Darla Hanley's Music Room
Creative Teaching for Students of Today (& Tomorrow) PK-8
Today’s Teaching Strategy: Delilah’s Groove
(Drum Circle)
Upper Elementary/Middle (4-6)
© 2026 Darla S. Hanley
This teaching strategy is all about playing drums, maintaining a groove, and improvising. It goes with “Delilah” by Sabu Martinez (1961) because of its walking tempo, incredible hand percussion, and featured trumpet.
Pedagogical Foundations
Why do people love drum circles? No really, what’s the deal?
Over the years I’ve met several drum circle leaders who were professional musicians, music educators, and music therapists who absolutely LOVE drum circles! They led them, played in them, and talked about them as much as possible (lol). And when they did these things they not only got pretty animated, but always talked about the value of these types of music making experiences as something special, impactful, and meaningful. To a person, they mentioned things like:
Accessible Music Making
Belonging
Camaraderie
Community
Creativity
Focus
Improvisation
Inspiration
Joy
Memorization/Memory
Non-Verbal Cues
Reduced Stress or Anxiety
Relaxation
Teamwork
Welcoming Artistic Space
And my friends and colleagues also emphasize the fact that each of these descriptors seem to simultaneously apply to drum circles regardless of where they are held (e.g., community gathering, hospital, corporate event, festival, school), how big or small the drum circle is, which drums are used, etc. How cool is that?
All of this makes me ponder if there are the lessons learned from drum circles (from that above-mentioned list) that can apply to any school music classroom? My quick answer is pretty clear… Uh, yeah, all of them (lol). As in a drum circle, music learning in school is enhanced when students can access music and music making; feel like they belong; are part of a community/group; have space to be creative; are inspired; focus; follow cues; and are welcomed. This list seems simple, but making all of this happen within every music class—every day—is challenging.
Today’s teaching strategy (“Delilah’s Groove”) includes the opportunity for students to engage in a drum circle filled with community, joy, and belonging—and improvise a bit. I hope you give it a try with your students. But first, let me remind you who I am:
Hi! I’m Darla, an experienced PK-12 music educator, college professor, and former Berklee College of Music Dean looking to connect with teachers, parents/caregivers, and others seeking to advance creative music making for today’s students—and their teachers. In Darla Hanley’s Music Room you will find teaching strategies, advice and teaching tips, playlists, and more.
If possible:
ProTIP: Prepare the room in advance with chairs in a circle and drums placed in front of each chair so students can enter and go directly to the drum circle. This also creates an exciting visual for students to see the instruments in place when they arrive.
Today we are going to play in a drum circle! At first, we will all play the same rhythmic groove with a track called “Delilah” by Sabu Martinez. Then we will add some other ways of playing. Let’s listen to a sample of the music so you can hear the rhythmic pattern we will play.
Play the recording and clap the “Delilah Groove” ostinato (notation below) for students to see (with your body percussion) and hear.
ProTIP: Begin the ostinato at 0.8 following a brief introduction. Guide students to listen for the trumpet to enter and lead everyone to the rhythmic pulse.
ProTIP: The “Delilah’s Groove” ostinato matches the hand percussion in the track. Point that out for students—or ask them to see if they hear that their ostinato pattern matches the recording.
Teach the “Delilah’s Groove” pattern.
ProTIP: Have students read the pattern, teach it by rote, or invite students to play it when they can (as you demonstrate). Use the approach that works best in your teaching setting.
Play the recording again and invite all students to play the “Delilah’s Groove” ostinato.
Now we’ll add improvisation!
What is improvisation in music? (Creating music in the moment; playing spontaneously; showing what we know and can do musically within the context of a solo)
When it’s your turn to improvise you may play any rhythms you know, or any rhythms you think fit the music. There is no wrong answer here as long as you play the instrument with respect and care. Watch me to know when it’s your turn to improvise!
ProTIP: It’s always good to remind students when there is no incorrect answer. Everyone feels a bit freer to try when there’s no way to make a misstep, right (lol)?
Let’s practice! Explore several rhythms and rhythmic combinations. Also, remember it’s okay to add rests to have some sounds and silence. Play the recording and guide students to improvise on their drum.
ProTIP: Practice time is essential and provides students with the opportunity to “test drive” musical ideas before improvising in front of their peers.
Invite all students to play the “Delilah’s Groove” ostinato with the recording and cue individual students to improvise.
ProTIP: Going around the circle, in turn, informs students of when they will get to improvise… they can anticipate their turn. Once students are familiar with this activity, cue students randomly, which will keep them more focused and engaged as they never quite know when they will be called to improv!
ProTIP: Make note of students who played exceptional improvisations and/or those who had challenges as a summative assessment.
Materials/Set Up
Djembes, Congas, and/or Bongos (1 Per Student)
🎵 Sabu Martinez "Delilah” Link to Track on Spotify
Delilah’s Groove
© 2026 Darla S. Hanley
EXTEND the Learning:
Invite students to create an original 4-beat rhythmic ostinato to perform when it’s their turn to play alone instead of improvising.
Have students teach their original rhythmic ostinato to the class for everyone to perform with the track.
Invite a group of 4-5 students to go to the classroom percussion instrument collection, select instruments to play, and improvise together when called while everyone plays the “Delilah’s Groove” ostinato with the track. (Repeat with other groups of students as time permits.)
Distribute the DHMR “So Many Drums!” Word Search Puzzle, lead a discussion about the Percussion Instrument Family and review various types of drums.
Learning Targets
Play, Improvise
Learning Outcomes
Respond with instruments individually and as a group
Create improvised solos (and 4-beat ostinato patterns*)
Perform a rhythmic ostinato and original rhythms on drums
Assessment
Formal Observation/SummativeAssessment
*This only happens within the EXEND the Learning part of this teaching strategy.
Thanks for checking this out. If you use this teaching strategy, be sure to leave a comment to let me know how it resonates with your students!