Montessori listening activities

The Montessori Silence Game and Beyond: Auditory Games

1. Name that sound. Play an audio recording of different sounds and encourage the children to identify what they are [ducks quacking, bees buzzing, piano playing, phone ringing, baby crying, etc.]
2. Sound Bingo. Create Bingo cards and in each square on the Bingo card, have a picture that coincides with the sounds on the audio recording[i.e., duck, bee, piano, phone, baby, etc]. Each time the child hears a sound that matches the picture on their card, they cover the square with a bingo chip.
3. Musical Mats. Scatter some small rugs/mats on the floor and have each child stand on a mat. Then, play recorded music and have the children walk from mat to mat. When the music stops, each child needs to find a mat to step on.
4. What do you hear? Prepare a tray of items that have distinctive sounds, such as a music box, a rattle, an alarm clock, a windup toy, bells, etc. and then remove the tray from the children's sight. Then, standing behind the children choose one item at a time to make a sound while the children take turns guessing the source of the sound.
5. Freeze Dancing. Invite the children to dance when the music is on and when you turn the music off, they should FREEZE! Experiment with different temposchildren dance quickly to music with a fast beatand slowly to music with a slow beat.
6. Take a Sound Walk. Go on a walk around the schoolyard or inside the school and have the children take turns identifying everything they hear. Ask them to determine the direction a sound is coming from.
7. Use the Montessori Sound Shakers or create your own. Pair the cylinders together based on the sound that they make
8. Play SimonSays
9. Play musical follow the leader. Use recycled materials to make identical musical instrumentsone for you, and one for each child. Then, make one simple noise with your instrument and ask the children to try to imitate it with their instrument. Then, make two noises, three noises, four noises, etc.,and have the children attempt to repeat the patterns you create. Variation: Sing or hum a portion of a song or tune, and ask the children to take turns repeating it.
10. Who Am I? Choose one child to put on a blindfold and sit on a chair in the middle of the circle. Then, choose a child from circle to quietly walk up to the blindfolded child and say, Hello! Who am I? The child in the chair has to guess whose voice they just heard.
11. Clapping Game. Clap a pattern and encourage the children to repeat the pattern that they just heard.