The Boyce is a very good intro as it's three canons are fairly long, which bolsters both part indepndence and artistic interpretation.
Don't forget Byrd's "Non nobis Domine." And speaking of children's music, a contemporary (four decades old!) piece by Natalie Sleeth, "Canon of Praise" works nicely.

The other thing that has worked for me is having the boys learn the alto line of a hymn. Any self-motivated group will do, but in my current setup it worked best having the boys taking the lead with the harmony.

Cool, Heath! Thanks for sharing.

BTW, the book I mentioned above does have its share of religious canons as well.

I had great success with them for both children and adults.

There is a Cherubini canon for 2 or 3 published with the words "Like as a Father...", (don't know where the tune originated,) that I set different words to which even my most resistant-to-anything-but-Be-Not-Afraid choristers were crazy about, asking to sing it every week. The words I used were a paraphrase of one of the ad lib communios, "Christ is the True Vine,We Are the Branches," so that was almost feasible.
(It requires accompaniment, but that actually made it more acceptable to the anti-solemnity faction in the adult choir.)

Can't add other examples to those already mentioned, but IIRC, Worship TWO has a list in the back of hymn tunes that can be used as canons.

Save the Liturgy, Save the World

WOW - I have an old copy of Worship II and I never would have thought to look that up. Thank you!

Some of the ones on the list seem kind of hard for kids to sing as canons, though - I tried them a couple of different ways and kept having to play seconds, which I think would be tough for them to sing. But "The King of Love My Shepherd Is" seems like it will be pretty easy to learn and sound very nice.

Here's the list from Worship II:

All praise to thee, my God, this night (Tallis' canon)
Amazing Grace
As with gladness men of old
Christ is made the sure foundation
Come and let us drink of that new river
Come, Lord, and tarry not...

You know, this list is going to be long. I'm going to type it up as a Word document and upload it. Please hold...

Okay, it's uploaded.

Does anyone have suggestions for how to teach a group to sing in canon? Should I play both parts? Not play at all?

I've been teaching my kids canons the last couple years. I don't give them the finished product; they discover it as we're putting it together, and the process of discovery is very rewarding to them. I do the process in small increments, over several classes.

I start by singing it for them several times. I ask them to identify the highest note, the lowest note, all the words having to do with Jesus, the dotted half notes, etc. For each of these directions, they have to stand when that particular part happens in the song. I can also divide them into smaller groups and invite only those with December birthdays, for instance, to stand for something I ask for in the music. Once I've done this a few times, they know the sound of the song by rote, and have enjoyed the process of getting there. (I learned this technique from Jean Ashworth Bartle, director of the Toronto Children's Chorus.)

Next, they start to sing it in unison, and we work on starting the piece over again in strict time. If it is anything more complicated than "Father, I Adore You" I might drill them to find the beat in their laps, or listen to it as I tap it. It is essential that they know where the beat is before dividing into parts.

After that, I sing the second line quietly as they sing the first, so that it doesn't throw them off too much, and focus on getting them to start over again independent of my line. I gradually sing the second line louder and louder, as they become more comfortable with it. Finally, I divide them into two groups. Sometimes I have to take it phrase by phrase in two sections. Also, I've found that it sometimes helps to have the two groups face each other when singing, as it reinforces their need to listen to the other part.

Sort of.
I tried it at half measure, 1 measure, 1.5 measure, and two measures.
They're all alright, and none are stunning.

Results at:
http://musicforsunday.com/slane-midi/

Thank you!!!!

As a new member, I want to thank you all for the resources I'm discovering in these discussions!

Noel

I simply love (and agree with this paragraph on that site) that touches on why Bach never composed an opera.

Why Not Opera?

But why church music, why not opera? His compatriots, Telemann and Handel--both famous, both rich--wrote eighty operas between them, but Bach wrote not a one. It is a nagging question why Bach, born a month after Handel (and fifty miles away) did not follow the same career path for which he was amply endowed and surely would have succeeded. After all is said and done one cannot escape the conclusion that, though Johann Sebastian certainly cared about his career, careerism was not what moved him. Music moved him, especially when it was offered in thanksgiving to God--which Bach would have granted to any music that was well crafted. Bach's pupils were fond of recalling that their teacher often quoted Gerhardt Niedt: "The sole purpose of harmony is the Glory of God; all other use is but idle jingling of Satan."

Wrong thread!