I.

DEFINITION

Attentiveness is listening closely and watching carefully.

II. OBJECTIVES

A. To pay attention.

B. To concentrate.
1. To listen long enough to know what is being said.
2. To look closely enough to notice detail.
3. To concentrate without distractions.

III. METHODS

A. To pay attention.


GENERAL UNIT

God wants us to pay attention to things and events around us. This takes practice.

1. BIBLE

Proverbs 20:12 The hearing ear and the seeing eye,
the Lord has made both of them.

2. EXAMPLES

Jesus (Mark 10:13-16) [(67); add cross]
Samuel (1 Samuel 3:1-14) [10]

3. VOCABULARY

attention ignore courteous
distraction watchful aware vs. unaware
notice alert examine
observe observant scrutinize

4. RESOURCES

A Childs Book of Character Building by Ron and Rebekah Coriell (Gr. 1-4)
5. ACTIVITIES

a. Read the story of Samuel, whose ears and heart were so
attentive to the Lord that Samuel heard the Lord calling
him even in his sleep. Older children may rewrite the
story in a dialogue format while younger children
dramatize it.
Bible
b. Whisper Me
Pick a Whisper Day when the childs name will be
whispered when he is addressed. He must listen very
carefully to hear his name called. When the child hears
his name he must freeze.
Practical Living
c. Dramatize parents calling and children responding. Let
one child be the parent and one child be child. The
parent can pick a place to be where he will call for the
child (e.g., in the neighborhood, in the shopping mall,
in another room). When he calls, child must stop, look
and listen. Have other children evaluate how well the
child responded.
Creative Expression
d. Practice eye contact with your child and encourage him
to look at you when he is addressed.
Practical Living
e. Discuss how Christ was attentive to His Father and His
Fathers ways. Let your children brainstorm as they go
through Christs life to find specific examples of how the
Lord never took His eyes off God.
Bible
f. Use the dictionary to define concentrate. There are
several meanings. Taste something concentrated such as
orange juice or bouillon. Write a comparison paper or
verbally compare concentrated food to concentrating on
a task. How are they alike; how are they different?
Language
g. What jobs require concentration (babysitter, tightrope
walker, air traffic controller, detective, guard, sentinel,
surgeon, and hunter)?
Reasoning
h. Play Concentration or Memory game. Demonstrate
how important it is to watch carefully.
Memory
Fun
i. Play Picture Memory. Hold up a detailed picture;
remove; have child try to remember the objects. Or
arrange a tray of household objects; remove; have child
try to remember the objects.
Fun
j. Play Hide the Penny. One person puts a penny under
one of three overturned cups. He moves the cups around.
The child watches carefully to see under which cup the
penny is located.
Fun
k. Give the child a stack of prewritten adjective labels:
round flat
vertical shiny
horizontal wooden
open pastel
tilted smooth
hard checkered
broken straight
rectangular striped
cylindrical curved
soft multicolored
Have him observe carefully around the house to match
objects with the labels.
Language
l. Body language is often an excellent clue to how a person
feels. Observe people in a mall, in a park, at the airport,
on TV . . . anyplace where you cannot hear their
conversations. Identify specific body language and
conclude the feelings of that person. What do things like
an erect posture, a quick gait, or a furrowed brow tell
you?
Practical Living
m. Dramatize how a confident person would interview for a
job vs. a nonconfident person. The interviewer should be
attentive to their body language.
Practical Living
Creative Expression
n. What is meant by the term undivided attention? Language
o. Define distract. What does dis mean? How do you
get off track when you are distracted? Make a list of
things that might distract you easily while you are
studying.
Language
p. Play any one of the electronic games, such as Simon
Says, in which you have to repeat a pattern of sounds
given.
Fun
Memory
q. Out of cardboard or wood, make traffic signs and set up
a Big Wheel course for younger brothers and sisters.
You could even make a traffic light!
Arts/Crafts
Health
r. Barnyard Confusion is a fun group game. Assign animal
sounds to pairs or small groups of people. Each person
says his sound at the same time (neighs, moos, clucks,
etc.). The object is to find all the animals in your
group.
Fun
s. Introduce Pennsylvania Dutch (Deutsche or German).
Explain how the phrases in German are arranged
differently than in English. For example, illustrate the
following sentence: Throw Mama from the train (pause)
a kiss. Let the child complete drawing the first phrase
before completing the sentence. This demonstrates how
vital the completion of a sentence can be.
Arts/Crafts
Reasoning
t. Play I Went to the Store. The object is to listen closely
to the objects mentioned and be able to repeat them with
another object of the same first letter added.
For example: I went to the store and bought butter. I
went to the store and bought butter and beans. I went
to the store and bought butter and beans and blocks.
For older children, have them repeat the first two letters.
For example: I went to the store and bought butter. I
went to the store and bought butter and buffaloes. I
went to the store and bought butter, buffaloes and a
buckle.
For extra difficulty, divide (by 2) quantities also. For
example: I went to the store and bought 67 butters. I
went to the store and bought 67 butters and 33
buffaloes. I went to the store and bought 67 butters,
33 buffaloes, and 16 buckles. (It might be nice to
allow pencils and paper on this one!)
Language
Memory
Math
u. Play Grandmothers Trunk. A similar game is to add a
word next in the alphabet. For example, In
grandmothers trunk I found an anteater. In
grandmothers trunk I found an anteater and a balloon.
Keep going until there is a mistake.
Language
Memory
v. Parents, practice really listening to your child. Make eye
contact. Hear between the lines. Do you really know
what he is saying? Test how well you are hearing him by
asking him.
Practical Living
w. Why pay attention? List some reasons (hear instructions,
warn of danger, learn, save steps, courteous, etc.).
Practical Living
x. Play any of the hidden picture games such as the ones in
Highlights magazine.
Practical Living
y. Discuss appropriate vs. inappropriate ways to get
attention (loudspeaker, whistle, honk, waving, signs vs.
screaming, acting silly, interrupting).
Practical Living
z. Analyze advertising (i.e., billboards, TV, magazines).
What catches our attention (color, movement, lights,
sound, unusual, sex)? Do all of these appeal to our
senses? Design an advertisement for a product.
Reasoning
Arts/Crafts

aa. Play any of these games where you have to pay attention.
Hokey Pokey
Duck, Duck, Goose
Drop the Handkerchief
Any ball game (watch the ball)
Any hand-to-eye game
Simon Says
May I?
Physical Skills
bb. Read and retell the Mary and Martha story. What was
each one attentive to?
Bible
cc. When cleaning your room be attentive. Look to see that
everything is in its place. Pay attention to detail!
Practical Living


EARS/SOUND/MUSIC UNIT

God has given us ears to hear the wonderful sounds He created around us. Not only
should we listen to sounds, but also to those in authority over us and to the Word of God.

1. BIBLE

Proverbs 4:20 My son, pay attention to what I say,
listen closely to my words.

Proverbs 25:12 Like an earring of gold and an
ornament of fine gold, is a wise reprover to a listening ear.

Isaiah 55:3 Incline your ear and come to Me.
Listen, that you may live; and I will make an everlasting
covenant with you.

2. EXAMPLES

Helen Keller [80]
Miss Anne Sullivan
Alexander Graham Bell [(169); add light bulb]
Antonio Stradivari

3. VOCABULARY

Ear
auricle auditory canal eardrum
hammer anvil stirrup
oval window eustachian tube round window
cochlea semicircular canal balance
optic nerve wax hearing
audiometer audiogram deaf
conductive deafness nerve deafness lip reading
hearing aid ear trumpet speaking tube
stethoscope deaf mute signing
finger spelling otoscope
Music
vibrate vibration pitch
tension sound waves amplitude
amplify audible inaudible
volume loudness decibels
stereo hi-fi (high fidelity) ultrasonic
noise acoustics compression
rarefaction echo reflection
supersonic diffraction sound barrier

Sound
symphony instrument orchestra
conductor string brass
woodwind percussion pitch
tension tone pluck
bow amplify sound board
reed Major Minor
scale octave pentatonic
melody harmony unison
parts interval second
third fourth fifth
chord intensity dynamics
rhythm beat tempo
overtone resonance timbre

4. RESOURCES

a. Books

Ears/Listening
How We Are Born, How We Grow, How Our Bodies Work, How We Learn
by Joe Kaufman (Great but out of print) (Gr. K-5)
Hearing vs. Hearing in My Magnificent Machine by William Coleman,
pp. 63-64 (Gr. 1-4)
A Childs Book of Character Building, Book I by Ron and Rebekah
Coriell, pp. 9-18 (Gr. 1-4)
* If You Listen by Charlotte Zolotov (Picture book; loving and dear)
(Gr. P-3)
* Nobody Listens to Andrew by Elizabeth Guilfoile (Cute story about a boy
with a bear in his bed; easy reader) (Gr. K-3)
Pumpernickel Tickle and Mean Green Cheese by Nancy Pat (Picture book
of trying to remember) (Gr. K-3)
Dont Forget the Bacon by Pat Hutchins (Picture book; little boy goes
grocery shopping and tries to remember) (Gr. P-3)
** The Story of Your Ears by Dr. Alvin and Virginia Silverstein (A great
general view picture book) (Gr. 2-8)
The Ear and Hearing by Brian R. Ward (Gr. 3-6)
The Eat Book by Al Perkins (Easy reader) (Gr. K-2)
The Five Senses: Hearing by Maria Rius (Short; easy to read on what we
hear, with a scientific explanation on how we hear at the end) (Gr. P-4)
** Your Ears by Irving and Ruth Adler (Informative) (Gr. 2-7)
*** Blood and Guts: A Working Guide to Your Insides by Linda Allison (Our
favorite hands-on book of the body; recommend you purchase it)
(Gr. K-9)
* The Helen Keller Story by Catherine Owens Peare (Good) (Gr. 3-7)
The Story of My Life by Helen Keller (Very long; includes letters; very
insightful) (Gr. 5-adult)
The Loudest Noise in the World by Benjamin Elkin (Gr. K-3)
A Riot of Quiet by Virginia Sicotte (Gr. K-3)

Sound
What Is Sound by Gabriel H. Rebuen (Good general book) (Gr. 2-5)
Sounds and How They Are Made by Harold E. Tannenbaum (Good
overall) (Gr. K-4)
* Sound by Dorothy S. Anderson (Easy to read with much information)
(Gr. 2-6)
* Science Experiments with Sound by Harry Sootin (Excellent experiments
for older kids with explanation) (Gr. 4-10)
Sound: An Experiment Book by Marian E. Baer (Gr. 3-6)
* Sound Science by Melvin Alexenberg (Cute with experiments and good
information) (Gr. K-4)
Sound Experiments by Ray Broekel (Easy to read; good experiments)
(Gr. K-4)
High Sounds, Low Sounds by Franklyn M. Branley (Easy reader; good
experiments) (Gr. K-3)
*** All About Sound and Ultrasonics by Ira M. Freeman (Great information
book) (Gr. 3-9)
* The First Book of Sound by David Knight (Excellent information)
(Gr. 3-9)
* Working with Sounds by E. A. Catherall & P. N. Holt (Good; especially
for music) (Gr. 3-8)
Noise, Noise, Noise by Jerry Grey (Gr. 3-6)
Echoes by Bernice Kohn (Easy reader) (Gr. K-3)
Silent Sound by David C. Knight (Gr. 5-10)
* Sounds You Cannot Hear by Eric Windle (Clearly written) (Gr. 4-7)
* Alexander Graham Bell by Elizabeth Rider Montgomery (Good reader)
(Gr. 2-5)
Ahoy! Ahoy! Are You There? by Robert Quackenbush (Cute, good book to
read to young) (Gr. K-5)
* Mr. Bell Invents the Telephone by Katherine B. Shippen (Complete)
(Gr. 3-7)
** This Is an Orchestra by Elsa Posell (Good explanation of each instrument
with a suggested listening library for beginners) (Gr. 3-9)
* A Ladybird Book of Musical Instruments by Ann Rees (Full of information
and easily purchased) (Gr. 2-5)
The First Book of Music by Gertrude Norman (Good; easy; not so
detailed) (Gr. 1-5)
Your Children Need Music by Marvin Greenberg (Excellent book on how
to introduce young children to music) (Gr. adult)

b. Records and tapes

* Young Persons Guide to the Orchestra by Benjamin Britten (Record; in
print)
Tubby Tuba (Available on Peter Pan, Disney and Camdemon labels)
Instruments of the Orchestra (Available on Cabot label)
Introduction to: Strings, Reeds, Brass & Percussion (Available on
Golden label)
* We Sing by Pamela Conn Beall and Susan Hagen Nipp (Childrens
songs and fingerplay; comes with tape and book) (Gr. P-4)
The Sound of Music by Rodgers and Hammerstein
** Readers Digest 100 Worlds Most Beautiful Melodies, by Readers
Digest (Write to Suffolk Marketing, Inc., Dept. RD-2, 155 East Main
Street, Smithtown, NY 11787, or call (516) 979-0100. The set includes
three tapes with a wonderful variety of classical music! If you have no
music, this is a great place to start!)

Suggested recordings to highlight specific instruments are as follows:

Violin
Kreisler: Caprice Viennoise and Tamborin Chinois
Handel: Overture to The Messiah
Massenet: Meditation (Thais)
Paganini: Moto Perpetuo
Sarasate: Romanza Andaluza

Cello
Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 - Andante Second Movement
Brahms: Symphony No. 3 - Third Movement
Nevin: A Day in Venice
Saint-Saens: Carnival of the Animals (The Swan)

Double Bass
Bach-Stokowski: Prelude in B Minor
Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 - Third Movement
Saint-Saens: Carnival of the Animals (The Elephant)
Schubert: Symphony No. 8, The Unfinished - First Movement

Entire String Family
Bach: Suite in D
Mozart: Eine Kleine Nachtmusik
Tschaikowsky: Symphony No. 4 - Third Movement

Harp
Delibes: Pizzicata from Sylvia
Salzedo: Short Stories for the Harpist
Tschaikowsky: The Nutcracker Suite (Waltz of the Flowers)

Flute
Creston: The Incredible Flutist
Debussy: Afternoon of a Faun - Prelude
Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf (the part of the bird)
Saint-Saens: Carnival of the Animals (The Birds)
Tschaikowsky: The Nutcracker Suite (Dance of the Flutes)

Piccolo
Kleinsinger: Peewee the Piccolo
Sousa: Stars and Stripes Forever - piccolo solo
Tschaikowsky: The Nutcracker Suite (Chinese Dance)

B-flat Clarinet
Copland: El Salon Mexico
Enesco: Romanian Rhapsody
Mozart: Quintet for Clarinet and Strings
Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf (The Cat)
Saint-Saens: Carnival of the Animals (Cuckoo)
Schubert: Unfinished Symphony
Wagner: Overture to Tannhauser
Weber: Overture to Oberon

Bass Clarinet
Grofe: Grand Canyon Suite (On the Trail)
Tschaikowsky: The Nutcracker Suite (Sugar Plum Fairy)
Wagner: Siegfrieds Rhine Journey

E-flat Clarinet
Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue
Ravel: Bolero

Saxophone
Bizet: LArlesienne Suite (Prelude)
Creston: Suite for Saxophone and Piano
Creston: Sonata for Saxophone
Creston: Concerto for Saxophone and Orchestra
Debussy: Rhapsody for Saxophone and Orchestra
Ibert: Concertino da Camera
Shostakovich: Golden Age (Polka) - for Tenor Sax

Oboe
Bach: Sinfonia to Church Cantata No. 156
Bach: Jesu, Joy of Mans Desiring
Offenbach: Orpheus in the Underworld
Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf (Duck)
Satie-Debussy: Gympodie

English Horn
Bach-Stokowski: Fugue in G Minor (Little Fugue)
Dvorak: New World Symphony (Slow Movement)
Franck: Symphony in D Minor (Second Movement)
Sibelius: The Swan of Tuonela
Bassoon
Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf (Grandpa)
Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade (Second Movement)
Rossini: Barber of Seville Overture
Tschaikowsky: Symphony No. 6 (First Movement)

Contra-Bassoon
Dukas: The Sorcerers Apprentice
Taylor: Looking-Glass Suite (Jabberwocky)

Entire Woodwind Family
Goldmark: Rustic Wedding Symphony (First Movement)
Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Nights Dream (Scherzo)
Wagner: Overture to Tannhauser

Trumpet
Bizet: Carmen Suite (Changing of the Guard)
Grofe: Grand Canyon Suite (On the Trail)
Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf (Hunter)
Shostakovich: Polka from the Age of Gold Ballet
Verdi: Aida (Triumphal March)
Wagner: Tannhauser (Second Act)

French Horn
Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Nights Dream (Nocturne)
Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf (Wolf)
Strauss: Till Eulenspiegel
Suppe: Light Cavalry Overture
Tschaikowsky: Symphony No. 5 (Second Movement)
Wagner: Prelude to Lohengrin

B-flat Tenor Trombone
Grofe: Grand Canyon Suite (On the Trail)
Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade (Second Movement)
Tschaikowsky: March Slave and 1812 Overture
Wagner: Lohengrin - Prelude to Act III

Bass Trombone
Sibelius: Finlandia
Tschaikowsky: Symphony No. 6 (First Movement)

Tuba
Kleinsinger: Tubby the Tuba
Ravel: Mother Goose Suite (Beauty and the Beast)
Wagner: Siegfrieds Rhine Journey
Entire Brass Family
Mussorgsky: Love Music from Boris Godunov
Tschaikowsky: Symphony No. 4 (First Movement)
Wagner: Ride of the Valkyries

Timpani
Elgar: Enigma Variations
Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf (Hunters Guns)
Tschaikowsky: Romeo and Juliet Overture
Wagner: Siegfrieds Funeral March

Xylophone
Gershwin: Piano Concerto in F (Last Movement)
Saint-Saens: Danse Macabre
Saint-Saens: Carnival of the Animals (Fossils)
Shostakovich: Polka from the Age of Gold Ballet

Celeste
Grofe: Grand Canyon Suite (On the Trail)
Ravel: Mother Goose Suite (Empress of the Pagodas)
Tschaikowsky: The Nutcracker Suite (Sugar Plum Fairy)

Chimes
Mussorgsky: A Night on Bald Mountain
Tschaikowsky: 1812 Overture

Snare or Side Drum
Bizet: Carmen Suite (Les Dragons dAlcala)
Rimsky-Korsakov: Capriccio Espagnol

Tenor Drum
Ravel: Bolero

Triangle
Grieg: Peer Gynt Suite (Anitras Dance)
Ivanow: Procession of the Sardar (Caucasian Sketches)
Listz: Piano Concerto No. 1 in E-flat

Gong
Balakirev: Tone Poem, Russia

Castanets
Bizet: Carmen Suite (Entracte)
Tschaikowsky: 1812 Overture

Cymbals
Grieg: Peer Gynt Suite (Arabian Dance)
Respighi: The Fountains of Rome
Tschaikowsky: Marche Slave

Entire Percussion Family
Chavez: Toccata for Percussion
Haydn: Toy Symphony

c. Movies and video

The Miracle Worker
The Music Man
The Sound of Music
Mary Poppins
Mr. Bell

5. ACTIVITIES

a. Learn the parts of the ear. What are the main sections?
Discuss: hearing, auricle, auditory canal, hammer, anvil,
stirrup, eustachian tube, semicircular canal, cochlea,
vibration, eardrum. Do you know you have a drum in
your ear? A hammer? What are the three smallest bones
in the body?
Science
b. Draw an ear and label the parts. Science
Arts/Crafts
c. For younger children, set up an ear to move through.
Draw the auricle on a big sheet of butcher paper with a
hole in it for children to crawl through. Tape the auricle
to the backs of two chairs to hold it up. Next create the
auditory canal with a tunnel of blankets, boxes or a
collapsible toy tunnel. For the eardrum, use a real drum
or stretch a membrane of a large balloon over an oatmeal
cylinder. For the hammer, anvil and stirrup, use a
hammer to vibrate a piece of metal and let that metal
vibrate another piece of metal. A shell filled with water
makes a good cochlea. An extension cord makes a good
optic nerve. Older children love setting this up for
younger brothers and sisters. Ask children what part of
the ear they are in and how it works as they crawl
through their ear.
Science
Fun