“Okay everyone, time to warm up!”

You know the deal — half your elementary chorus shouts the exercise, while the other half barely sings at all. Some students look confused, others are distracted, and a few might wonder why they can’t skip straight to the “real” songs.

But here’s the truth: warm-ups aren’t time-fillers. They’re the key to helping your elementary students become better singers. What struggles do you notice in your elementary chorus? Maybe students use their playground voice instead of their singing voice. Or maybe they struggle to match pitch, or run out of breath during long phrases. Perhaps your students struggle to harmonize with others.

When you have a solid warm-up routine in place, I promise you’ll hear a difference. Your students will:

• Hold notes longer
• Sing with more confidence
• Handle bigger jumps in the melody
• Sound more like an ensemble, instead of individual voices

Effective singing warm-ups engage the breath, the voice, and the musical brain! The foundation of all beautiful singing is proper breathing. In the next section, we’ll discuss strategies and teaching tools to help your students take their first steps toward better breath support and vocal control.

Essential Breathing Exercises for Elementary Chorus

Most elementary students don’t naturally know how to breathe properly for singing. Most will start by breathing incorrectly from their chest (when they do this, you’ll see their shoulders and chest rising). Instead, you want them to breathe deeper, from the diaphragm.

I like to make the breathing process easy for elementary students to understand. So instead of using complex terms like “diaphragmatic breathing,” I tell my students we’re going to practice “belly breathing” or “filling the bucket.”

Some of my favorite ways to practice breathing include…

• Sustained hissing
• Finger Breaths
• Box Breathing
• Panting
• Yawning
• Folding the body in half and practicing deep, low breaths

One common breathing mistake to watch for is when students run out of air too quickly due to deflating too soon, or sucking in the stomach as they sing. You’ll be able to tell this is happening because these students will look uncomfortable, start to fidget as they lose air, and their body will quite literally shrink and become small before your eyes. That’s why it’s important to clarify that the belly (diaphragm) needs to stay inflated for the duration of singing (a small, involuntary contraction happens at the end!)

The exercises I shared are starting points. Now, here are a few more resources to help your students master their breathing game.

Best Resources and Teaching Tools for Teaching Breathing for Singing

The Breathing Gym

I have had a lot of success using The Breathing Gym and it’s one of my favorite teaching resources! The videos are fun, challenging, and a little silly, but they’re incredibly effective for singers and instrumentalists. I highly recommend giving it a try with your students, if you haven’t already done so! This resource:

• Includes progressively challenging breathing exercises
• Is easy to integrate into rehearsals
• Is engaging for students

The Breathing Ball

The expandable breathing ball serves as an excellent visual aid for teaching proper breathing technique. This brightly colored sphere can be seen clearly from across the room, making it perfect for large chorus groups. Here’s how to use it:

• Expand the ball to demonstrate how the diaphragm moves during inhalation
• Keep the ball expanded to show how the diaphragm stays engaged during singing
• Gradually close the ball to show proper breath release at the end of a phrase

My students love being the “breathing helper!” During rehearsal I watch for students who naturally keep their shoulders and chest still while singing and breathing—they make perfect helpers! While the chosen student demonstrates with the ball, the rest of the class mirrors the breathing motion with their hands. This keeps everyone engaged while reinforcing proper breathing technique.

Rhythm Scarves

If you have rhythm scarves in your music room, they can serve as a great tool for teaching proper breathing in elementary chorus. Here’s how to incorporate them:

• Show students how to loosely tie scarf at diaphragm
• Ask them to ensure scarf isn’t tight
• Tell them to breathe deeply
• Point out that the scarf is moving outward
• Explain that this shows proper breathing
• Remind them to keep the scarf expanded while singing
• Show that a sinking scarf indicates lost support

This immediate visual feedback helps students understand how proper breathing should feel. Plus, rhythm scarves work great for large groups since you can quickly scan the room to see who needs additional support.

Understanding Tension’s Impact on Your Elementary Chorus

Before any singing warm-ups can take place, it’s important to help your students relax. During the school day, many of our students spend long periods hunched over their desk or slouched in their chair. At home, they are often staring down at devices putting tension on their neck and spine. Tension in the body causes tension in the singing voice so it’s important to do some quick exercises to release some of that tension.

Here are my favorite stretches and movements for tension release:

• Gentle neck rolls
• Shoulder shrugs
• Torso twists
• Side stretches
• Ragdoll stretch: fold in half and roll up slowly, stacking each vertebra

Now that we’ve discussed relaxing the body, let’s talk about opening the voice for singing. Many of your students have likely spent all day using a speaking voice in their core classes and their playground voice at recess and gym. It’s time to bring that singing voice out!

How To Use Vocal Warm-Ups to Open Up Your Elementary Chorus Sound

Have you noticed how your elementary chorus always sings differently first thing in the morning? What about after recess? Think about it. Our students spend most of the school day using their speaking voice and (if there’s recess or gym) their playground voice. Getting them to switch into their singing voice is not always as easy as you want it to be.

For example, it’s a common mistake to neglect focusing on developing students’ head voices. This often results in a shouting sound instead of true singing. Incorporating easy exercises like sirens and vocal slides helps students access their head voice, ensuring a healthy vocal technique.

Here’s how I help my elementary chorus transition from speaking to singing

I recommend beginning with pitch patterns, moving my step either in seconds or half steps. This allows the student voices to wake up and gently ascend or descend on something gentle that won’t be too harsh starting out. Here are some exercises I like to start with:

• Humming or lip trills
• Gentle vowels like “oo” and “ee”
• Vocal slides

Using Straw Singing in Elementary Chorus

Straw singing is a simple and effective tool for improving vocal technique. Here’s how you can incorporate it into your elementary chorus:

1. Getting Started:
   Have students form a tight seal around a disposable straw and hum a steady “oo” vowel. Listen for a clear buzzing sound, which indicates proper technique. If no buzz occurs, check their seal and airflow.
2. Exercises to Try:
   • Siren calls
   • Controlled glissandos
   • Melodic patterns

Expanding the Range and Vocalization

Once the vocal chords are warm, you can proceed with having the students sing on more open vowels like “Ay”, “Oh” and “Ah”. You can also start expanding the range of the singing warm-ups by incorporating scales, arpeggios, and different intervals. This is also a great time to work on solfege and performance skills like articulations, dynamics, and rhythm. You can also use this time to train your elementary chorus to watch the conductor. Try throwing some tricks in there and see who’s paying attention!

Vocal Warm-Up Books for Elementary Chorus

I’ve discovered several excellent books that have all made their way into my vocal warm-up tool kit. These books offer progressive exercises that engage students while developing essential vocal skills. If you’re looking for inspiration, definitely give them a try!

Vocalize! by Andy Beck

This collection comes in two volumes: Vocalize 1 and Vocalize 2. Each book contains progressively challenging singing warm-ups that elementary students love. The exercises build on each other, helping your singers develop stronger techniques as they advance.

• Each volume has high-energy warm-ups, perfect for elementary voices
• Every exercise includes a short note about the specific skill being developed
• Comes with accompaniment tracks or piano notation, if you prefer playing

The Choral Warm-Up Collection by Sally K. Albrecht

This comprehensive resource provides guidance to you and the students! It includes detailed guidance on how to teach each exercise using the most effective method possible. Whether your students struggle with pitch matching, breathing, or part-singing, you’ll find practical exercises in this book to address all of those concerns. I especially appreciate how the singing warm-ups build fundamental skills while keeping the students engaged. It includes:

• 167 warm-ups that target specific vocal challenges
• Clear directions to help you introduce each exercise effectively
• Beginning-to-advanced level exercises
• Ensemble strengthening strategies

Choir Builders: Fundamental Vocal Techniques by Rollo Dilworth

Another excellent resource. This book is indispensable in situations when you have chorus programs of various sizes. It contains unison, two-part, three-part, and four-part warm-ups for mixed-level ensembles! I will share that these singing warm-ups are a bit more challenging, and might work better with an advanced elementary chorus.

• Contains a mix of short songs and practical warm-ups
• Provides detailed and clear guidance for you and the students
• Includes optional accompaniment tracks

The Power of Rounds

Rounds are also fantastic tools for building a powerful ensemble sound during vocal warm-ups. I also occasionally use them as concert pieces to showcase our a cappella singing! Here are two of my favorite books for singing in canon:

The Book of Canons by John M. Feierabend

This is the BIG book of canons and you will never run out of options! There are 140 rounds in this book, which is more than enough to cover my rehearsals for the year.

• Wide selection of different canons
• Detailed table of contents to help you find exactly what you need
• Includes canons from different time periods and cultures

The Vocalize! Canon Collection by Andy Beck

By now you already know I’m a big fan of the entire Vocalize series by Andy Beck and the Canon collection is no different! In this book you’ll get the same pre-recorded accompaniments but they canons also sound beautiful when sung a cappella!

• Includes classical and traditional canons
• Features canons from around the world in various languages
• Provides brief, helpful guidance to the singer
• Offers guidance on pairing rounds with exercises from the Vocalize books

Cool Instruments for Vocal Warm-Ups

Don’t just stop with books! Did you know you can use instruments for your vocal warm-ups? Hopefully you have a piano but you may also consider adding…

Pitch Pipe for A cappella Singing

Pitch pipes are fantastic tools for teaching a cappella singing, and I always have one in my teaching bag! Having a pitch pipe has saved me so many times over the years in situations when I can’t have a piano, or I lose access to my teaching space. I usually play the starting pitch and have students practice unison songs and rounds. It’s an excellent tool for singing warm-ups, rehearsals, and concerts, and is definitely worthy of a place in your elementary music tool kit.

Slide Whistle

This is one of those unexpected instruments I’m adding to this list. Why? Slide whistles are awesome learning tools for your auditory and kinesthetic learners! Have you ever had singers who put too much weight on their voice, favoring their chest? How about students who can’t access their head voice? Use a slide whistle and have the kids mimic the sound by sliding their voices up and down. It’s magic, and it works!

Final Thoughts on Warm-Ups for Elementary Chorus

Now that I’ve shared my tricks and tips for outstanding warm-ups in elementary chorus, I want to tell you a secret. Here it is. If I were forced to choose between sacrificing rehearsal time or warm-up time, I would sacrifice rehearsal time. I know that’s controversial for many music teachers, but hear me out. Here are my reasons why:

• The strongest singers have the most developed techniques
• Magical musical moments happen from balanced and cohesive ensembles
• The most beautiful voices happen through healthy singing

Vocal warm-ups not only improve vocal technique but they also reduce the time needed to learn new choral repertoire. When students are confident in their abilities, they can focus more on musicality and expression.

Keep in mind that warm-ups can be as short as 5 minutes depending on your schedule. Even a short singing warm-up can make a significant difference in your chorus sound. When you prioritize strengthening vocal fundamentals like breathing, vowels, scales, solfege, and a cappella work, your students will transform into confident and capable singers.

Are you ready to take your warm-up game to the next level? Join the Chamber of Freebies to access an editable warm-up template to structure effective 5, 10, and 15-minute vocal warm-ups for your chorus rehearsals. Plus, you’ll gain access to a growing library of elementary music education resources.

Looking for your next steps as a chorus teacher? Check out my secrets on how to grow your elementary chorus program to your dream enrollment numbers! 

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