Today’s Teaching Strategy: Feeling Good is Good Today
(Instrumental Improvisation)
Elementary (Gr. 4)
© 2026 Darla S. Hanley
This teaching strategy is all about performing an original chant, improvising, and playing classroom percussion instruments… Oh, and feeling good (lol)! It goes with “Shaker Song” by Spyro Gyra (1978) and “Lovely” by Henrik Wikström, Anders Lewén, and Thomas Charles Blaize (2024) because of their happy vibes (and lyrical message).
Pedagogical Foundations
Education—and life—are all about making connections.
In my view, educational (and life) content is presented (and learned) within a context. We experience things, label them, make associations, and store them in our memory bank for future opportunities and needs. Our memory banks include vocabulary and meaning—but also include memories of experiences and feelings. We connect this to that all the time, often without realizing it!
In my view, in order for students to “own” content they need to apply it. They need to freely experience and explore as they navigate their developing skillsets. They also need structure and guidance to set them up for success as they make applications.
Here are a few ways to encourage the application of content:
Analyze and Describe
Invite students to talk about what they see, hear, feel, etc. related to a musical composition or artistic image like a painting or sculpture. Encourage the use of their “best” music/arts vocabulary.
Have students form cooperative learning groups or form partners to share their analysis and descriptions of the music or visual art piece. Select 1 student in each group/pair to be the REPORTER to present their description to the class.
Attentive Listening
Provide a prompt for students to focus and listen for something specific in the track. Have them close their eyes and raise their hand when they hear what is requested (e.g., raise your hand when you hear: the singer enter; the introduction end; the drum solo).
ProTIP: Closing eyes removes potential peer influence.
Ask students to become MUSIC DETECTIVES and listen to music with call-and-response or rondo form to map the repetition they hear in the music.
Compare and Contrast
Present 2 brief examples of music that share lyrical messages, instrumentation, style, form, etc. and invite students to analyze and describe (again lol) what they hear using a Venn diagram or other graphic organizer.
Ask students to share their personal preference of the 2 musical examples — with a rationale.
ProTIP: Asking students to provide a rationale encourages them to connect their choice with a thoughtful justification.
Guided Questions
Always (lol) use guided/planned essential questions to see what students know and can do… This is teaching at a super basic level, right? The questions we ask as teachers impact student engagement, including their ability to (and willingness to) share and apply skills and knowledge in new ways.
Avoid yes or no questions and use the 5 Ws: Who? What? Where? When? and Why? to reach deeper applications and connections.
Call to Action
Identify 1 piece of music that is familiar to your students AND a new piece that is related to that piece in some manner (e.g., same lyrical message, both feature trumpet, both are 12 bar blues). Structure a learning experience for students to listen, analyze, and describe the 2 pieces — focusing on making connections between the two.
We all know this piece of music [insert title]. Today we are going to listen to a similar piece, and you need to listen to be able to tell me how the 2 are connected. Listen for instruments, voices, musical style, form, artist, composer, etc.
Today’s teaching strategy includes the opportunity for students to chant, improvise rhythmic patterns, and very likely groove 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.
Today we are going to play instruments with music called “Shaker Song”. Before we play, let’s practice the “Nothing Can Stand in My Way” chant.
Lead students in speaking the chant without the recording.
ProTIP: Students may read this text projected on a screen or written on the board, or echo phrases spoken by the teacher (rote learning)—whatever works best in your setting.
ProTIP: Having students practice the chant before distributing instruments will allow students to focus on the chant and instrument parts separately.
Distribute classroom percussion instruments (1 per student) and lead an 8-beat rhythmic improvisation activity using this prompt:
Teacher:
Play your instruments, here you go;
8 Beats of rhythms, show what you know!
Students:
Improvise 8 beats
[Repeat]
Play the recording of “Shaker Song” and repeat the rhythmic improvisation activity with the track.
ProTIP: Begin at 0.16 following the introduction.
Now we will put it all together! Lead students to speak the “Nothing Can Stand in Our Way” chant and improvise 8 beats of rhythmic patterns as noted below with the recording.
Materials/Set Up
Variety of Classroom Percussion Instruments
Tambourines*
🎵 Spyro Gyra "Shaker Song” (1978) Link to Track on Spotify
🎵 Henrik Wikström, Anders Lewén, Thomas Charles Blaize “Lovely” (2024) Link to Track on Spotify
Nothing Can Stand in Our Way
© 2026 Darla S. Hanley
Feeling good is good today
Awesome music’s what we play
Hear our rhythms, sing our song
We could do this all day long
[IMPROVISE 8 Beats]
Nothing, nothing, can stand in our way
feeling good on this lovely day!
[IMPROVISE 8 Beats]
Nothing Can Stand in Our Way—Rhythms for Chant
© 2026 Darla S. Hanley
EXTEND the Learning:
Play the recording of “Lovely” by Henrik Wikström, Anders Lewén, Thomas Charles Blaize as a music listening activity and ask the following questions:
What is the message within the lyrics in this song? (Feeling good; lovely day idea)
How is this song similar to our “Nothing Can Stand in Our Way” chant? (Lovely day idea; “nothing can stand in my/our way [from] feeling good on a lovely day” shared phrase)
Distribute tambourines (1 per student) and lead students to play the backbeat (beats 2 and 4) with the recording of “Lovely”. Select individual students to improvise 8-beat rhythmic patterns, when their names are called.
ProTIP: There are many ways to identify individual students to improvise (e.g., call names; go down the line, in turn; draw names from a hat). Use whatever works best in your setting.
Learning Targets
Play, Improvise
Learning Outcomes
Respond with voices and instruments
Create original 8-beat rhythmic patterns
Perform a combination of chanting and group improvisation
Assessment
Informal Observation/Formative Assessment
Formal Observation/Summative Assessment*
*This happens only in the EXTEND 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!