Try to Beat these Eggceptional Games!

 
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Eggs are an ordinary but primary ingredient in most recipes, why not make them an EGGceptional and primary ingredient in your lessons?

Although the Easter season is a fitting time to use the activities below, I believe you could pull these out any time your private or group lessons or summer camps need a unique opener, closer or anything in between. The Egg Shell Matching Game is perfect for Off Bench time.

Steps to making an eggceptional Egg Shell Matching Game

1) Purchase at least a couple of dozen plastic eggs. You’ll want more than a dozen so look for sales after Easter.

2) Sort them according to color.

3) Designate a color for each subject you wish to cover.

 
 
 
 

My color code system:

  • Pink = Music Terms

  • Green = Flat Tetrachords (scales)

  • Purple = Rhythms

  • Yellow = Sharp Tetrachords (scales)

  • Blue = 7th chords

  • Turquoise = Triad chords

4) Write desired terms, symbols, signs, scales, etc. on the eggs.

  • Top shell = Term

  • Bottom Shell = Definition (see graphic below)

5) Determine a place to store your eggs. Save old egg cartons or begin saving recyclable containers. I’m using plastic jars that hold our family’s favorite treats from Costco. OR, buy Easter baskets for half price after the holiday.

6) Create labels and tape them to each container. I made mine with Canva my favorite free graphic design platform.

 
 
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7) Crack the eggs in half and place them in the container.

8) Ask student to divide the top of the egg shells from the bottom.

9) Student must find the correct bottom to match the top shell and snap them together and toss them back in the container.

Snapping “cracked” plastic eggs together provides an immediate tactile satisfaction. There really is no better matching game than this, it really is quite eggceptional! A junior in high school who is hard to please was all over this! It crosses all age levels. Even my 92-year old piano student enjoyed the challenge.

You are limited only by your imagination with how to use your eggs.

Since I hatched this first batch of egg-shell matches, I thought of at least a dozen more and are included in the newsletter, too.

Got group lessons? Play Minute to Win It

  • Set up egg stations (or nests!) with the subject of your choice equal to the amount of students you have in the group.

  • Set the EGG timer.

  • Crack all the eggs in the container.

  • Student makes as many matches as possible in one minute.

  • Count up the correct matches and keep a tally for each student.

  • Students rotate to the next “egg nest.”

  • Repeat until students have rotated to each nest.

  • Student with the highest score wins an egg filled with a prize of your choice.

TONS of more group lesson ideas plus the ones included are featured in the free download offered below.

Lesson Opener

As I was strolling the aisles of Target, I came across a jumbo, clear, egg-shaped bucket containing colorful eggs AND one golden egg. I had to get this but had no idea what to do with it. Then it came to me…

1) Create a wheel in Decide Now—an app that lets you customize a spinner and leaves decisions up to chance.

The wheel includes the colors of eggs in the bucket.

  • Teal $50

  • Blue $75

  • Green $100

  • Gold $500

2) Fill eggs with a candy or prize of your choice. The golden egg gets THREE prizes!

3) The dollar amount refers to the amount of Music Money earned for landing on each egg. Follow this link to learn more about my studio incentives.

4) Select a scale or 5-finger that could use some review. Ex: C minor scale, B Major 5-finger pattern, blues scale...your choice.

5) Student

  • Spins the wheel.

  • Gets to choose one of the eggs in the color that was spun.

  • Opens the egg and finds a piece of candy.

  • Claps the rhythm of the candy name and chooses the correct notation of the rhythm from the choices provided on the EZ Beat Board.

  • Plays that rhythm repeatedly using the notes of the chosen scale or 5-finger pattern.

  • Chooses a style from MusiClock—an app that supplies cool backing tracks for various scales.

  • Improvises using the chosen scale and style while playing with the backing track.

  • Earns candy and money for being creative.

Check out this video's lesson opener in action, featuring students of various levels and ages.

 
 

How do you use eggs in your studio?
Happy Easter!

 
 
Creative Corner, Fresh Ideas, Group Lessons, Improvise, Music Tech Time Assign..., Music Technology, Summer Camps, Teaching Improvisation, Teaching Jazz/PopLeila VissGroup games, group lesson activities, Improvisation4 Comments