Musical+Chairs+(2)

Jessica Schlosser **__ Musical Chairs __** **Description:** The age-old game of musical chairs can be a learning strategy in the classroom to provide students with a fun stretch break while still incorporating a social studies concept. The teacher will play music from a historical era while students walk around a circle of chairs while carefully listening to the music. Once the music stops, students dash for an empty chair. There is one chair fewer than the number of students during each round so that one student is out each round until there is a winner. The teacher could ask the winner to identify any information about the music that was played during the game and close the activity by discussing how the song ties into the current social studies unit.

**Strengths:** This learning strategy is used to give students a stretch break from the typical instruction of social studies. This activity will reach kinesthetic and auditory learners by having the class move around and listen to music. This activity could be used during indoor recess or at another time during the day to extend social studies learning. This activity could be used for any grade level.

**Weaknesses:** This activity is not intended to present new information to the students. Students may be more focused on the game instead of considering the historical period from which the music is from. Class behavior could be an issue depending on the grade level of the students.

__Mini Lesson__ I will pull up a 1920s Charleston jazz YouTube video at the front of the classroom. media type="youtube" key="TRveIIe4uAs?fs=1" height="385" width="480"

**Procedures:** 1. The students will arrange the chairs in a circle with one chair fewer than the number of students. 2. As I begin to play the music, the students will walk around the chairs in a circle. 3. When I stop the music, the students will have to quickly find an empty chair and sit down. 4. The student that does not have a seat will be out and another chair will be removed for the next round. 5. I will start the music again for the next round. 6. We will continue to play until there is only one student remaining. 7. To wrap up the activity, I will ask the winner what they think the relevance of the song is to our social studies unit.