The Message That Became a Mess

Picture: The Message That Became a Mess

Narrator: The Little Nauts wanted a circle for listening, singing and sending little musical messages.

Jahari: You'll be in our music, too. Sing, tap, shake, or show us with your hands.

Pax: Watch my hands. Tap, tap, quiet, tap. Then your turn.

Little Nauts: Join the shared four-count greeting

Jahari: Now four comfortable places, so we can all see our music messages.

Jahman: There's room by the shelf. Keep the walking path clear.

Jahari: Four blue cushions beside the big drum, please. Could you tell Lux and Zion?

Pax: I can do that.

Pax: Blue cushions beside the drum. Can you tell Zion?

Lux: Yes. I'll get one, too.

Narrator: A few words stayed behind.

Lux: Cushions by the drum.

Zion: All right. I'll bring two.

Pax: One for me.

Lux: And one for me.

Zion: Two over here. Ready!

Jahari: Our circle has split in half.

Zion: I saved you a place.

Jahari: Thank you. I thought we'd all be beside the big drum.

Pax: We have four cushions. Just... two circles of two.

Jahari: Those were meant to be blue.

Zion: I didn't hear blue. I heard cushions by the drum.

Lux: Wait. Maybe we didn't all get the same message.

Lux: Before we move anything, what did each of us actually say?

Jahari: I said, “Four blue cushions beside the big drum, please.”

Pax: I said, “Blue cushions beside the drum.”

Lux: Then I said, “Cushions by the drum.”

Zion: That's the message I got.

Lux: Help us put the message back together. Sing, say, or point to a missing piece.

Lux: How many? Which ones? Where do they go?

Pax: I left out four. And big.

Lux: I left out blue.

Zion: So I chose the cushions and drum near me.

Jahari: Let's sing the whole message. Then you sing it back.

Jahari: Four blue cushions, beside the big drum.

Lux: Singing helps us remember the pieces. We still need to check what they mean.

Jahari: What if I say it really clearly? Cushions. By. The. Drum.

Pax: This drum?

Zion: Or this drum?

Jahari: Oh. Clearer voice. Still missing pieces.

Jahari: I'll draw it. Then the message can come with us.

Pax: A message with handles?

Jahari: Paper handles.

Jahman: You can use this board to keep the picture steady.

Zion: Which drum is this one?

Jahari: The big one.

Zion: I know that now you've told me. The picture doesn't show me yet.

Zion: Here's the music shelf. The big drum is beside it.

Lux: And this little drum is by our table.

Zion: Now we can match the picture to the room.

Pax: Before I do it, I want to check. Can you sing this with me?

Pax: Let me check. / Show me again.

Pax: Four blue cushions... on the big drum by the shelf?

Jahari: Let's check that part.

Narrator: Pax stopped to check. Which word needs checking: on, or beside?

Your turn: Which word needs checking: on, or beside?

Jahari: Beside, on the floor. The seats are for us, not for the drum.

Pax: Good thing I asked. It was about to get very comfortable.

Jahari: My drawing made that confusing. Thanks for checking.

Zion: I'll put the cushions here, on the floor in the picture, too.

Pax: Four blue cushions on the floor beside the big drum. This one by the shelf?

Jahari: Yes. That's what I mean. Let's check it in our song, too.

Jahari & Pax: Four blue cushions, beside the big drum. / Beside, on the floor? / Yes, that's what I mean.

Lux: We sang it, checked it, and now we can do it.

Jahman: You made room for the question.

Lux: These two blue ones are already in the right place.

Jahari: Two more blue ones in the basket.

Zion: I'll put the red ones back on the bench.

Pax: And I'll help make the circle.

All Four: One, two, three, four.

Lux: All blue.

Zion: Beside the big drum.

Jahari: Four places. Together.

Pax: Does it match what you meant?

Jahari: It does. Thank you, everyone.

Narrator: The question hadn't spoiled their plan. It had helped them share it.

Lux: Can you send that message back?

Zion: Two taps, then two quiet counts? May I use my shaker?

Lux: Yes. Same places for the sounds and spaces.

Jahari: Different sound. Same message.

Your turn: Tap, tap, quiet, quiet.

Pax: Listen to two taps and two quiet counts. Then you send it back. Ask for it again if you need it.

Little Nauts: Send two sounds and two spaces with any sound source

Zion: The sounds changed, but we kept two sounds and two spaces.

Lux: That's the part we agreed to keep.

Pax: I used to think sending it back meant copying everything.

Jahari: We checked which part mattered.

Zion: And we left space to ask.

Lux: Now you can make a message for us to try.

Pax: Your message now. Four counts. Choose a sound or a quiet space for each.

Lux: Sing a sound, tap, shake, or point. You can take your time.

Zion: Play it once, leave a space, then send the same pattern again.

Little Nauts: Compose and check a message of your own

Jahari: A sound, a space, a sound, a space.

Zion: Sounds on one and three? Quiet on two and four?

Jahari: Yes.

Narrator: With a friend or grown-up, make a little musical message. The listener asks, checks, then plays it back. Swap jobs.

Lux: If you aren't sure, sing “Let me check,” and ask for another go.

Zion: On your own? Draw four places. Mark the sounds and spaces, play them, and use your card to check.

Pax: Change the sound if you like. Keep the places you chose.

Jahman: You can sing, move, or point. Your question is welcome, too.

Pax: I nearly didn't ask about the picture. I thought I'd slow us down.

Jahari: You saved us from putting cushions on a drum.

Lux: We can make room for a question.

Zion: Same as we made room for all four of us.

Pax: One question left.

Jahari: Go on.

Pax: Is the drum comfortable without a cushion?

Lux: It seems very settled.

Jahari: One more song together. We sing a line; you send it back.

Jahari & Pax & Zion & Lux: Let me check. / Show me again. / Now we know. / Here we go.

Narrator: Four friends, a circle full of music, and room for “Let me check.”

Picture: Ask. Check. Sing it back.