Experience Design: Advanced Rhythms through Beatboxing 

4th/5th Grade 
 
Summary/Overview: 
● Students will use basic beatboxing principles to create rhythms using syncopation, dotted 
rhythms, and triplets.  
 
Duration: ​20 minutes 
 
Standards:  
● Grade 5 General Music 5.2, 5.4, 5.6 (1), 5.8, 5.11 
 
I Can Statements:  
● I can explain what phonetics is.  
● I can associate beatbox syllables {P}, {K}, and {t} with their corresponding drums. 
● I can replicate beatbox syllables {P}, {K}, and {t} using my mouth.  
● I can beatbox syncopated rhythms .  
● I can beatbox dotted rhythms. 
● I can beatbox triplets. 
 
Materials and Visual Aids: 
● Microphone and speaker for leader 
● Laser pointer 
● Syllables {P}, {K}, and {t} on posters, white board, or projected 
● Kick drum, snare, and hi-hat 
 
Detailed Process: 
● Class Discussion/Primer 
○ “Make the weirdest, loudest sound you can. 3… 2… 1!”  
○ “You can be weirder and louder than that! 3… 2… 1!” 
○ Discuss definition of phonetics. Close to “the study of sounds in speech” 
● Introduce syllables using mic, laser pointer, and projected syllables 
○ Students echo back 4 quarter notes of each  
● Compare them to corresponding drum 
○ {P} to kick drum 
○ {K} to snare 
○ {t} to closed hi-hat 
● Echo pattern {P} {K} {t} {K} in quarter notes, facilitator continues to use laser pointer and 
mic to associate written syllables until class pattern is steady 
 ● Introduce dotted rhythms vocally with beatbox patterns, using mic and laser pointer 
○ Students echo 
● When dotted patterns are solid, introduce syncopated rhythms vocally with beatbox 
patterns, using mic and laser pointer 
○ Students echo 
● When syncopated patterns are solid, introduce triplet rhythms vocally with beatbox 
patterns, using mic and laser pointer 
○ Students echo 
 
Assessment: 
● Students create their own beatboxing pattern using the mic over class {P} {K} {t} {K} in 
quarter notes incorporating syncopated, triplet, and/or dotted rhythms.  
 
Adaptations: 
 
● Size:  
○ Increase size of syllable visuals 
○ Increase size of mic handle 
○ Do soloing activity in smaller groups 
● Color: 
○ Color code syllables 
○ Color code drums to correspond with syllables  
○ Use cream/off-white background with syllable visuals 
● Pacing: 
○ Clap instead of beatbox 
○ Echo patterns using one beat box syllable instead of the three used 
○ Keep quarter note pulse instead of syncopated, dotted, or triplet patterns using {P} 
{K} {t} {K} , just one syllable, clapping, stomping, or a drum 
● Modality: 
○ Student can hold foam 3-D cutouts of {P} {K} {t} 
○ Student can hold their hand against their lips to feel the different vibrations of 
different syllables 
○ Student can clap rhythm before using syllables