Playing Instruments Teacher Resources
Find Playing Instruments lesson plans and worksheets
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Lesson Planet Curated
Changing One's Tune: A Music Therapy STEM Integrated Project
A music therapy STEM integrated project combines science and language arts. Pupils listen to music, learn about music physics, build and play instruments, write songs, and share their musical creations. They study different intervals and...
Curated OER
Rhythm, Math, Rhythm
Students play instruments in math class to learn the interconnectedness between math and music. For this math lesson, students subdivide a piece of music, clapping rhythms and charting rhythm patterns in the song. A guided discussion...
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Consonance and Dissonance Activities
Hone those musical ears to identify consonance and dissonance in music being played live or on a recording. Learners will work through four activities where they will listen to consonant and dissonant notes being played first by the...
Curated OER
Reviewing Good Playing Habits
The string section of your school orchestra can get a proper form make-over by incorporating this lesson. They reestablish proper playing form, posture, and sound as they compose an essay on how to maintain good playing habits during...
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Name That Tune
Integrating technology and music can be a snap with lessons like this one! Kids in a junior high band class took to the Internet to download and practice playing their instrument with a computer generated back up band. They practice...
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Multicultural Music Connections
Native American music is fun to listen to and great to play. Third graders get multiculturally inspired as they discuss musical sounds from around the globe, then play a few traditional Native American instruments.
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Using Garage Band to Enhance 2nd Grade Composition
Your second graders can become composers with a little help from the Garage Band software. You pre-select several drum, piano, and guitar loops for the groups to choose from, then they put them together following an ABA looping pattern....
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Orchestra: Focus on Rhythm and Arranging
High school orchestra is a great place to play music, like The Star Spangled Banner. Upper graders create new rhythms to the old song and perform them with the class. They rehearse their updated versions of the song using their...
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Simple Chordal Harmony
Practice makes perfect, especially when playing a musical instrument. This lesson examines simple chordal harmony, melody, and playing with accompaniment. Learners listen to a series of songs that exemplify the concept then play a...
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A Musical Composition Experience
Upper graders having skills in music performance will extend their abilities through creative musical composition. They'll use Finale 2000 to explore facets of music composition, they'll then compose a piece for their instrument in C, F,...
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
The Lion and More
Melody, rhythm, tempo, and dynamics; get out those recorders it's time to play music! Your class will work on playing two lion-themed pieces that exemplify two different styles, folk and waltz. They'll discuss the elements of music and...
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Star Spangled Banner: For Orchestra
Middle schoolers practice playing "The Star Spangled Banner" while focusing on phrasing. They work with the instructor to mark the lyrics and music, then play the song using the phrasing indicated. Several...
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A Guide to Great Home Music Practice
To be the very best musician one needs to be wiling to practice at home. Here is a handy guide to give your young musicians a leading edge on home music practice. It includes a warm up, cool down, suggestions for setting goals and for...
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Parallel Harmonies
What is a parallel harmony? You and your class can explore musical terminology through song. You define what a parallel harmony is, the class identifies parallel harmony in music they hear, and then you all sing some examples together....
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The Listening Walk
Students play instruments that reflect sounds in the story: hoots, toots, creaking, shrieks, clacking, crunching, whooshing, etc. They make vocal sounds from the story: whispered, sniffled, sigh, giggled, croaked, laughed. The...
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Band On Line
In 1996, using the Internet to enhance learning was a new innovation. While the lesson here is a bit outdated, it could still provide a basic understanding of how technology can enhance music appreciation. Members of the school band...
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Grade 2: Music/Valentine's Day
Play and sing a Valentine's song with your second graders. They'll follow along allow as you demonstrate how to sing and keep a steady beat on non-pitched percussive instruments. While the music lesson has a Valentine theme, that theme...
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Harmony with Drones
A drone is the simplest of all harmonies, you'll play or sing an example and your class will follow along. They listen to, and then play or sing drones. Two pieces containing drones are included for you to print, pass out, and play.
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Standing Waves and Music: Suggested Demonstrations
There are four embedded links in this brief resource that take you to handouts or worksheets that assist young musicians in understanding standing sound waves. They'll play their instruments to show and then discuss different sound...
Fluence Learning
Writing About Informational Text: Music and the Brain
Even if you've never picked up a musical instrument, chances are that music has directly impacted your mental and emotional development. Sixth graders engage in a reading activity in which they read two articles on the impact of music on...
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Catch the Gullah Beat: Rhythm and Percussion
Students explore the Gullah culture. In this social studies lesson, students construct and play instruments similar to those of the Gullah people.
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A Journey Through The Seasons
Second graders demonstrate creative movement, singing in canon or rounds, and playing instruments while taking "a musical journey through the seasons" in this second grade General Music instructional activity. Songs and discussion...
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Rhythm and Nature
Second graders listen to song "Listen to the Water," discuss nature sounds and importance of water to life, perform quarter and eighth notes from notation, play instruments in rhythm patterns of quarter and eighth notes, and write rhythm...
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Teaching Dynamics
Second graders discuss the sounds of rainstorms. In this rainstorm lesson, 2nd graders listen to the story Down Comes the Rain and they discuss the change in sounds they hear in a thunder storm. They use percussion instruments to create...
