Out of the Ark Music Summer Assembly Songs

Subject:
Ace-Music

A seasonal celebration devoted to singing assemblies ideal for ages 5-11

At a glance

Activity songbook for any assembly in the summer term
Easy to teach and learn songs on CD or as Words on Screen
Dedicated resources for simple assembly planning
Songs, assembly plans and heaps of additional resources and extras
Supremely accessible and teacher-friendly, ideal for non-specialists

Out of the Ark Music has been successfully producing assemblies for many years now and it has a brand-new resource called Summer Assembly Songs.

This is more than just a songbook, though, because it contains assembly plans and cross-curricular ideas galore for linking to a variety of activities in and out of class.

Summer Assembly Songs is written by Mark and Helen Johnson, the two brilliant songwriters behind the hugely popular ‘Songs for Every…’ series, so we know the bar will be set high.

And it is.

The resource contains 15 dynamic and memorable songs specifically written to cover summery themes and significant dates such as going to the beach, insects in the garden, Father’s Day, Walk to School week and the tear-jerking leavers’ assemblies.

Children will love ‘The Sweaty Song’ and ‘Life is Good’ and they will tune in to the songs as they are beautifully sung by children. These come as Words on Screen too, making it easy to follow and join in.

I really rate the way the songbook has been compiled because you are essentially getting three resources in one.

The songs themselves have been expertly written and created and you can see what’s available through a handy ‘at a glance’ information section, which tells you everything you need to know about each title.

These provide a summary, age, musical style, vocal range and key guide and also point to the subject links across the curriculum and musical activities you can try.

There is also a dedicated ‘creative ideas’ section, which suggests some neat ideas to have a go at.

The lyrics page is accompanied by a page full of teaching tips, bright ideas and activities which are all, in turn, supported by what’s achievable, what you need to get going, how to ramp up the challenge and pointers relating to structure, rhythm, pitch, dynamics, articulation, texture, timbre and tempo.

The music score and song lyric sheets for all songs (piano music score, melody and chords) are included and these are followed by brilliant assembly notes that add extra organisation, confidence and guidance.

The assemblies are succinctly written and include ideas for engagement and wonder, what to talk about, the ‘Bible bit’ and responsive story, prayer and prompts for going deeper, if appropriate to your school.

There’s also a glossary and extras that include a bonus song, dance video, five signing videos and a craft video.

Out of the Ark Music has pulled another one out of the bag, in time for the silly season.