Y4. Lesson 13. Practise tam-ti
Prior learning: None
Duration: 30 minutes
Materials: Woodblocks or claves
Keywords: Beat, rhythm, singing, chanting, partners, rhymes, circle games.
Difficulty: 
Prepare
triple metre
Present
Practise
tam-ti
Melodic development
Students are unconsciously introduced to triple metre.
- This classic English song was introduced as a game in earlier year levels and may be familiar to students.
- Lead the class in singing the song.
- When secure, demonstrate the strong and weak beats by clapping as you sing the first verse.
- Ask students if they can recognise the pattern of the strong and weak beats [1 - 2 - 3]
- Ask them to sing and clap the beat.
Rhythmic development
Students identify tam-ti in a known song.
- Lead the class in singing the song.
- Ask students what the name of the syllable is for two sounds distributed over two beats, the second occurring after the second beat [tam-ti]
- Ask where the rhythm syllable tam-ti can be found in the first two phrases [in measures two and four].
- Ask which words in this phrase use the syllable tam-ti ['comes a-']
- What about the second two phrases [in measures seven and eight]
- Which words in these two measures use tam-ti ['when the' & comes a-']
Game
Students improvise movements and actions in this classic English folk song.
- The melody of this song is simple and catchy, with many lyrics about a conversation with a farmer and his wife.
- The purpose of this game is to prepare for triple time [3-metre] and an opportunity for creative movement and fun.
- Students should form two groups. One group will be farmers and one group the wives [perhaps split into boys and girls]
- In the first verse, farmers will sing and pretend to hold a bucket.
- In the second verse, the wives sing and wag their fingers at the farmers.
- In the third verse, the farmers sing and make a questioning pose.
- Continue with as many verses as possible, with every verse having different and imaginative gestures from the singers.
Listening
Students listen and identify tam-ti in the chorus.
- Lead the class in singing the song.
- Teach that the form for the first part of the song is called the verse, and the second part is the chorus.
- Ask students to listen for the rhythm syllable sy-co-pa in the verse. Where is it found? [measure 2 & 4]
- Using the chorus as a target, ask students to listen carefully and discover if the rhythm syllable tam-ti can be found.
- Ask how many times it appears [2] and where [measures 5 & 7]
Visual learning
Students write tam-ti on the staff.
- Print and distribute the worksheet or draw the examples on the board.
- For each of the three examples, students should draw tam-ti in the correct place.
- This exercise reinforces the look of tam-ti [the dotted crotchet followed by a quaver]
Instruments
Students
Part work
Students sing in canon.
- Depending on class ability, divide students into two or three groups.
- Lead the class in singing the song.
- When secure, the first group will begin singing and continue until you ask them to stop.
- The second group will sing from the beginning after the second measure and continue until you stop them.
- A third group will continue after the third measure until you stop them.
- An example of how this all might sound is on the player.
Assess
Suggested lessons
Y1. Beat II
Y1. Beat III
Y1. Beat IV