Why is “focus activities” my TOP teaching tool? The answer is simple. When a student is focused and engaged, the lesson is much more productive. Without student’s attention, even with the best lesson plan, very little can be achieved.

If you miss the previous posts, click here to see more

• Hip Hop
• Coke Pepsi
• Pass the Eggs
• Up Down Upsidedown

Please make sure to leave me a comment or feedback if you would like to see more activities.  I have also prepared my Top Five Focus Activities for download, remember to subscribe to my blog and get the file instantly through your email.

Get My Top Five Focus Activities Instant Download NOW

I have prepared my Top Five Focus Activities for download, simply Click below and Get it Now.

Click Here!

The activities are Dalcroze based and always require creative, quick and spontaneous reaction from the student. If you would like to learn more about Dalcroze Eurhythmics, please visit American Eurhythmics Society website.  I regularly attend their workshop and always have an amazing experience each time.

I am super excited to share “Hip-Hop (Focus Activity)” today.

This fun activity can be applied on so many levels –

from learning note values and subdivision

and technique drill

and percussion instrument fun

all the way to playing solo and duet on piano.

Let’s “hop” right in and see “Hip Hop” in action. This video packs all my favorite variations of Hip-Hop.

In this video, you’ll see

• 0:20 Two is double the fun

• Hold right hand out with palms up.
• Tap the beat with left hand in the partner’s palm.
• Tap twice as fast when hearing the word “hip”
• Tap twice as slow when hearing the word “hop”

• 1:00 Improvisation with Hip Hop

• 1:57 Fun for One

• 2:39 Learn music theory – the Hip Hop way

Concept: steady beat, subdivision, note values

Frog Family

Want something more tangible?  How about adding some croaking, hopping frogs to spice up the “Hip Hop”.  Inspired by Leila Viss’s frog guiro percussion instruments, I came up with the idea of having family of frogs croak the long and short sounds.   Watch this 1-minute video and enjoy the frog ensemble.

More Focus Activities for You to Enjoy

Here are the links to the previous three focus activity videos:

Coke Pepsi

Pass the Eggs

Up Down Upsidedown

Please make sure to leave me a comment or feedback if you would like to see other activities.

Get My Top Five Focus Activities Instant Download NOW

I have prepared my Top Five Focus Activities for download, simply Click below and Get it Now.

Click Here!

The activities are Dalcroze based and always require creative, quick and spontaneous reaction from the student.  If you would like to learn more about Dalcroze Eurhythmics, please visit American Eurhythmics Society website.  I regularly attend their workshop and always have an amazing experience each time!

My Top Teaching Tool – Focus Activities

This is the 3rd video in my series of “My number one teaching tool – Focus Activities.”  Today’s one minute video features Coke-Pepsi. This video takes you from rhythmic echo activity to playing and improvising on the piano.

Watch the video and find out how we add “Coke and Pepsi” to “Canon in D.”

Coke-Pepsi

• Students echo back the opposite word pattern.
• Teacher says: coke, coke, pepsi, pepsi
• Student says: pepsi, pepsi, coke, coke
• Concepts: Steady beat, quarter and eighth

Want to learn more?

Here are the links to the previous two focus activity videos:

• Pass the Eggs
• Up Down Upsidedown

Please make sure to leave me a comment or feedback if you would like to see other activities.

Get My Top Five Focus Activities Instant Download NOW

I have prepared my Top Five Focus Activities for download, simply Click below and Get it Now.

Click Here!

The activities are Dalcroze based and always require creative, quick and spontaneous reaction from the student.

If you would like to learn more about Dalcroze Eurhythmics, please visit American Eurhythmics Society website.  I regularly attend their workshop and always have an amazing experience each time.

Recently Tim Topham, an innovative music educator,  asked me this question: “What is the one tool you couldn’t live without?”

It’s a great question and it’s so hard to choose just one.  However, if I really have to decide, here it is…

I always open the lesson with a FOCUS activity.   It is a huge hit among my students and parents.  (Yes, I invite parents to do the focus activity if they like to join.)

The focus activity is short, fun, spontaneous.  Most importantly, it keeps students engaged and ready for learn.  Imagine having the student’s full attention from the very beginning of the lesson.  When student, parent and teacher are energized and focused, everyone is in the optimal learning mode.  What I love best about the FOCUS activity is that it ensures everyone gets in the zone of learning and therefore contributes to a productive and effective lesson.

The activities are Dalcroze based and always require creative, quick and spontaneous reaction from the student.

My most popular activities

• Pass the Eggs

• Coke-Pepsi

• Up Down Upside Down

• Rolling the Ball

• Hip Hop

• Body beat

• Body Canon

• Solfege Canon

• A1B2

See it in Action

In today’s short 1-minute video,  you will see “Up Down Upside Down” in action and you’ll know why FOCUS activity is great as an opening ice-breaker that grabs student’s attention right away.

Up Down Upside Down

• Student points up or down opposite to what they see but say the right direction.
• Concepts: Steady beat, opposite, up and down, note values

Get My Top Five Focus Activities Instant Download NOW

I have prepared my Top Five Focus Activities for download, simply Click below and Get it Now.

Click Here!

If the student comes to lesson feeling tired and sleepy, these activities will surely wake them up and ensure they are in “ready to learn” mode.

Want to learn more about Dalcroze Eurhythmics? Please visit American Eurhythmics Society website.  I regularly attend their workshop and always have an amazing experience each time.

Please make sure to leave me a comment or feedback if you would like to see other activities.