Welcome back! This week on my blog and YouTube channel we’re talking about March Madness! This is such a great theme to bring into your classroom, especially for those older kiddos who may enjoy sports more than music. I’ve got several basketball-themed lessons that your students will love!
This Instruments of the Orchestra Championship Bracket is a fun freebie that my students ask for all the time. It’s a tournament bracket, and you’re going to see who the ultimate winner is out of all the instruments. For example, you start by comparing the tuba vs. the trumpet, then you watch a video for each and then get to the end to see who the final winner is!
You can stretch it out over the whole month of March and do it a little bit every class. Since part of the activity is the class watching a video, I like to use this as a little break for myself as well.
We all know about tennis ball rhythm routines (and if you don’t, you’re missing out!) but now we also have Basketball Rhythm Routines from Pitch Publications on TPT! There’s also an Imagine Dragons resource from YouTube that I’ve linked below, and another basketball rhythm video that I’ve linked HERE.
You can borrow basketballs from the PE teachers, but they can be extremely loud and alarming for them to all be in your classroom. If you have nice weather you can take this activity outside, or use playground balls instead!
My NEW Music Madness rhythm review is a perfect small-group game. Students get into groups of three to five where they can have one referee, and then the other students are competing against each other. The first team will pick up a card, and if they get the rhythm question correct they get the chance to make a basket for a bonus point.
You could also just say they have to make the basket in order to get the point. This is a brand new resource, so be sure to check it out and be the first to leave a review!
Okay maybe it’s just my inner 90’s kid, but it’s the perfect time to incorporate SPACE JAM! There is a fun Space Jam Rhythm Play Along, and now that there’s a Space Jam remake it’s more relevant to your students as well!
Some of our students get so into March Madness that it seems like a no-brainer that we try to use that to our advantage! I hope this gives you some fresh ideas, and that you check out my brand new Music Madness rhythm game! Your students will have fun competing for points while practicing their rhythms.
I also have a YouTube video that goes more into detail about March Madness, and you can find it HERE!
Have a Happy March!
