Leavin' Old Texas

Leavin Old Texas: A song to teach Whole Note

Ahhh!  This is the first year I used this song and I just love it.  The students responded very well and had a fun time with this cowboys lament.  

Here is what I did: 

  

Day 1: 

Sing the song for students while they tap the beat.  If you have a ukulele or a guitar this would be a good time to bring it out and accompany with it!  

Ask the students who might sing this song? (a cowboy) Does this sound like a happy or sad song? What is he/she sad about? (Texas has no use for his long horn cow anymore!) 

If you have some stick ponies it would be fun to act out the song! 

Day 2: 

Sing the song for students again. Echo sing each phrase to learn the song.  Have students stand up and for every whole note the students act like they are holding a lasso ready to throw. They slowly swirl their "lasso" in the air for every whole note.  

Just for fun I let my students line up in four lines and after singing the song each person in the front threw a hoola hoop to "lasso" a stuffed animal. (Landing the hoola hoop around the animal). We switched until everyone had a turn, singing in between each round.  

Reveal where the whole note is in song.  They happen so evenly on each phrase, each class had quite a few students who could figure it out very quickly.  Even some the first day I presented it.