Submitted by Nancy L. Grams, Waupaca, Wisconsin

Idea posted April 13, 2004

Read the book Zin! Zin! Zin! a Violin by Lloyd Moss. It's a great rhyming book, and my first and second grade students love it. Once we read the book, we review and talk about what a solo is, what a duet is, etc. Then, I say the words: duet, solo, quartet, trio, etc. all the way up to a chamber group of ten in it, and the students have to form their own groups with the correct number of students in their group (i.e., duet=two-student groups, trio=three-student groups, etc.). The students really like the activity, and it's a great way to help them remember the names with their corresponding number. I do solo through quintet with first grade, and solo through chamber group with second grade students.