Ode to Beeker

Okay, this is a two-part crack-up. Let me preface crack-up number two with crack-up number one, Beeker (the Muppet) performing "Ode to Joy:"



I've seen this umpteen times and still laugh out loud at all the subtle details; the way he sets up each camera like in a real home movie, the way he's increasingly alarmed by the timpani playing...hysterical!

So, part two is (dum, da-dum, dum) a teacher story...I'm sorry! I know how annoying it can be to listen to people go on about their students, especially if you're not a teacher, but since this is kind of a piggyback on part one, I'll allow myself a teacher tale.

So I used this today in my four-year-old classes. We have been studying "high" and "low," and today's lesson was about direction of pitch. And since the melodic line to "Ode to Joy" is pretty simple and very linear, it's an easy tune for the kids to follow the direction of the melody. Therefore, part of today's lesson included us singing with Beeker (after having already watched it once to get the giggles out) and using our hands to show the direction of the melody.

A good sign that the kids liked the lesson is that when their classroom teacher comes to pick them up, they chatter to her about all the cool things they did in music. And usually they all talk at once, so you only hear bits and pieces of what they're talking about. Today however, it was very clear what their favorite music activity was, because all the way up the stairs the entire class serenaded their teacher (in miscellaneous keys) "mee, mee, mee, mee, mee, mee....."

Their teacher, I'm sure, had no clue...