Hey, Victoria! Your podcast on how to plan an informance was super helpful! I get the concept, but have hard time finding repertoire. Would you have any suggestions for a kindergarten informance around “The Carrot Seed” by Ruth Krauss? I’m collaborating with our kindergarten team on it… Some themes they cover through the book are patience, individuality, and growing. Thank you in advance! All your resources have been so helpful so far this year!
Performance vs Informance:
We could make a beautiful performance around The Carrot Seed. Students could still use all the musical ways they use in your regular teaching.
What are you Teaching?
Look at what students will have learned by the time the informance takes place.
https://victoriaboler.com/blog/elementary-music-informance-2
Informance Ideas: The Carrot Seed
Kindergarten Concepts:
Steady beat
High / low
Loud / quiet
Fast / slow
4 voices
Kindergarten Skills:
Singing
Playing unpitched percussion / pitched percussion
Playing body percussion
Creative and structured movement
Reading and writing iconic notation
Improvising, Arranging, Composing
Book Theme, Song, Concept / Skill
This wouldn’t be my first choice for an informance because there isn’t a lot to work with thematically. The book is fabulous and magical, but there aren’t any new scenes to work with thematically.
Oats Peas Beans and Barley Grow - steady beat
John the Rabbit - call and response
The Green Grass Grew All Around - Echo singing
Musical and Thematic Concepts:
It takes so long to grow: do any song with a fast and slow tempo
The seed goes in the ground and comes up: do any song with a high and low voice or with pitched percussion
Compose a song, rhyme, or game
What is the goal? The goal is education, not entertainment.
Again, it’s tricky because the point isn’t to put on a performance. It’s to share what you’re already doing in the classroom. So for this specific purpose we want to avoid creating a song just to go with the book.
Little seed, little seed, let me watch you grow. Little seed, little seed why do you grow so slow?
Find a seed, put it in the ground. Pull the weeds from all around.
Splish splash, watering can, what a hard working gardener I am!
What will you plant in the garden? What will you plant this year? What will you plant in the garden? We would love to hear. s sl s sl s m, s ss l l s, s sl s sl s m, s f m r d.
How fantastical will we get?