Whisper Phones

The 1st graders just learned their first "question/answer" song: Cuckoo.  In the song I sing a "question" (a beginning phrase)  and they sing the "answer" (something different than what I sing).  Since this is the first time the students learned a song in which they sing something different from me, it always poses some teaching challenges. 

A few years ago I started explaining the process to the students by comparing it to how we have conversations on a phone and would use my hand as a telephone. This explanation did a lot to help the students make connections and speed up the rote process.

This week, however, I tried a new strategy with the 1st graders.  Each student was given a "Whisper Phone", essentially an acoustical tube that allows them to hear their own voice.  Most students use these devices in their reading interventions, to be able to hear themselves speak and encourage fluency and inflection. I've actually had an entire class set of whisper phones at one of my elementary schools, but never used them before this week.

Wow!  It worked like magic!  Not only did the students instantly make the connection, without much teacher talk, but it was the first time in my teaching career that I've taught the song "Cuckoo" and did not have the students echo my phrases, which is their natural tendency since it is all they have done since the beginning of the year.  This strategy tapped into the students' need for pretend play in order to make connections with their world.  On top of that, I loved that the whisper phones were a great tool to help my emerging singers hear what their voice sounds like and whether or not they are matching my pitches.