<h3>Twinkle Twinkle Christmas Star</h3><p>To the tune of Twinkle Twinkle, a firm favourite with children and an ideal song for the children to mime.</p>                                                                                                                                    <ul class="simple lyrics">            <li>Twinkle Twinkle Christmas Star</li>            <li>Way up high is where you are</li>            <li>Shining bright for us to see</li>            <li>On the top of the Christmas tree</li>            <li>Twinkle Twinkle Christmas Star</li>            <li>Way up high is where you are</li>    </ul>                                                                                

<h3>Maestro the Music Dog and the Christmas Tree</h3><p>This story just happens to be set at Christmas time but it has no religious connotations - it's just a bit of make-believe.</p>                                                                                                                                                                    <ul class="simple lyrics">            <li>All Maestro the Music Dog materials Ã‚Â©Music-Playtime: Arts Enterprise Limited</li>            <li>Original watercolours and story: Sandy Holland</li>            <li>Original music: Peter Noke</li>    </ul>                                                                

Maestro the music dog and the Christmas tree - Video

<h3>Music Dog</h3><p>This song is sung to the tune of Jingle Bells:</p>                                                                                                                                    <ul class="simple lyrics">            <li>Music Dog Music Dog</li>            <li>Maestro is his name</li>            <li>Maestro came at Christmas time</li>            <li>To live with Hannah Lane</li>            <li>Oh!</li>            <li>Music Dog Music Dog</li>            <li>Maestro likes to play</li>            <li>Hannah Lane was happy</li>            <li>That he came on Christmas Day</li>    </ul>                                                                                                                                                <ul class="simple lyrics">            <li>All Maestro the Dog materials Ã‚Â©Music-Playtime: Arts Enterprise Limited</li>    </ul>                                                                

Music dog - Song

<h3>Christmas Instruments (timbre, dynamics, tempo, texture)</h3><p>This is a for groups of three or four that can be done as a class if you have teaching assistants, or as a music corner activity. First put out a range of instruments and objects such as jingle bells, wood blocks, shakers, chime bars, shells on a string, paper for rustling. The activity has added value if an adult supplies the children with useful words to describe what they are doing eg loud/quiet, fast/slow.Then ask the children to find out how the instruments can make Christmas music. </p><p>The suggestions made by the children here included the sound of a tree (who are we to argue?), snow falling, reindeer 'feet', Santa singing and laughing, sleigh bells, a clock striking midnight. </p><h4>The Snow group</h4><p>This group decided to make <em>Snow Music</em>. Notice that they all played at the same time (thick <em>texture</em>) and that some children varied how they played their instrument.</p>                                                                                                                                                                                

Snow group's music - Video

<h3>Christmas Instruments (timbre, dynamics, tempo, texture)</h3><p>This is a for groups of three or four that can be done as a class if you have teaching assistants, or as a music corner activity. First put out a range of instruments and objects such as jingle bells, wood blocks, shakers, chime bars, shells on a string, paper for rustling. The activity has added value if an adult supplies the children with useful words to describe what they are doing eg loud/quiet, fast/slow.Then ask the children to find out how the instruments can make Christmas music. </p><p>The suggestions made by the children here included the sound of a tree (who are we to argue?), snow falling, reindeer 'feet', Santa singing and laughing, sleigh bells, a clock striking midnight. </p>                                                                                                                                                                         <h4>The Santa group</h4><p>The children in this group were asked to create a musical story line. They talked first about how they could show it was midnight (the bells chiming midnight), then came reindeer hooves on the rooftop (wooden claves), Santa and the elves laughing and singing (chime bars and voice), and finally sleigh bells as they all go off into the sky again. Notice the thinner <em>texture</em> when they play one at a time and how this changes at the end when they all play bells. </p>                                                                                                                                                                                

Santa group's music - Video

<h3>Maestro the Music Dog and the Christmas Tree</h3><p>This story just happens to be set at Christmas time but it has no religious connotations - it's just a bit of make-believe.</p>                                                                                                                                                                    <ul class="simple lyrics">            <li>All Maestro the Music Dog materials Ã‚Â©Music-Playtime: Arts Enterprise Limited</li>            <li>Original watercolours and story: Sandy Holland</li>            <li>Original music: Peter Noke</li>    </ul>                        <h3><a href="https://www.e-musicmaestro.com/shop/books/childrens-picture-books">Buy the Book here!</a></h3>                                                                                                                                                <ul class="simple lyrics">            <li>Maestro the Dog and the Christmas Tree book Ã‚Â©E-MusicMaestroPublishing Limited</li>            <li>Original watercolours and story: Sandy Holland</li>            <li>Original music: Peter Noke</li>            <li>Video Ã‚Â©Arts Enterprise Limited</li>    </ul>                                        

Maestro the dog and the Christmas tree - Video

<h3>Maestro the Music Dog and the Christmas Tree</h3><p>This story just happens to be set at Christmas time but it has no religious connotations - it's just a bit of make-believe.</p>                                                                <div class="video">    <div class="embed">                    <iframe class="lazy_embed" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/h705vMJH-Ok" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>            </div></div>                                                                <ul class="simple lyrics">            <li>All Maestro the Music Dog materials Â©Music-Playtime: Arts Enterprise Limited</li>            <li>Original watercolours and story: Sandy Holland</li>            <li>Original music: Peter Noke</li>    </ul>                                                                <h3>Choose a Sound for Maestro (timbre)</h3><p>Ask the children to make a wax crayon picture of each of the characters in the story. In the music corner, put out a range of instruments that make different sounds and are played in different ways then, individually, the children choose an instrument that they would like to match with that each character. It's good to have an adult available so that the children can talk about how they made their choices.</p>

Maestro & the Christmas Tree Level: Early Years - Introductory

Year 1

Year 2

Music

Twinkle twinkle Christmas star - Song

Music Playtime has been created by a Key Stage 1 and Early Years Music education specialist. The schemes are built in recognition of the fact that most primary teachers are not music specialists. Access the knowledge and the ideas you need to feel confident teaching music.