California Department of Education
Instruments of Change: Making a Simple Stringed Instrument (CTE)
What materials and skills does a person need to build a simple working instrument? With the first of four lessons from the Changing One's Tune: A Music Therapy STEM Integrated Project series, scholars learn about the basic structure of...
California Department of Education
Tension and Release: Creating Mindful Harmony (CTE)
Perhaps the Doobie Brothers said it best when they sang, "Listen to the Music." With the third of four lessons from the Changing One's Tune: A Music Therapy STEM Integrated Project series, pupils discover the connection between music and...
American Museum of Natural History
Sounds of the Silk Road
Young explorers may not be able to travel the Silk Road but they can listen to music that was played on instruments of the time and create their own songs with the help of an interesting interactive resource.
Physics Classroom
Name That Harmonic: Strings
Don't string your class along! Physics scholars discover the fascinating forces behind the music of stringed instruments using an interactive. From a series covering sounds and waves, the interactive asks users to identify nodes and...
Classics for Kids
Instrumental Sounds
What sound does a piccolo make? What's the difference between a violin and viola? What family does a timpani belong to? Take a tour through the different sections of an orchestra with an interactive reference tool.
Classics for Kids
Fun With Musical Words
Is concertmaster another term for conductor, or is he or she another person entirely? Learn the specifics of the role of concertmaster with an activity focused on classical music. After learners define the term, they select a piece of...
Classics for Kids
Listen to the Music
Different pieces of music can elicit different emotions from audience members. A quick tempo can make you feel happy, while a largo piece may bring out a melancholy temperament. Elementary musicians learn more about the instruments and...
Classics for Kids
A Composer Leads the Way
What song is playing? A music activity focuses on composers throughout history, their famous works, and the instruments in each piece. As pupils complete the learning exercise they play a short game to review music theory terms.
Classics for Kids
Instruments Have a Family
Are the instruments in Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 in the same family as those in George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue? Elementary musicians work on their music theory and their instrumental ear as they listen to clips of famous...
Curated OER
Music- Found-Object Orchestra
Learners construct simple musical instruments. In this music instructional activity, students read the text Max Found Two Sticks and construct their own instruments from classroom materials.
Curated OER
Acoustical Science
Students explore musical instruments and the pitches and tones they make. In this acoustical science lesson, students create their own string instruments and explore how pitch is altered.
Curated OER
String Instruments and Pitch
Students make predictions and explore how pitch is altered in string instruments. In this acoustic science lesson, students learn the types and parts of string instruments and create their own. They listen to classical music and identify...
Curated OER
Meet the Instrument Families
Fourth graders listen to a recording of a string quartet and ask questions about what kinds of instrument they think they are listening to and describe what they think the instruments look like. Then they discuss musical ideas such as...
Curated OER
Musical Instruments
In this musical instruments worksheet, students identify and locate 20 various types of musical instruments in a word search. First, they locate brass and percussion instruments. Then, students locate string and woodwind instruments.
The Orchestra
The Orchestra: A User's Manual Violins
A wonderful resource covering many aspects of the violin. Most explanations are made with video and audio clips of members of the Philharmonic Orchestra. Be sure to check out the players tips and tricks section.
The Orchestra
The Orchestra: A User's Manual Viola
A terrific resource covering many aspects of the viola. Most explanations are made with video and audio clips of members of the Philharmonia Orchestra. Be sure to check out the players tips and tricks section.
The Orchestra
The Orchestra: A User's Manual Cello
A fantastic resource covering many aspects of the cello. Most explanations are made with video and audio clips of members of the Philharmonia Orchestra. Be sure to check out the players tips and tricks section.
The Orchestra
The Orchestra: A User's Manual Double Bass
An excellent resource covering many aspects of the double bass. Most explanations are made with video and audio clips of members of the Philharmonia Orchestra. Be sure to check out the players tips and tricks section.
The Orchestra
The Orchestra: A User's Manual String Ranges
Learn the ranges of all of the string instruments. The chart shows the written pitch and the sounding pitch. There are also comments about some of the instruments ranges.
Other
International Cello Society
A website devoted to the cello. Site appears to be very "open" to the non-member. Teachers and students will want to visit the Forum and Tips pages. Also, check out the MP3's!
Quia
Quia: Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction "Musical Hangman"
Test your knowledge of instruments of the orchestra with this interactive hangman game. Click on letters to guess the mystery word!
Dallas Symphony Orchestra
Dallas Symphony Orchestra Kids
This interactive site offers students resource for learning about composers, their works, the logistics of orchestra seating, the functions of different instruments, and the like.
Dallas Symphony Orchestra
Dallas Symphony Orchestra Kids: Orchestra Seating Chart: Baroque, Classical, Romantic
See how the number of orchestra members increased from the Baroque period through the Classical, up to the Romantic. You can print each orchestra seating chart.
Other
University of Vermont: The String Pedagogy Notebook
A great resource for teachers, students, and performers of string instruments. Very indepth "how-to" descriptions, care information, procedural movies, and more.