Rhythm Dot Chart

This Saturday I attended an inservice put on by the Capital Section of CMEA.  I love going to workshops, I always come back with so many new ideas to use with my kiddos.  One of those ideas was introduced during a session on beginning band.  It looks extremely simple but can be used in a number of ways.  There is a 4x4 grid, with a large dot in some of the boxes.  Students can play where the dots are on their mouthpiece and rest when there is nothing in the square.  They read the grid left to right, top to bottom, completing 4 measures of 4/4 rhythms.  Then, you can shock the students by rotating the grid, creating a brand new set of rhythms for them to play.  I was not able to get a picture of this side of the grid, but on the back side, this is what it looks like

This side introduced the use of eighth notes, but the presenter suggested not telling the students how to play it, just have them experiment a few times and then have them play the 2 faster notes evenly.  This chart can also facilitate students playing different parts simultaneously by having 2 students come up and stand on either side of the chart and play from bottom to top on their side.  To add difficulty, add 2 more students (total of 4) playing from the remaining 2 sides of the chart for a fun and complex polyrhythm.  

The presenter was using this for beginning band before having students play from a method book, but I think this would also be a great tool with recorders, clapping/body percussion, or classroom instruments.  This could easily segue into a composition project as well.  There are so many possibilities with this simple 2 sided chart, I am very excited to incorporate it in my classroom!