Classroom Activities: Percussion Instruments

These classroom activities are designed to complement the Percussion Instruments topic on BrainPOP Jr.

Class Percussion
Invite students to bring in their favorite music, or select different songs to play for the whole class. Then have children tap their feet, clap their hands, or tap their desks lightly with pencils to follow the beat. Explore different genres of music (including hip-hop, rock, and classical) and compare the beats. You may want to share West African, Indian, or Native American folk music to explore rhythms not typically found in modern Western music. Challenge students to drum the beat of each song.

Instrumental

Have students create their own percussion instruments. Encourage them to be creative. They may want to shake rocks in a can or fill glasses with water and tap them gently. They may want to clap together their shoes or strike a pencil against a ruler. Have students share their instruments with the whole class. Compare the pitches and volumes of their instruments. Then sing a song together and play the percussion instruments along to the beat!