Spoons

by Adele Lowen

- Show the class 2 spoons and tell them that they are really musical instruments.
Spoons belong to the Percussion Family of instruments because they have to be
hit to cause a vibration which creates the sound.
- Talk about and discuss how long ago people did not have very much money so
they made musical instruments out of their household items.
- Explain the tradition of playing the spoons by reading the History Of Playing The
Spoons from Wikipedia *click on the link below
- Different countries and cultures use the spoons for traditional music. The Metis,
in the Grande Prairie area, have a musical tradition of playing spoons along with
fiddle music and drumming. *click on the link below
- Watch the YouTube videos about how to play the spoons
*click on the links below
- How To Play Spoons - gives a lesson on how to hold the spoons and create
sounds with them
- Meeting Of 2 Kings Of Spoons Roger Mason and Tran Quang Hai - 2
musicians that try to out-do each other with spoon techniques, just
for the love of playing and for the fun of musical friendship
- Rockin' Spoons - a musical competition featuring a spoon act
- If you have any sets of spoons, show them to the class. There are wooden
spoons, metal spoons, spoons that are joined together at the handle, and spoons
that have a handle with 2 sets of spoons attached to it.
- Go to your staff room and pass out 2 spoons to each of your students to practice
with and experiment to create sounds. Suggest students try:
- playing the spoons quickly, slowly, loud, quiet
- listen to the different sounds created by the different shape and size of
spoons used (or different material the spoons are made from)

Curriculum Concepts:
Rhythm: 2, 3, 19
Expression: 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 11, 14, 15, 18
Listening: 5, 7, 18
Playing Instruments: 1, 6
- If you want to extend this lesson, have the students play the spoons and create
rhythms to go with a poem or song (this would add more curriculum concepts,
depending on what you do).