Page 10 - Level 1 Ukulele Lesson Plans

4. Finger Dexterity (3 mins): ‘Dinosaur Fingers’ written by Lucy Milan Davis “It’s time to do our dinosaur fingers!” Please see instructions in lesson plan 1.
5. Tuning (5 mins): ‘The Tuning Song’ written by Lucy Milan Davis
Remind the children how to hold their ukuleles. See activity 5 ‘Tuning’ from lesson plan 1 for instructions.
See if there’s a volunteer who can remember where the G string is and ask them to pluck it. “Now let’s all find the G string. It’s string number 4 and it is closest to the ceiling.” Ask everyone to pluck the G string with their thumb.
“Now I’m going to play a G on my tuning fork and I want you to listen.” You play a G and then hum a G. “I’m going to hum again and this time I want you to copy me.” Hum a G and the children should copy. “Now pluck the G string on your own ukuleles with your thumb. Does it sound the same? If it sounds the same then we know it’s in tune. Which number string did you just play (4)? And which note does it sound (G)?”
“Please put down your ukuleles. I’m going to sing ‘The Tuning Song’ and I want you to join in with any of the words you can remember from last week.” Sing the song one time, plucking GCEA on your ukulele as you sing “GCEA” and as you sing “Green Children Eat Ants.” At the end, pluck the C string again as you say “Yum”!
Time to tune the ukulele, time to tune the uke.
GCEA Green Children Eat Ants.
Listen to the strings you’re playing, listen to the strings you’re playing.
GCEA Green Children Eat Ants.
Are the notes too high, are they too low?
GCEA Green Children Eat Ants.
Time to tune the ukulele, time to tune the uke.
GCEA Green Children Eat Ants. Yum!
NB: don’t forget to sing “ready” to encourage the children to join in from the beginning (and not just for “GCEA...”) and use the right starting note.
6. Song/Game (4 mins): ‘See Saw Up and Down’ (traditional) “I’m going to sing you a new song.” You sing the song.
See saw up and down,
In the air and on the ground.
Teach the song by rote. The children copy you one line at a time and then they copy the whole song.
“Now we’re going to turn ourselves into see saws!” You stand up and stretch your arms out to the side then sing the song as you rock from side to side with your arms going up and down in opposite directions like a see saw. Click here to see the video. The children should naturally join in. “This time I want to see if you can move at the same time as me.” Repeat the activity and then praise children for moving at the same time as you. Try to encourage the children to only move while they are singing (and not before the song starts and after it ends).
“I don’t know about you but my see saw is lonely. Let’s get into partners to make our see saws bigger!” Help the children get into pairs (same actions but facing each other with palms touching) and everyone sings the song several more times. Make sure to get everyone to “freeze” when they aren’t singing.
7. Plucking the Ukulele (6 mins): ‘The Tuning Song’ written by Lucy Milan Davis
Remind the children how to hold their ukuleles. See activity 5 ‘Tuning’ from lesson plan 1 for instructions.
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