In Music during the last few weeks, Year 5 have been doing a unit of work on the djembe, a type of drum from West Africa. The djembe drum is shaped like a goblet and is made of wood. It has goatskin stretched over the top, and depending on where you hit it, it makes different tones. Hitting the middle of the drum results in a low or ‘bass’ tone, and it makes a higher pitched tone when you hit it closer to the rim of the drum. Hitting the drum twice in quick succession is called a ‘flam’ tone, and resting one hand on the skin of the djembe while hitting it with the other hand creates a ‘mute’ tone. We practised call and response drumming as a whole class, creating a big drum circle, before the Year 5 students had the opportunity to compose their own call and response style pieces in their own smaller ensembles. This involves a leader playing a short rhythm, the ‘call’, and the rest of the ensemble repeating this back, the ‘response’. They had a fabulous time doing this and created some truly impressive pieces, and were very excited to watch each other’s fabulous creations!
Furthermore, Year 5 were lucky enough to meet the famous basketball player, Danny Evans today. He delivered an inspiring assembly, telling the children all about his journey to becoming a professional basketball player. They then took part in a fantastic fitness circuit where they could really show off their skills!
