Building Your Classroom Instrumentarium: Unpitched Percussion

I have walked into classrooms that have 40 triangles but only 10 strikers, an entire box full of shekeres in 3 different sizes, and jingle bells to outfit the entire school, but not one decent hand drum or pair of claves!

This has kinda been my world since jumping abroad a few years ago. So whether you’re just starting out or supplementing what you already have, I think we both know what a valuable part unpitched percussion (UPP) plays in the elementary classroom.

So what do you need and how much of it do you want when it comes to UPP? Like many of you, I divide and organize UPP into 6 families of instruments: woods, metals, shakers, scrappers, skins, and special effect instruments (I kinda made up that last category….it’s those instruments that make cool sounds, but are not necessarily rhythmic.)

I offered a suggested count of how many you might want for your classroom, but this also depends on your class sizes.

Here are some of the essentials in each family of UPP:

Woods

Rhythm Sticks: Simple yet versatile, a class set of these will give you a great bang for your buck! I’ve even had students use rhythm sticks to create shapes, like star constellations, the sun, then reinsert back into the music lesson at hand.
Wood Block: Easily distinguishable, wood blocks produce a clear, sharp sound that can cut through any ensemble. Count: 3-4
Claves: Such a distinct sound, claves have their place in so many different world music. For some younger ages, claves can be challenging for kids to hold, but patience for proper hand technique is so worth it! Count: 2 pairs
A-Go-Go or Tick-Tock Block: tick, tock, tick, tock! Love these! Easily used in a variety of musical settings, a-go-go blocks are also a fantastic tool for teaching drum pieces. How? It can help guide students’ listening by providing clear and contrasting high and low tones similar to what they’re playing on their drum. I know, they have ridges so you can scrape them too! Even though they can scrape, I still put these in the wood family. Count: 1-2
Temple Blocks: Temple Blocks have a great resonant sound. The clear contrast between the warm lower tones and the bright pitch on the higher blocks makes it easy for me to lead eurythmic exercises in my classroom. The adjustable height stand makes it accessible for all ages of students.

Metals

Cow Bells: Baby, I gotta have more cowbell! Right?! LOL, but ya probably don’t! An absolute necessity in your arsenal, but if you need more than one, go for different sizes. There’s also the Togo/Ghana Gankogui and the West African/Brazilian A-Go-Go Bells that offer a unique sound to any percussion ensemble. Count: 1 of each, or just 1
Triangles: Gotta have ‘em! Be sure your students are holding these in a way that offers the best sound. I discovered the yellow holders while in China….in the past I always used twine but this really makes playing technique easy. Strikers? Get a few extras. Triangles come in multiple sizes, consider a few different sizes. Count: 5-10.
Finger Cymbals: The sound of finger cymbals reminds me of the cherry on top! It’s this perfectly delicate punctuation played at just the right time! Teach your kids proper hand technique on FC and these will become your favorite too! And yes, I KNOW the ones I’m suggesting are expensive, but when it comes to FC, the quality makes a huge difference in sound. Count: 2-4
Gongs: Who doesn’t want a gong?! When carefully guided, students can add such a special musical moment with the gentle strike of a gong. I’d suggest a hand-held opera gong, but if your money tree is growing healthy, a 22’’ wind gong is awesome!

Shakers

Maracas: The energy in music can often be most identified in the rhythm of the shaker instrument. These authentic maracas fit the bill! Count: 2-3 pairs
Shakeres: This type of shaker comes from the tradition of drying a gourd and intricately typing beads to it. Its sound can easily cut through a large drum ensemble and is often a part of the music from Africa, Latin America, Egypt, and Native American. These can come in different sizes so you can take into account students’ comfort. Count: 1
Tambourines: I tell students to play the tambourine as if it’s an extension of your clap, no waving it into thin air! Tambourines come in single and double rows of bells, obviously the double will be louder. With or without heads are available. Different sizes accommodate your students’ comfort. Count: 1-3
Rhythm and Sleigh Bells: Rhythm bells are the same as sleigh bells, there are just fewer of them and the grip is smaller. Of course, they won’t be as loud as sleigh bells. Count: 1 sleigh bell or 4-6 rhythm bells.

Scrappers

Guiros: These come in different materials like plastic and metal, and different sizes. I prefer the 12-inch fish guiros. Kids K-5 seem to be able to handle this size with ease. Count: 1-3
Cabasa: Loops of steel bead chain wrapped around a specially textured, stainless steel cylinder that produces a unique scraping sound. They come in 3 sizes and the larger the size of the instrument, the louder the volume. Count
Sand Paper Blocks: A fun and affordable scraping instrument that has a different timbre than cabasas and is softer in nature. Count: 3-4 pairs

Skins

Hand Drums: I think you get the most for your money with these nesting hand drums. Easily portable, use the up/down motion of the hand to play, or use soft mallets for a unique timbre, or allow them to be movement props. There are many possibilities for playing with these! Maybe get as many as half the number of your largest class.
Tubanos: Tubanos come with tuning pegs or without, the latter being a bit cheaper. Either choice comes in 3 sizes and any ensemble benefits from equal voicing from the three sizes. Me? I’d choose the tunable ones—each size has a distinct and overall richer sound. Build your inventory over time on these.

“Special Effect” This is a group of instruments that are special in conveying that unique thought in sound. Not necessarily rhythmic, but they really add that special fun touch to any ensemble setting. Having just one of any of these can fill out your unpitched percussion arsenal.

Vibraslap: The sound is created when the ball end is struck against the palm of the hand. I’ve used this to represent kangaroos to mystery music!
Thunder Tubes: These are awesome! Everyone loves making a storm scene as a soundscape for music. Put this over a microphone and you can have the whole auditorium vibrate with thunder! I suggest the big one…the smaller ones just don’t seem to have the same effect.
Rain Stick: If you’re going to have thunder, why not also have rain! These rainsticks imitate the sound of rain. It’s also light in weight, perfect for young hands, and extremely durable.
Flex-a Tone: Bend the spring steel with thumb pressure as the wooden ball strikes the surface. These totally remind me of the Vincent Price movies from the 1960s I’d watch in my grandmother’s living room!
Ocean Drum: This is an absolute favorite in my classroom. It really does sound like ocean waves! Playing it does take a steady hand. These come in different sizes. Like the thunder drum, I would also choose the 16’’ or 22’’ for its quality of sound.
Ratchet: OMG, when I arrived to see what I had in my classroom here in Warsaw, I was given 4 of these! In some ways, even 1 is too many! They’re really loud, BUT they have their place in making great sound effects for machinery, robots, toy soldiers, and more!
Frog Rasps: I think they really do sound like frogs! And, this could easily be put in the scrapper family as it is very easy to rhythmically play this.
Tree Chime: I’ll admit, this is a luxury to have. Every time it’s played, my students’ imaginations go to Harry Potter, magical mysteries, and more. I’ve not only had kids play this in a glissando kind of way, but also gently strike it….it’s a wonderful sound effect.
Wind Chimes: By far the most coveted instrument in the room, lol! And because it’s so loved, I try to always give it to the student who may be struggling in one way or another because this makes them feel so special. The tabletop wind chimes are nice too for smaller ensembles. If you get this wind chime bar, you will also need to get the stand that they hang from.