INTEGRATING MUSIC INTO OUR LEARNING
St. Monica Catholic Elementary School
Grade 1: Mary-Jeanne Elizabeth Miller

The “3” Piggy Opera

Our pig theme culminated in our performing of the “3” Piggy Opera in front of the other primary classes and the children’s parents. It was a wonderful resource kit by Carol Kaplan and Sandi Becker, published by Milliken.

It comes with a teacher’s guide that has suggestions and directions for costumes and stage design. The kit comes complete with a cassette tape with music on one side and vocals on the other. A script for the narrator and individual songs with music and words is also included. It is a wonderful and highly recommended resource to bring music to life in your class. Students loved the opportunity to act and sing the “3” Little Pigs story.

Students were engaged in every process of the musical production, from making of piggy masks to construction of the three little pig’s houses. We used pink paper plates for the pig masks and an old Halloween costume for the Big Bad Wolf.  Students were excited to bring in the props of straw, twigs and bricks. One clever student suggested we use sponges for the bricks.

The “3” Piggy Opera music was introduced to the students while they were working independently. They were able to listen to the background music and join in with the tape once they were familiar with the words and music. The tunes were catchy, so students actively participated in the singing.

 You can have a pianist accompany the opera or you can use a tape recorder and the tape provided. We used the tape and paused several times during the narrator’s part. This gave us more flexibility in pacing the production, anticipating the occasional delay as the actors and actresses moved around the set.

 We rehearsed for a week and then we first presented the play to the other classes. We ended our celebration with a special night for the parents. The parents visited the class and became the audience for an evening musical. The students were thrilled to make personal invitations for their family and friends. We “pigged” out on piggy cupcakes after our opera ended.