Mrs. Tillman's Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 96

• iPad for Music Lab

  Funded Oct 14, 2019

  Thank you so much Sonic for fully funding this project for our final iPad! The kids have had so much fun making their own mixes of songs with the cool graphics in their two favorite apps.

  Loopimal is more fun for the younger kids because of the silly cartoonish animals, but the beats and rhythms are cool enough for the older kids to use the app too. You drag a shape from the bottom up to the animal and put it in one of the 8 spaces. (I love that the app is creating looping patterns of EIGHT beats as that's what I'm trying to teach the kids to listen for and create on real instruments.) After students build an 8 beat pattern, they pick an actual instrument to play along with it. I'll plug up the iPad to the speaker system in my room and we can all hear and play along. Some students copy a rhythm already present in the loop in the app. Others will create a totally new one. While a few others whose skills are not as advanced will simply keep a steady beat.

  Their other favorite app is called Incredibox. It's where you drag an item of clothing up to each character and it makes a special beat that matches all other beats in that particular section. If you select the items in the correct order, a bonus level opens up and plays a fun tune. The kids compete to see who can get the bonus levels the quickest. Check the pictures to see shots of them finding a bonus level! With this app, the kids like to use the microphone and rap over the beats and melodies created.

  Thank you again for all your support over the years. We will make our music worthy of your generous donations.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Tillman

  This classroom project was brought to life by SONIC Drive-In.

• The Chord Buddy is my New Buddy

  Funded Oct 7, 2019

  Thank you so much to Sonic and my fellow Barrow dweller Gretchen! You guys have funded an important project for my budding musicians. Previously we had gotten a set of guitars through Sonic (over several projects) but we weren't able to play them as much we wanted due to the learning curve and physical memory you need in your hands and fingers to form chords. Once a week for 30 minutes isn't enough. These chord buddy button devices make it super simple to play immediately!

  There are four buttons on the guitar that give us different chords: D, G, Em and C. Yes, I'm aware that this does NOT teach them hand position and finger placement, but it DOES allow them to 1) read a chord chart and play a song, 2) learn to strum in rhythm, and 3) have fun while learning a new instrument. If they choose to pursue guitar on their own in the future, they've already got the basics down of holding the instrument, strumming in time, and switching chords at the right time. It will be much easier to learn chord shapes at that point.

  With these new devices in place on all our guitars, I have seen more participation in regular class. Students who would previously just sit and never want to try an instrument are now participating and learning. I have one 5th grade boy who never used to do anything, but now he walks into music and asks, "Can I get my guitar?" Whether we're playing guitars or not that day, I always say yes. He even came to our December grade level performance and sat in the front row playing guitar on "Git Up Dance". It's great having another option for students of different abilities and interests.

  We will make our music worthy of your generous donations. Thank you!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Tillman

  This classroom project was brought to life by SONIC Drive-In and one other donor.

• Loud and Proud with Creative Cloud

  Funded Dec 30, 2018

  It's a little nostalgic writing my last thank you note on Donors Choose. I'm so glad you were all donors to not only help us get this software but so I can thank you for the journey you took with me. It's been five years on Donors Choose and three years with most of you. Thank you for helping me fill my room with every cool musical thing I could think of. I had the highest compliment the other day. The middle school band director came by to test fifth graders for band next year. He brought people from a local music store to help him with the instruments. One of them, upon entering my room, had eyes as wide as saucers (stole that line from The Day the Earth Stood Still) and mouth agape. He said "This is the best music room I have ever seen... and I've seen a LOT!" I can't ask for any more than that. The best room he has ever seen thanks to:

  Judge Clayton, Jennifer C, Nancy S, Prout Family, Constance, Jessica S, Murray, Sally and Paul, Jamsheed, Amanda G, January, and Tiffany Landress!!!

  Ok... onto the saga of the software. I wrote this project as a one year subscription like I did last year. When 2019 started (when this funded) they no longer sold by the year. It's month to month. So it took a bit of back and forth with Donors Choose to change the project to month to month. But we did it. I started month to month. However there is something in the transition (at Adobe) that they can't seem to re-activate the After Effects. See pictures 5 and 6. One says check your subscription... so I check... and my account says paid up and active. Yet the application won't open. It opened ONCE and I started the stop motion Monster Mash project for Constance and got a screen shot (picture 4) but it hasn't opened again since then.

  My plan, once I get this sorted, is to make a DVD of our second and third grade performance at school as well as our chorus/band performance at the amphitheater. Pictures 1-3 show what the different camera views on the DVD will look like (these are shots from last year's show). This DVD will be made available to parents, many of whom donated to this project.

  My hope for next year is to have a small video club and do a music video with each fifth grade class and have students help edit, cut and mix it. My immediate hope is to finish the Monster Mash stop motion and get the DVDs finished. I know how to get a video to all of you except Constance. Constance, if you leave a message on this project, I will put in a link to my Monster Mash once it's done so you can see it. It's going to be hilarious!

  Thank you all so much for funding this software which I will be dealing with more intensely now that school is over. Wondering why I'm doing the thank you when I have not sorted the problems yet? Today is the absolute last day that DC is giving me to put together this thank you package. I appreciate you all so much. If you'd like to see a finished song from this year's concert, please leave a message on this project and I will leave a link once finished. I promise this will be happening soon.

  We will always make our music worthy of your generous donations. Though you will not be seeing projects from me any longer, thank you also for the other teachers that you continue to support. I know they appreciate you as much as I do.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Tillman

• A to ZZZZebra: Best Drum Rug Ever!

  Funded Dec 19, 2018

  Thank you Judge Clayton for your continued support of teachers on Donors Choose including my music program. We used this drum rug at our February concert with second and third grade. The gym floor is very slick and at other concerts, the hi-hat and the bass drum would slide away from the drummer because there's nothing for the spikes to dig into. I know you know what I'm talking about!

  This drum rug is so very cool! You can see from the pictures that simply because it's a zebra pattern, it looks awesome on stage. And with our light towers (that kids control during the show) the white parts of the rug change colors to make the show extra exciting. Our little third grade drummers felt like TOTAL rock stars at the drum kit with the rocking rug and the lights on them. I did in fact get video of the concert (as I mentioned in my donation thank you), but currently I am having problems with the software to make a neat music video (that you also completed funding for). I know I said I was excited to show you video of the concert and I will! It will be in the thank you package for the video editing software in the next couple of weeks.

  We are so happy to have this drum rug and it rolls up neat and easy in its bag to make storage a breeze when we're not using it on stage. You've probably already gotten my student thank you notes. I hope you enjoy the little pop up aspect of it. The kids had a blast writing and making them.

  Thank you for being such an important part of our classroom with funding this rug, our software and the bells from a couple of years ago. We plan on having a bell group again next year. (We skipped it this year due to interest in other instruments.)

  We will always make our music worthy of your generous donations! Thank you so much!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Tillman

• Take A Chance, Let’s Dance And Prance

  Funded Dec 4, 2018

  Such an appropriate group of donors to thank on what is one of my final thank you packages to do before I'm done with Donors Choose. Prout Family, Jamsheed, and Ellie, you have been three of my most faithful, consistent and favorite donors the last two years and I appreciate you more than you will ever know. And if my donor from Kentucky is who I think you are, you have been helping me and my school (even if not CLES) since the late 90s. If you're not who I think you are, then thank you so much for visiting this project and helping to get us to completion my Kentucky mystery friend. And a giant thank you to Nickelodeon for doubling all the generous donations we received.

  In our class, we play lots of instruments! But like I tell my kiddos... variety is the spice of life ☺ We also like to dance and move express ourselves in other ways. These books and CDs have given us music and instructions to be able to do just that. They each have games and dances and movement activities complete with music and detailed instructions. I can modify them to use with various grade levels. For example, there was one dance that was a little more difficult. It included students in two concentric circles, with partners, and a complicated movement pattern. Here are third graders doing the dance. Note the drum brushes on the floor. They could do the dance but had a hard time judging where their original spot was to be able to get back to it on time. The markers also kept them from bunching together in a tight circle in the center. Without lots of circle experience, kids will make the circle smaller and smaller until they're crammed packed like sardines in a 2 inch space in the center of the room! Watch the tall dude on the left (in the camo shirt) and his partner. They get a little better each time until they finally get it right. I love that with simple hands on experience, kids will learn and adapt and figure things out.

  http://bit.ly/2Keh6dM

  This is the same dance but with first graders and I've modified it appropriate to their skills. No concentric circle. No partners. And they spin instead of circling around a partner. Notice how the first graders are walking. Some in tempo. Some meandering. They will gain these rhythmic skills as they gain experience. (Right Jamsheed? LOL!)

  http://bit.ly/2Ku6Tub

  These books and CDs are a great resource for all grade levels and experience levels of my students. We have danced and played games with them in every class at school.

  Thank you all for donating to these materials. We will make our dances worthy of your generous donations! And thank you for staying with me throughout my Donors Choose time. It meant a lot to me to have your support.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Tillman

  This classroom project was brought to life by Nickelodeon and National Fitness Foundation and 8 other donors.

• Drum Set Cajon for Multi-Cultural Tone

  Funded Dec 10, 2018

  Hello to all the best donors in the whole Donors Choose world! This project has been so much fun to put together and use and I thank you all for being donors to our classroom: CRUNCH for doubling all donations, a new mystery GA donor who was our big finisher, Andrea L, Nancy S, Jen W, Jessica S, Jamsheed, Constance, Prout Family, and finally Sally and Paul. I have been so happy the last two years to have you all be part of our classroom.

  Constance, you (unfortunately) won't be seeing any Creatures in these pictures because the hubs just wouldn't let any of the toys out of the house. But please know that he was there in my heart and in my thoughts riding the hi hat. (No, not the cowbell Jamsheed!)

  I'll explain the pictures so you have a better sense of what these items are doing for my students. Picture one is the cajon drum kit set up. It is smaller that the full sized kit I have on stage. This is so the younger kids can play it and get more early, hands (and feet) on experiences behind the kit. Picture 2 is two fifth grade girls assembling the hi hat. During their class time, I shoved the box and a pair of scissors over to them with these instructions: "Open that and put together what you find inside. If there's no instructions, take apart the hi hat on stage as a reference." At first they were a little baffled, but being baffled is no excuse for giving up. There were no instructions in the box. It took them almost the entire 45 minute class period to assemble it and I kept telling them "The top hi hat cymbal is upside down!" Every time I'd look over it would still look weird. You can tell in picture 2 (if you're familiar with hi hats... Jamsheed... pay attention to those details!) that something is not right. We finally figured out that during shipping, one of the cymbals had inverted itself. A quick pop and flip and BOOM, we had a working hi hat.

  Picture 3 is a bit hilarious! Look at how tall the snare stand is!!!!! What in the world???? No one can play a snare that high. I finally figured out this is a snare stand for a middle school kid in band to use while playing standing. It's not designed to be used sitting down. I tried at first to have the little ones use it standing up. They still needed a stool. See picture 6. But it wasn't sitting at a set so it's not what we needed. Quick fix: trade it in at a music store for a kit snare stand! BOOM! See pictures 4 and 5 for the new much shorter snare stand.

  Even my smallest kids can sit at this little cajon set and reach the pedals and play a basic beat. This video is a kindergarten student. They don't know yet that the snare is the back beat and comes second. You'll notice this student hits the snare first, but as I play, I make the rhythm as if he started it correctly. They don't understand yet that it's kick, snare, kick, snare... and what it sounds and feels like. I just let them start and I MAKE it right. Eventually they will get the "feel" for what the backbeat is (2 and 4). You'll also notice I'm not asking them to keep the hi hat pedal down. That will come later. Copy and paste:

  http://www.bit.ly/2SaVfXo

  Compare that to one year later in first grade. The students can now use two hands with one under the other as you would need to for the set. You'll notice I'm working the bass drum pedal. Kick and both hands is too much for a first grader (without weekly individual lessons). But the student is now hitting the snare drum on the back beat on her own without me having to fix it for her. First graders also don't do all the hi hat hits yet, but they ARE getting that the hat comes on beat one and snare comes on beat two. This is vastly important to everything we will play in later years.

  http://www.bit.ly/2S4XV96

  These pieces, along with the drumming books are going to help my kindergarten, first grade, and second graders get a huge head start on rhythms and set playing so they'll already be semi-pro in third grade rather than beginners. And guess what? My older kids like it too! Though they can tell it's made for the little ones, they still like to sit at it and get extra practice. That's fine by me!

  Thank you for helping us go PRO a few years earlier than we used to be able to. We appreciate all of our wonderful donors who have provided so much to our classroom. You will not be seeing projects from me for a while as my room is stocked and beautiful and amazing in every way. All because of you. Much love from the Tillmanator or your generosity towards us.

  We will make our music worthy of your generous donations! Now and always.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Tillman

  This classroom project was brought to life by CRUNCH and 11 other donors.

• In the Zone with Our Cajon

  Funded Nov 25, 2018

  Ok, yay! I was right :-) This is a great victory of drumming in the 21st century! This beater works exactly how I expected it to and doesn't rip my face off (or the office ladies) with being too loud. And I still have a spleen! (You have to have read my earlier thank you to get that reference...)

  Thank you so much to Nancy K, Laura B, Prout Family, Jamsheed, Kamau Bell, and 37 People for crushing this project for a cajon beater. My students had almost forgotten we had these because I had abandoned them last year. In this project we got an attachable, strap driven beater and a pair of cajon brushes. I love these brushes so much because they have both a brushy part and a mallet part for two different sounds! Awesome :-)

  So, you guys have all donated to me before so you know the drill.... Picture 1 shows a 4th grader putting it together. I shoved my *cough cough* very neatly organized box of tools towards him and said to find a drum key. It's silver and shaped like the letter T. It took him a bit but he finally came up with it. I showed him how to attach the beater head and adjust it to the right length. Copy and paste this link for a short vid. (Forgive my socks. It was crazy sock day.)

  bit.ly/2Gi2l7V

  Picture 4 shows me trying to keep a little one's heel down. Your foot has to be glued to the pedal and you'd think that just putting your foot down and tapping your toe would be so natural. Ummm..... no! I can feel their foot fighting and trying to perform the most unnatural motions. Toe up... toe down. That's all it takes. Not stomp stomp or heel flapping. Does this sound familiar to any of my donors? Anyone.... Bueller? LOL! Here is a video of a fourth grader trying to do a simple beat with the cajon beater on beats one and three and the brush on beats 2 and 4. (Yep, the ol' SRB Jamsheed.) Notice every time I let his hand go, his foot and hand want to go together. If you look carefully at his toe, you'll see him fighting against me trying to change speeds. Not on my watch! He'll get it, don't worry. (The students off screen were playing a bean bag game to his beat.)

  bit.ly/2Gjji1Q

  And some kiddos just have a more natural feel than others. Everyone can learn. Every single person. But some need less guidance. This little one is the younger sister of the fellow putting it together in the first video. She's in Kindergarten and can already work the pedal.

  bit.ly/2QONs15

  All of our Critters are enjoying this cajon beater and learning the basic skills they will need to be amazing drummers by the time they're my fifth graders. It's easy to get to in the room and is accessible to kids of all sizes. Our drum set is full sized and not everyone can play it. After winter break we'll have a mini snare and hi hat to go with it. (Laura B I'll send you a link to that project when I post pics and vids. I know you're interested in cajon enhancement.)

  It's very easy to send a kid over to the cajon kit and have them at the very least keep a beat with their foot. Your foot is the hardest thing to coordinate. Yes, even though they can walk, the foot is still the hardest. Practice doesn't make perfect. But it sure does make a it a whole lot better!

  Thank you for giving us new life for this instrument and helping us build drumming skills in our feet. We will make our BOOMS worthy of your generous donations!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Tillman

• It Takes Balls to Be a Real Musician!

  Funded Nov 27, 2018

  Some new faces, some previous faces and some regular faces have graced this project and fully funded us on Giving Tuesday and for this my students and I are very grateful! Thank you to Laura R, Prout Family, Ellie, Jamsheed, Lora G, Deborah, Lindsey, Michelle, Jen, Leslie, Sally and Paul, our big finisher and brand new donor The Kirkner Family and Nickelodeon for doubling all their donations. I'm so happy this funded while the match dollars were still around. Now my students from Kindergarten to fifth grade have new games and new ways to help us be successful in our music making.

  With so many regular donors, I thought I might show you a little more about what goes on our classroom on a daily basis. I know many of you see my "final product" videos. But the "in process" videos are where the action is. Jamsheed, Prout Family, and Sally and Paul, you've seen a ton of these, but I'd love for all my donors to take a peek into HOW my students get to where they are by 5th grade. It doesn't happen naturally. It happens due to step by step work at the skill building necessary for music making.

  You may think you have simply donated to give us "stuff". It's so much more than that! These squishy balls are fun and we do play games with them. But they are also helping us build a lifetime of musical foundation that will NEVER leave them (cough cough... Jamsheed).

  Here are some first graders playing a passing game where they have to pass at the start of each phrase. Exactly like they'll have to do when they play basses and guitars and need to change chords every 8 beats. Copy and paste:

  bit.ly/2SHz8oe

  This is third grade playing a more advanced version of the game. I took two videos of this. Watch the girl in the purple/pink shirt in the foreground. In this video she can't seem to figure out when to pass or turn. I'm desperately trying to keep the three around her in the right spot. (I know you're laughing Jamsheed! And counting along with me to see if I'm right.)

  bit.ly/2SEOolN

  Check out the same class later that period. With just a little more practice it's much better. Watch the same girl in the back this time. She has improved so much in just 20 minutes!

  bit.ly/2SG4Ja0

  And if you just want to see some kids having fun, copy and paste this:

  bit.ly/2SHkHAp

  Yes, you are providing our school with so much more than just "stuff". This was a project for much more than squishy balls. This was a project of fun, of learning, of trying over and over again until it's right and of being a kid and enjoying life.

  Thank you for helping us get these foundations of music that will help my students now in music class and in years to come in whatever they choose to do in life. We will make our music, games, fun, and lives worthy of your generous donations.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Tillman

  This classroom project was brought to life by Nickelodeon and National Fitness Foundation and 13 other donors.

• We Paid The Price for Cheap: New Headphones

  Funded Oct 26, 2018

  My students are so grateful to Jamsheed, Sonic Drive in, Prout Family, Sally and Paul, and our big finisher for the second time Cheryl Brownstein! You guys have funded this project for us so my students can now make use of some FREE pianos we got last school year.

  Here's how it went down. Our principal's old school closed down and she salvaged the piano lab her music teacher there had. They didn't have power supplies or headphones anymore but they worked. So I took them! Last year I did a project for batteries and headphones and we were able to use the free pianos. But I'm a victim of my cheapness and stupidity. As a professional musician and teacher I should have known better. The headphones were the absolute cheapest I could find. Of course they fall apart after two days of continuous class use. The little ear foam ear pieces looked like shrapnel from WWII all over the room, the minuscule wires got tangled like my hair after a ride in a convertible. There was significant collateral damage and after a week, I had to put them out of their misery. (The headphones, not the kids...)

  Our media specialist found some old headphones from the early 14th century in the back of the dungeon... I mean the media center closet... (that I actually recognized from my own childhood) and let me have them. You see, this piano lab is also old and the jack is 1/4 inch. Modern devices have the little mini connector. So, these old headphones (when the only jack available was 1/4 inch) were perfect. EXCEPT...... they were huge and clunky and swallowed up little kids' heads like a monster from an old cheesy movie: "The Headphones that Ate Kindergarten".

  Finally Sonic came along in October and I knew it was the perfect time to get new headphones with their generous donation. Then our most awesome regular donors finished off the balance with their generous donations. We are now able to use our pianos again with headphones that are comfortable, fit, and sound great! You can see that they fit kindergarten (Picture 1) as well as fifth grade (pics 2,4, and 5). Wanna see the pianos in action?

  Copy and paste this to see the two little guys from picture 1 who just discovered that the piano could play a drum beat for you (don't be jealous Jamsheed... go make your own drum beat!)

  bit.ly/2QNdJN3

  And this is a third grade class (Mrs. Ellison's class... you know these kids Jamsheed! Aaaand.... when I told them who we're writing thank you notes to, they fought over Sally and Paul and Cheryl. They were greedy and wanted to do both of you and not let another class write for you. Cheryl, this is the class that did your notes last time for the guitar straps.) This was after just 30 minutes practicing Jingle Bells with the headphones then trying to play together with a kid on upright bass. If you guys have examined other pics and vids from other thank you notes, you'll recognize a lot of these students. Same class from "Squid War" Jamsheed, Prout Family, and Sally and Paul! LOL!

  bit.ly/2SIvWc7

  In just 30 minutes they could only learn and memorize the "Jingle Bells" line so they had to sing lines 2 and 4. They will have all of it by next week!

  Thank you all so much for providing this variety of experiences for my students. Their musical development is always moving forward because of the types of instruments, accoutrements and activities they are able to participate in. You all make our class better. Thank you for being part of it. We will make our music worthy of your generous donations.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Tillman

• Are You SHURE You Want A Big STE(A)M-ing Pile?

  Funded Oct 10, 2018

  This will be a first time that I get to include Craig Newmark in a thank you package as his generous double allowed Jamsheed, Nancy S, Sally and Paul, Miss Sunshine, Anderson, Mrs. Bushey, and Prout Family to fully this project for my students. We appreciate your generous donations for this unusually large project.

  We previously had two wired Shure SM58 mics that were adequate. (I traded them in at a music trading store and donated that money here where it doubled, so that covered about a third of the cost of this project.) However they couldn't go anywhere in the room but on the stage. Shy kids didn't want to go all the way up on stage. Kids also had to have their mouths right on top of them to pick up the sounds. The new wireless ones can travel about the room and can be held several inches away from the mouth and still pick up sound.

  Of course, many of you know by now that I REQUIRE kids to know how to work all the equipment. They have to unbox it, read the directions, put it together, and get it working. Pictures 1-4 show this. The fifth grade girl in picture 2 at first said she didn't understand what the manual was telling her to do. I told her to read to the bottom of the page then start again and see if made more sense. She became frustrated and claimed it didn't make sense. I asked her to read it out loud. After she gave me a look like a cartoon character does after they've been hit with a frying pan, I realized she was reading the section in French instead of English. We all had a good laugh and then moved on. She understood the English section. Picture 3 shows a student putting in the batteries. You may, as an adult, think that's such a simple step. But I can't tell you how many times students have attempted to play a battery powered device only to find it doesn't work. And upon investigation I discover they've put the batteries in backwards. To children, every step must be explicitly taught. Even like in picture 4 when my student was plugging in the mic cables. It is a 3 pin cable with a male and female end. You can't just push it in where ever you want, and it can't be turned in the socket. The pins have to line up. I make sure my students understand all of this. Pictures 5-6 and show students enjoying using the mics in class.

  This is a video of kindergarten students using the mic to lead the counting of a song (Girls Like You). The leader does fine when she's just counting. (One of the kids goes to five instead of starting over, but the mic helped students to hear what number they should be on.) However, as soon as I start singing, she falls apart and loses count. You can see in her face she immediately knew she had made a mistake. But this is the first step to musical independence. Copy and paste the link if you'd like to see:

  bit.ly/2QFZI3F

  This link is some fifth graders singing the same song (and playing drums). You can see they still need guidance even though they are older, but because they have been counting those 4 beat phrases since kindergarten, they know exactly when to come in. Copy and paste. It's worth it!

  bit.ly/2QFL7Fv

  My students love using the mics as leaders, performers, and just goofing off (which happens a lot in my class). We will use them for many years to come to help my students gain skills as performer and speakers and confident dwellers of the universe.

  Thank you all for your generous donations to this project. We will make our music worthy of your generosity! Thank you for being a special addition to our class!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Tillman