This activity is for a group of younger children and helps them to learn the names of various instruments. It also helps to reinforce following directions and playing a steady beat. Place a collection of rhythm instruments in the center of the floor and have the children sit in a circle around the instruments. Instruments that work well with this activity include hand drums, tambourines, bells, rhythm sticks, maracas and shakers. Allow each child to choose an instrument. Remind the children not to play until instructed. Sing a basic song that goes something like this: "Play your instrument along with me, play your instrument along with me, play your instrument along with me, if you have a _______, play along with me." Fill in the blank with one of the instruments present. Then, any children who have that specific instrument get to play with the steady beat as you hum the melody that you used for the verse. Have all the children who are not playing their instruments at the time pat the beat on their laps. Continue the game until everyone has had a chance to play. You also might include larger groups such as "if you are a girl, play with me," and "if you are a boy, play with me."
This activity uses a drum to illustrate how sound waves travel. Have a child hold a hand drum out in front of himself at chest level. Place some raw rice on top of the drum. Hold another drum near the first drum without allowing the drums to touch. Ideally, the second drum should be at least 12 inches in diameter and have a mallet that goes with it. Make sure that the face of the second drum is pointed toward the first drum that has the rice on it. Strike the second drum with the mallet. Allow the child to come forward and watch how the rice jumps and dances across the face of the drum when someone strikes the second drum with a mallet. Explain how striking the drum creates invisible sound waves that move the air, as evidenced by the jumping rice.
This activity can be conducted in a classroom and works on children's listening skills and helps them to become better acquainted with the sounds of various instruments. Choose a child to be "it" and come to the front of the classroom. Have this child sit in a chair with her back to the rest of the class. Place a collection of instruments at the back of the classroom. You can use any types of instruments for this game. Have the child who is "it" close her eyes as you select another child to move to the back of the classroom. The child whom you selected will then play one of the instruments a few times and then move back to her seat. The child who is "it" then turns around and tries to guess which instrument was played and who played it. If "it" gets both guesses correct (the person and the instrument), she gets to go again. If she does not guess both correctly, the child who played the instrument gets to be "it" next. Another variation of this game is to use one instrument at a time and place the instrument under "it's" chair. Then you would select a child to "steal" the instrument, return to her seat, play the instrument and then hide the instrument. You have to use an instrument that is small enough to hide for this version of the game. The child who is "it" then gets three guesses as to who stole the instrument.