1. MIND – music activity bringing the child to a positive headspace: “Think a helpful thought”

These activities may be useful, for example, when children or young people have had social challenges such as friendship issues or difficulties at home. They may enable them to reframe their experience and create a more positive memory of the event by linking their experience to the musical activity they then took part in.

1.1 Listening to music and responding

An example of a relaxed game with music in the background:

  1. Play the music – for example you might want to use Uptown Funk.
  2. Listen together for a bit, let group respond to it if anybody wants.
  3. The leader thinks up an easy pattern of actions (over 4 beats) – e.g. tap your knees 4 times; or tap your head 2 times and shake your head 2 times; or 1 tap on your knees, 1 tap on head and 2 head shakes. Tell the group that they will be repeating the actions straight after you.
  4. The leader performs their pattern of actions to the music.
  5. The group repeats straight after (keeping to the pulse of the music).
  6. The leader performs a different pattern of actions to the music.
  7. The group repeats straight after (keeping to the pulse of the music).
  8. Repeat as many times as desired. It really doesn’t matter if goes wrong, just try again!

Extensions:

  • Repeat this activity with leaders from the group – if they want to, they could all take it in turns.
  • Link up 2 patterns from different participants so you get a pattern of actions over 8 beats.
  • Do only static actions, without moving from the spot.
  • Do only moving actions – for example: step back, step forward etc…
  • Do only sitting-down patterns.

1.2 Watch music to calm the mind

For example…

Line Riders: watch a sled-rider riding on a track to a piece of music of your choice. These videos could also be used for children and young people to copy the movements and pretend they are riding the lines (links with the movement key). They could draw their own lines to music on paper:

This Line Riders tutorial shows how you can work with children and young people to make the tracks:

1.3 Deep listening

This is all about listening in a mindful way, focusing the senses on the present and listening to all the sounds that surround you. Take 2 minutes to draw the sounds you can hear around you. You could talk about them with the children and young people as well (or as an alternative to drawing).

1.4 Drawing to music

Play a piece of music for children and young people and ask them to draw what they hear. Here are some examples:

 

  • Drawing to music (and six mindful doodling exercises):

1.5 EXTRAS for inspiration

  • FOR YOUNGER CHILDREN: a simple copying game. Play the game and sing along at the same time. Can they make up their own moves? Can they make it more complicated?

  • EVERYDAY PEOPLE – a song celebrating diversity which children and young people could learn to sing-along to. See lyrics below:

Everyday People lyrics:

Sometimes I’m right and I can be wrong
My own beliefs are in my song
The butcher, the banker, the drummer and then
Makes no difference what group I’m in
I am everyday people, yeah, yeah

There is a blue one who can’t accept
The green one for living with
A fat one tryin’ to be a skinny one
Different strokes for different folks
And so on and so on and scooby-dooby-dooby
We got to live together

I am no better and neither are you
We’re all the same, whatever we do
You love me, you hate me
You know me and then
You can’t figure out the bag I’m in

I am everyday people

There is a long hair
That doesn’t like the short hair
For being such a rich one
That will not help the poor one
Different strokes for different folks
And so on and so on, scooby-dooby-dooby
We got to live together

There is a yellow one that won’t
Accept the black one
That won’t accept the red one
That won’t accept the white one
Different strokes for different folks
And so on and so on and
Scooby-dooby-dooby

I am everyday people

The Blob Opera is an interactive AI-powered music generator which works really well with touchscreens and is great for kinaesthetic learners. Children and young people can drag the blob creatures up and down to make the pitch higher and lower, and they can drag them backwards and forwards to make the blobs sing louder or quieter.

The first page is a tutorial so pupils can explore and experiment to see how they can manipulate the sound of a single blob.

Next, a link will appear to skip the tutorial – four blobs appear on the next page which they can also experiment with. On this page there is a link to ‘Take the blobs on tour’ – click on the globe symbol to see the places around the world they can visit. Each destination has a list of songs (inspired by that location) which you can select for the blobs to sing. The songs can be viewed by clicking on the musical note icon. Once a song is selected, children and young people can manipulate the blobs to change their pitch and volume while they are singing the songs.