- Read some riddles to get in that riddle mood! 🙂 (See below) End with “Higher Than A House”, but don’t let them guess the answer yet.
- Learn Higher Than a House rhythm w/patschen w/clap on last word “be”.
- S step beat as they speak the riddle.
- Add the pat rhythm as move around the room. Call on one person to guess an answer. S repeat that answer 4 times then continue stepping beat/patting rhythm. T notates answers in a long list as they move. Try not to stop between answers.
- After 8-10 guesses, class puts guesses in rhythm bricks
- Class creates a 4 beat riddle answer. I like to repeat it to match the length of the riddle. Say it w/added BP and perform ABA form. Here’s an example.
Harry Potter, golden eagle, airplane, cloud
- Create 4 beat answer combos in groups of 4. Again, you may want them to repeat their pattern.
- Share and T corrects any rhythm problems
- Perform in rondo. A=class speaks riddle, B, C, D, etc. group answers. ABACADA…
EXTENSIONS
- Improvise melodies on xylophones.
- Create a class melody.
- Add “answer” ostinati such as “airplane cloud”, “Harry Potter planet”.
- Take class melody to the riddle rhythm that becomes the A section to a rondo form where the B, C, D etc are individual improvisations on the rhythm.
- I usually play the bordun on a bass to keep us all together. If you wanted to perform it, a student could certainly take over the bass part.
At some point in the lesson, I reveal the answer to the riddle! A STAR!
Riddles
Higher than a house, higher than a tree. Oh, whatever can it be?
– a star
What does a cat have that no other animal has?
– Kittens.
What has two heads, four eyes, six legs, and a tail?
– A cowboy riding his horse.
What always sleeps with its shoes on?
– A Horse.
What is as big as an elephant, but weighs nothing at all?
– The shadow of an elephant.
What fur do we get from a Tiger?
– As fur away as possible! –
Why do dragons sleep all day?
– They like to hunt Knights.
What can honk without a horn?
– A goose.
What has a horn but does not honk?
– A rhinoceros.
What two keys can’t open any doors?
– A Donkey, and a Monkey.