Winter Music and Movement Activity for K-4 Music Class

Here’s a quick and easy winter music and movement activity for K-4 music class. You can scaffold the activities for different grade levels using movement, instruments, creating rhythm and composing activities.

WINTER MUSIC AND MOVEMENT ACTIVITY FOR K-4 MUSIC CLASS

I’m going to share this activity as if I were standing at the classroom door. Here come my kindergarteners. I start tiptoeing. My students always came in and walked around the circle one full time before stopping at their spots. I already had them doing that as a transition from the hallway line into the music room.

We’re going to tiptoe, and I’ll have them start patting the beat—pat on their knees: pat, pat, pat. I smile at them as I tiptoe around the circle. Then I say, “Be my echo,” and they know to copy my voice:

• Look at the snow.
• Brr! It’s cold.
• Pat your knees.
• Tap your fingers.
• Clap your hands.
• Stomp your feet.
• Can you do it on the beat?

TRANSITION ACTIVITY

Now I know that you know there are so many different types of actions you can use in this activity. I’m just giving you a basic outline, and your creativity can jump in. You can adapt this to what you’re doing in your classroom and make the most of it.

The main idea is to get your students to listen to you. This means they’ll listen, follow directions, and use their bodies to respond as well as their voices. They’ll also practice working together to complete the activity.

These activities are essential, especially in younger grades like preschool, kindergarten, and even first and second grades.

Let’s add some elements to extend this activity. For example, we can use an instrument. For a winter activity, I might use an instrument to play the beat and repeat the chant again.

Finally, I say, “Look at me. Now take a seat,” and everyone sits down.

This activity transitions students from the hallway to the classroom. In just the first minute, we’ve felt the beat, listened, responded, and incorporated speech and movement.

MAKE IT A MOVEMENT ACTIVITY

Another way to expand this activity is to add more actions. I might use the first part to get them to their seats, then do a “Build a Snowman” pretend play activity. This can also be done to the beat:

• One, two, three, stand up for me.
• One, two, three, step up for me.

Once they stand up, we can start snow play:

• Let’s build a snowman.
• Roll the ball.
• Roll up.
• Roll another ball.
• Now make the head and put it together.

Give the snowman eyes, a nose, a mouth, arms, mittens, boots, a hat, and a scarf. You can save the hat for the end, like in Frosty the Snowman.

Then say, “Look at your snowman! He’s ready to dance. Ready? Dance!” This is where an instrument can help. Play some music, and the students can:

• Kick their feet.
• Jump up and down.
• Sway their hips.

You can add movements like turning around, sitting down, and pretending the sun comes out, melting the snowman.

This is a fun way to transition students or end an activity.

UPPER ELEMENTARY ADAPTATIONS

For older students (second, third, and fourth grades), you can escalate the activity:

1. Have students take turns being the leader.
2. Use movement in different parts of the room without touching or talking.

You can also incorporate music, reading rhythms, decoding rhythms, or creating rhythm patterns. For example, one group could play the steady beat, another could play the rhythm of the words, and a third group could create a rhythmic ostinato.

If you’re teaching melody, you could create a simple melody for the chant or use barred instruments to play. Start with the chant, then gradually build layers with rhythm and melody.

This activity is highly adaptable, making it a great way to engage students while fostering listening skills, creativity, and teamwork.

WINTER MUSIC AND MOVEMENT ACTIVITIES

Review the slides in the presentation and decide which ones you will use for each grade. There are 2 levels of rhythms and 3 levels of melody note slides.
Suggested use:
Kinder level 1 rhythm and melody
First level 1 rhythm and level 2 melody
Second-4 level 2 rhythm and level 3 melody

Use the worksheets for students to write their ideas.
This activity can be done in groups or have students create their own work.

MUSIC LESSON LEARNING GOALS:
BEAT
RHYTHM
CREATE OSTINATO
COMPOSE A MELODY
MOVEMENT

STEPS:
First, show the lyrics to the chant.
Say the chant and move on the beat.
Next Clap the rhythms of the words.

LESSON OPTIONS:
Students then write the rhythms of the words.
Grab some instruments and play the rhythms of the words.

Divide the class into 4 groups.
GROUP A will say the chant and play the steady beat
GROUP B- moves to the chant.
GROUP C- plays the rhythm of the chant
GROUP D- plays an Ostinato (in the slides)

CREATE AND COMPOSE ACTIVITIES:
Students can decode the rhythms and write them, play them on instruments.
Students can create an Ostinato.
Students can compose a melodic Ostinato.
Students can compose a melody for the chant.

EXTENSION ACTIVITIES: students create their own actions for the chant as well as the rhythm or melodic components.

GET THE FREE WINTER MUSIC AND MOVEMENT ACTIVITY

WHY THESE WINTER MUSIC AND MOVEMENT ACTIVITIES ARE ESSENTIAL

Movement and transition activities like this are fundamental in music education for several reasons:

1. Engagement: Young students are naturally energetic and respond well to activities that involve their whole bodies. These activities capture their attention and channel their energy positively.

2. Multisensory Learning: By incorporating movement, rhythm, and speech, you address multiple learning styles—auditory, visual, and kinesthetic—ensuring a more inclusive and effective teaching approach.

3. Skill Development: These activities develop essential musical skills such as keeping a steady beat, recognizing patterns, and listening attentively. They also reinforce social skills like turn-taking, following directions, and working collaboratively.

4. Brain-Body Connection: Movement activities strengthen the connection between the brain and body, enhancing motor coordination and cognitive development. This is particularly beneficial in laying the foundation for more complex musical tasks.

5. Classroom Management: Structured movement breaks help maintain focus, manage transitions smoothly, and reduce disruptions by giving students a purposeful and engaging task.

Winter music and movement activities can be made easy for the elementary music teacher by using one core song or chant and scaffolding the skills for different grade levels.

Doing this will help you-the teacher save your voice and planning time. As you experiment with this type of lesson planning, you’ll be able to adapt the materials more easily with experience.

Let me know how this works for you!

WINTER MUSIC AND MOVEMENT ACTIVITIES FOR YOU

SHOP ON OUR WEBSITE!

SHOP LINKS

READ THESE POSTS FOR MORE MUSIC AND MOVEMENT IDEAS!

Winter Song with an Instrument Activity Tutorial “Snowflake”

Winter Music and Movement Activity for K-4 Music Class

Winter Music and Movement Activity for K-4 Music Class

Easy to Learn Winter Scarf Movement Songs

Easy to Learn Winter Scarf Movement Songs

Quick and Easy Winter Brain Breaks for Elementary School

Quick and Easy Winter Brain Breaks for Elementary School

Penguin Action Song and Dance for Winter Activities

Penguin Action Song and Dance for Winter Activities

10 Winter Action Songs, Poems and Fingerplays

10 Winter Action Songs, Poems and Fingerplays

Favorite Winter Elementary Music and Movement Activities

Favorite Winter Elementary Music and Movement Activities

Thanks for reading this post!

Please share this post!