I saw this activity used in an elementary music classroom, I believe 3rd grade was the appropriate class for this project, though I might be wrong. In this exercise students are given four boxes connected to each other to represent a measure. Each student (or group) is given music notation that will only fit the number of boxes that correspond with the number of beats it gets. Ex: the half note sheet will fit in exactly two boxes.
This activity can be done individually or in groups. If in groups, students can break into groups of four and each create their own, then take turns clapping the rhythms they created. After this is completed, each group can perform their four-measure piece for the class (using clapping and rhythm syllables) or the class can learn the piece themselves.
Attached is an example of what the sheets might look like.
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About Lady Fair
Lady is a musician with a bachelor's degree in music education. She plays multiple instruments and has participated in numerous musical ensembles, giving her a wide variety of experiences and knowledge to use in her teaching career. Of her ensemble participation, she has fifteen years of band experience, nine years choral, and four years in orchestra. Éowyn's primary instrument is clarinet, with voice and piano being close secondary instruments. Throughout her musical education career she studied voice and clarinet simultaneously. In addition to clarinet, piano, and voice, she has also studied violin and oboe at the college level, and also plays recorder, tin whistle, and other instruments in the woodwind family.
If you ask her, she will say, "I chose to major in music education because I have a desire to use my knowledge and experience in music to share its beauty and foster a love of music in the hearts of my students. I hope to encourage my students to try their hardest, feel like they have accomplished something, and give them a life long passion for music."
Lady currently teaches private lessons on clarinet, sax, flute, oboe, piano, and voice, and recently gained a position teaching orchestra and chorus at a local middle school. She is also a member of the Once Upon a Dream woodwind ensembles.
Adventures of a Music Teacher 