Steady Beat Scramble: Review for Older Children

The Challenge!

Can you tap or clap on the beat where there are numbers?

Point to the poster.  Tell the children:  Tap with two fingers on the palm of your other hand on each number or clap.  When a number is missing, don't tap or clap.

Ready?

Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap

Tap, tap, (rest) (rest) tap, tap, (rest) (rest)tap, (rest) tap, (rest) tap, (rest) tap, (rest)

(rest) (rest) tap, tap, (rest) (rest) tap, tap

(Note:  I often have them pull their hands apart on the rests so that they are still moving on the beat, just the opposite way!)

An added challenge!

Now we are going to sing the song WHILE we follow the numbers and clap (or don't clap)!

(Note: you might want to use tapping if you have a large Primary because of the noise of so many people clapping.)

Ready? Go!

You can use this activity for songs like Nephi's Courage (120), The Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Ninth, Tenth, and Eleventh Article of Faith (124-130), Choose the Right (Hymn 239), or Follow the Prophet (110). This works for any song with a 4/4 time that has a strong beat.If you want to do this steady beat scramble challenge for a song in 3/4 (like Stand for the Right), you will need to use a chart something like this:This will work for songs in 3/4 time like Stand for the Right (159), Seek the Lord Early (108), We'll Bring the World His Truth (172-173), The Seventh and Twelfth Article of Faith (126,131), or The Books in the Old Testament (114).You can even use it for some songs in 6/8 time like Dare to Do Right (158) and I Lived in Heaven (4).  Again, the song has to have a fairly strong beat to use this fun activity.This is challenging to the children (and sometimes the adults<grin>), and the focus on the steady beat is a great thing for them to focus in, feel the strength of the beat of the song, and allow the words to come in the backdoor even more deeply into the memory without even being aware of it.  And it is fun!