Orcas

Introducing the song

• Encourage singers to read the lyrics aloud before learning the melody. Discuss the orca facts presented in the lyrics.
• Sing Orcas with the teacher singing two bars at a time and have the students echo. Sing four bars at a time and have the students echo. Finally teacher and students sing the entire verse together and then have students sing on their own.

Use expressive singing

• Discuss expressive singing. Find words the singer will emphasize to create an expressive performance. How will the singer emphasize “belly flop” and “kaboom” to create an expressive performance?
• Add a movement to emphasize the word “bellyflop”. Hold one hand out in front of the body, palm facing up. Move the other hand up and over in a downward arc to land on the open hand on the word “kaboom!”
• Use contrasting dynamics.

Melodic phrases

• Have students use their hands to show the upward and downward movement of the melody of Orcas. Listen to the melody as it goes higher and lower in a wave pattern. Maybe the melody is representing the ocean or a swimming orca! This is called tone painting.
• Sing the melody line using solfege names for the notes. Find the spots in the song where the notes move by steps going up: do-re-mi-fa-so and where the notes move in steps going down: so-fa-mi-re-do.

Rhythm activities

• Clap the rhythm pattern of the song.
• Clap the rhythm along with the accompaniment track. Use inner hearing (think the rhythm without saying it as you clap).
• Create a body percussion performance of “Orcas” by adding a specific motion for each rhythmic element of the song (e.g. clapping, patsching, sliding, and splashing motions)