Making music with cups

We can have fun making music in many ways – with our voice, our bodies, instruments and other objects and found items, including plastic cups!

In this activity, you will learn a 7-beat ostinato (repeating pattern) using plastic cups. You’ll notice that we use a one syllable word for each action in the pattern. This is a helpful tool for students when creating their own patterns; using words that describe the action, or making up other words such as a simple chant or rhyme that fits the rhythm. Once students can play the cup rhythm together in a line or a circle, try playing it along to a piece of music, matching the movements with the beat or pulse of the music.

Your students could then begin to experiment with creating their own rhythmic cup patterns. You might try it with patterns of 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 or even more! The pattern demonstrated here has just one action per beat but allow your students free rein to see what kinds of patterns they can create. They could also try notating their rhythms.

Have fun and see what other items you can find to play your rhythmic ostinati with!

Music outcomes 

F - 2

• Develop aural skills by exploring and imitating sounds, pitch and rhythm patterns using voice, movement and body percussion ACAMUM080
• Create compositions and perform music to communicate ideas to an audience ACAMUM082

3 – 4

• Develop aural skills by exploring, imitating and recognising elements of music including dynamics, pitch and rhythm patterns ACAMUM084
• Practise singing, playing instruments and improvising music, using elements of music including rhythm, pitch, dynamics and form…ACAMUM085 
• Create, perform and record compositions by selecting and organising sounds, silence, tempo and volume ACAMUM086

5 - 6

• Explore dynamics and expression, using aural skills to identify and perform rhythm and pitch patterns ACAMUM088 
• Develop technical and expressive skills in singing and playing instruments with understanding of rhythm, pitch and form… ACAMUM089 
• Rehearse and perform music including music they have composed by improvising, sourcing and arranging ideas and making decisions to engage an audience ACAMUM090 

7 - 8

• Experiment with texture and timbre in sound sources using aural skills ACAMUM092
• Develop musical ideas, such as mood, by improvising, combining and manipulating the elements of music ACAMUM093 

Links to other learning areas

Literacy – students can make up word patterns or chants with syllables to match their rhythmic patterns.

Mathematics – students can work with creating and developing patterns, e.g. groups of 7

Media Arts – students can perform their creations, making an audio or video recording of it to share.
 

WANT MORE?

This is an example of the teaching resources you will receive when booking Musica Viva In Schools program, Rhythm Works.

Find out more about Musica Viva In Schools.