Teaching people who have no idea?

[chef774]

Alright me and another guy (who is a better drummer than me) have been asked to just give people like a kind of lesson/ensemble thing.
Basically what the guy who told me to do this wants is 2 pieces where we can get some people to play like really basics pattens on a drum and layer them all together to make a piece if you know what i mean.
Just wondering if anybody has any ideas on what to do because i've never taught anything or really done anything like this. Nearly everybody in the group has no experience playing drums or percussion, and i have a week to do it

what i have access to is about 3 bass drums with 2 toms each, 3 or 4 hi-hats, atleast 4 floor toms, a set of wood blocks, atleast 5 snares, some congos and a whole heap of random percussion things like triangles, tambourines, cowbells and those wood things

thanks

[Composer of Requiems]

I've sat through stuff like these, and they're amazingly fun for non-drummers. You just need to make sure they can keep in time with each other, possibly following one of you conducting or giving time or something. You can take it two ways, either letting them experiment freestyle and adapt, or you can get them into little groups to discuss and make grooves, then get everyone to groove together. If they can form several grooves per group, you can get them to alternate grooves. Maybe, give them a general idea of what you need for a song (a fast groove, a slow groove, etc.?) and see how they blend together?

[zaragemca]

According with the level of development and coordination set up and designate which are going to perform the more complex riffs and who's going to do the less complicated. Gerry Zaragemca

[Greenday Fan]

i say git em' to play a simple 4/4, bass drum on 1 and 3, snare on 2 and 4, and hihat on all eighths beat, and then tell the to mix the snare and bass drum beats up (while still all staying in tempo) to show that individuality is key when drumming. i see kids all the time play a song beat for beat simply to show that they can copy someone. i never play a song beat for beat. i play it how i feel it should be played, incorporating my own style into the song. thats another thing!!! STYLE!!!!!!!!! they need to know that style is key to sounding individual and good. heres a good one. say this "if it sounds good to you, if its in tempo, and it doesnt clash with the style of music, its good" and remind them that when doing a drum cover, to simply stay in tempo. otherwise, be creative and play what you want. in an essence, think tie-die (unique and colorful, not gray and dull)