Submitted by Sandy Elder, Michigan
Idea posted September 27, 2002
Vivaldi's The Four Seasons is wide open for activities. For example...
- Read a beautiful book about autumn leaves while playing "Autumn" (from The Four Seasons). I like Autumn Leaves, photo-illustrated by Ken Robbins (Scholastic, 1998). This book has panoramic pictures and also detailed shots of various individual leaves which can then lead into some great leaf-identification activities.
- Have the kids draw/color seasonal scenes while listening to part of The Four Seasons.
- Make streamers using ribbon (autumn colored crepe or long strips of white curling ribbon - not curled for winter) taped to free paint sticks. Do choreographed or free movement while listening.
- Talk about Vivaldi's experience teaching music at the Pieta Orphanage For Girls. Many of his pieces have unusual instrumentations because he wrote for whatever instruments the girls played in the school orchestra. Using only the instruments you have in your classroom, write a piece of music together or in groups to be performed as a class.
- Vivaldi was fond of using his walking stick to conduct instead of a baton. Have the kids take turns being Vivaldi. Use a PVC pipe, Boomwhacker®, or better yet, a real walking stick to keep the beat while the rest of the kids play on percussion instruments. Ask them if there are any problems with using a stick to beat the time: too loud, you could poke your foot, etc... (Interesting Vivaldi trivia: I understand that the infection that eventually killed him was a direct result of his jabbing his own foot while "conducting.")