In our STREAM Art/Music Studio, students explore the exciting intersection of creativity, technology, and self-expression. This month, students worked with Specdrums, a hands-on music tool that turns colors into sound using an iPad app and special sensor rings.
To connect with our school’s Leadership Day theme, students recreated “Part of Your World” from The Little Mermaid. Using a teacher-created chart, each color on the Specdrums pad was assigned a specific hand signal—for example, red was shown with a fist to the chest.
Working in pairs, students brought the song to life:
- One partner performed the hand signals, matching each color’s movement.
- The other used the Specdrums ring to play the corresponding sound on the pad in rhythm with the signals. Together, they relied on timing, collaboration, and careful listening to play through the whole melody.
Beyond learning a song, students experienced how art can be expressed in many forms—through sound, color, gesture, and personal interpretation. This activity encouraged them to think like artists: making creative choices, responding to a partner’s movements, and using technology as a tool for artistic expression.
By blending kinesthetic motion with music-making, students discovered that creativity isn’t confined to a canvas or instrument. In the Art/Music Studio, their bodies, their ideas, and even the colors around them become part of the artwork.