Elementary Music Curriculum Planning Tips

Today I’m sharing my top elementary music curriculum planning tips. Today’s children need activities that keep them focused and engaged.

That’s why teachers need INTERACTIVE resources.  This means that the materials include more than one way to help the children learn a concept. 

It also means that the teacher can use the materials over several class times and create units of learning. And, using a variety of teaching strategies helps everyone learn the concept.

I don’t think any of us want a “music teacher nightmare!”

ELEMENTARY MUSIC CURRICULUM PLANNING TIPS

After teaching for a while, I began to get the “patterns” of my schools environment and timing.  I then created a basic plan for each grade highlighting what I thought would be the MOST important skill I could focus on for each semester. 

Ultimately, AI couldn’t get it down to just ONE- but, even focusing on 2 concepts a quarter seemed like a mighty task when I only saw my students 8-9 times in a quarter barring all the other interruptions.

So, if you’re overwhelmed at this point- THAT’S OKAY!

WHEN TO TEACH WHAT?

That’s a question all music teachers ask themselves, especially if you are new to teaching.

Unless you’re handed a standardized curriculum plan, you will need to create sequences of activities that build on skills for the entire school year.

Mix that challenge in with school celebrations, snow days, performances, testing days and a teacher’s substitute days, for a whole lot of complicated lesson planning. And, an elementary teacher does this for 6-7 grade levels.

I recommend working down from your highest grade.  Mine was 6^th.

GENERAL MUSIC CURRICULUM OUTLINE

Here’s a VERY general outline of some of the BIG pieces in my curriculum. And honestly, this was just my way of doing it- a mix of several methodologies!

• 6^TH GRADE- First SEMESTER Orff Instruments and Multicultural Music, 2^ND SEMESTER- GUITARS and COMPOSING.
• 5^th Grade- Same as 6^th grade with varying music selections, 2^nd SEMESTER- Keyboards and BOOM WHACKERS.
• 4^th Grade- 1^st SEMESTER Veterans Day Program (some solfege and part singing),Treble Clef Notes, Rhythms, 2^ND SEMESTER- Recorders
• 3^rd Grade- 1^ST SEMESTER RHYTHMS (sixteenth notes) SINGING  sol-mi-la, do, re , 2^ND SEMESTER UKULELE MUSIC PROGRAM
• 2^ND Grade-1^ST SEMESTER RHYTHMS (half note), SINGING  sol-mi-la, do, MUSIC PROGRAM , 2^ND SEMESTER Playing Instruments using skills.
• 1^st Grade-1^ST SEMESTER RHYTHM (quarter/eighth) SINGING  sol-mi-do, MUSIC PROGRAM , 2^ND SEMESTER Playing Instruments using skills.
• Kindergarten-1^ST SEMESTER STEADY BEAT, ECHO SINGING, MUSIC PROGRAM, 2^ND SEMESTER SOL-MI, GAME SONGS Rhythms ta and ti-ti (Playing and Singing)

In my case, my 5^th and 6^th grade classes were unique in that I only had students who did not play in Strings or Band, sometimes I had very small numbers and would vary the curriculum accordingly.

These are choices the teacher needs to make to ensure that their students’ needs are being met.

LESSON PLAN SEQUENCING

From there, I created a lesson plan sequence of activities that focused on the skills for the semester.

Here is the set of resources I use for teaching the basics.  This curriculum does NOT included GUITAR or RECORDERS or UKULELE. 

In this curriculum set of materials are activities to use with grades 4,5,6 that focus on specific music standards for those grades.

I also have a set of beginning of class and end of class activities I use with each grade too!

READ: MUSIC CLASS ESSENTIAL SONGS AND GAMES

READ: TOP 5 MUSIC CLASS ESSENTIALS FOR BACK TO SCHOOL MUSIC CLASS

USE THESE RESOURCES FOR DEVELOPING A MUSIC CURRICULUM

These resources are available as a YEAR LONG BUNDLE

YEAR LONG MUSIC LESSON BUNDLE

PAIR MOVEMENT ACTIVITIES WITH YOUR LESSONS

READ this post to get ideas on how to pair movement activities with your lessons.

AWESOME EASY AND FREE CREATIVE MOVEMENT ACTIVITIES

BEAT AND RHYTHM ACTIVITIES ACTIVITY TIPS

Create a YouTube playlist of your “go to” BEAT AND RHYTHM ACTIVITIES .

Write the BEAT AND RHYTHM ACTIVITIES into your lesson plans with the links to videos.

Here’s the Sing Play Create RHYTHM ACTIVITIES YouTube Playlist!

GET THE FREE MUSIC ACTIVITY PLANNER WHEN YOU SUBSCRIBE

MONTHLY BUNDLES

BACK TO SCHOOL (BTS BUNDLE LINK AT THE END OF THE POST)

SEPTEMBER

OCTOBER

NOVEMBER

DECEMBER

JANUARY

FEBRUARY

MARCH

APRIL

MAY

JUNE

FAVORITE INDIVIDUAL LESSONS

READ this post for my TOP 10 ELEMENTARY MUSIC TEACHING RESOURCE YOU NEED

Create and insert these activities into a google slides document so that you have immediate access without the ads!

READ this blog post to get more Elementary music curriculum planning ideas!

HOW TO ENERGIZE A MUSIC CURRICULUM

Here at Sing Play Create we’re working to bring you interactive resources you can easily use in your classroom.

Be sure to SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter where you receive weekly tips and deals and access to the FREE RESOURCE LIBRARY.

Please check out the Sing Play Create YouTube Channel with over 300 videos of activities.

Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and through email.

Thanks for reading!

CHECK OUT THESE RESOURCES IN OUR WEB SHOP