Ten Little Robots

We've rolled a lot into this old favorite. Of course, our first thought (as it should have been) was that "Ten Little Indians" was not a song anyone would be doing these days. But it was a great song for counting, and in this new version it presents many possibilities for creative learning.

Robots are in; robots are fun; robots have taken over my office... but that's another story. Kids will enjoy imitating them, and this tune gives them a chance to do that.

This can certainly be performed without the recorded tracks, but they will add a lot of fun. There is a simple Euro/techno beat that provides a nice basis for the tune, and a very robotic voice counts down to the entrance of the Boomwhackers® at bar 5.

When the voices enter, they should sing mechanically - rigid and robot-like. At bar 17, the performers have their first opportunity for improvisation. All or part of them can imitate robots vocally, with movement, and/or with percussion instruments.

As we mentioned, there is an optional part for Boomwhackers®, and we certainly know how much the kids enjoy playing them. On the recording, you will hear our performers playing the diatonic Bass Boomwhackers®, though higher pitched ones work well, too. We have found that the bigger instruments record with much more resonance. You can also mix and match.

If you have never used Boomwhackers®, know that they can be played in many ways. You can hit them with a stick, tap them together, hit them on the floor, on the back of a chair, or on your knee. There are no rules... well, other than you will need to lay down some guidelines so that they don't become lightsabers or swords for your more rambunctious players.

The 32-bar section that begins at bar 21 is designed for maximum flexibility, and we have provided three different versions of the recording to assist you. Aside from the full recording, there is a version with just the background tracks and another recording with a pre-recorded version of the "Robotic Rhythms" game drill.

These sample rhythms are copied out on page 40 and can be one way to use this section. Simply put, the leader, whether live or on the recording, plays a rhythm and then the players in the classroom answer with the same rhythm. Our full recording features several performers playing a chord on several Boomwhackers®. In your classroom, however, you may choose to have your players play on unpitched percussion as well, or perhaps clap the rhythms. You can also use the tracks only recording to make up your own drills. It could also be structured as a game in which the role of "leader" is passed around, with the leader making up the rhythms.

On the full recording you will note that we let one group of performers continue to vocally imitate robots. In the studio, our kids had a lot of fun doing this, so you may even want to do this exclusive of any other activity. You can also have one group doing robot imitations and/or robot movements while others are playing percussion instruments or Boomwhackers®.

At the very end, singers and players should imitate a robot winding down or breaking down. The recording will help with the mood, and your kids' creativity will no doubt provide the rest. Throughout, set an open environment for that creativity, and you will love the results. Beeep... whirrr... clank!