Connecting Vowels to Rhythm

After the students learned rhythm and were confident in identifying vowel sounds, we were able to start using those two skills in conjunction with one another. The songs and story that we used to teach about rhythm, vowel sounds, and syllables, each had only one vowel sound/syllable per note and vice versa. Because of this, we were able to make important connections between those concepts.
One lesson that we completed for this used the song "High-Stepping Horses." When learning the song, we marched to the rhythm of the song. Afterwards, we used rhythm sticks in two different ways. We used these to tap the rhythm of the song one time. Then, we practiced tapping every time that we heard a vowel sound. For example, when we sang the word, "stepping," we tapped for the /e/ sound and the /i/ sound. In order to connect our rhythm and vowel sounds, we talked about whether or not their tapping was the same or different each time.

Some students noticed differences because, in identifying vowel sounds, they did not say that the "y" in the word "jiggety" qualified. In this way, they demonstrated their discernment and ability to distinguish between rhythm and vowels. 

Later, to reinforce similarities and differences between syllables and rhythm, we read a Halloween book called There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat. We added instruments to the story on the phrases "There was an old lady who swallowed a..." and "I don't know why she swallowed a bat. Imagine that." Students played the rhythm of the story with either rhythm sticks or triangles.

From these lessons, we were able to identify that, in the instances of the song and story that we used, the vowel sounds matched the rhythms. This led to our later discussions on how the smaller parts of words, syllables, can also match the rhythm.