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,...

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....

Fun awaits both you and your class as you embark on a musical activity. After discussing different rhythmic meters they choose a poem to set to music. The poem must rhyme and be set to a melody in the key of C Major. Because the activity...

After listening to a variety of interpretations of "When the Saints Go Marching In," partners compose and then perform their own renditions of this classic before joining a full-class jam session.

The school band or orchestra analyzes their own performance after exploring musical terminology. They listen to a classical piece and describe it using only words. They look up musical terminology and then use those words to compare and...

VH1 Music Studio has put out another great lesson that incorporates analysis, compare/contrast, and musical terminology. Kids will listen to the song "Habanera" considering the use of specific instruments in evoking a sense of location....

Students compose and arrange music within specific guidelines. They # identify and explain compositional devices and techniques used in a musical work. They compare and contrast the use of those techniques between different compositions.

A reading of Robert Frost’s "The Road Not Taken" launches an interdisciplinary study of the connection between the meters of a poem and a melody. After identifying the number of beats in each line of the poem, young musicians use...

Upper graders explore musical film and the Bohemian lifestyle common in Europe during the turn of the century through the musical Moulin Rouge. After listening to (or viewing) songs from the movie, they discuss the Bohemian era and how...

Music has been used to convey thoughts, feelings, and the human condition for thousands of years. Your class will analyze several songs hear in the animated classic, "Charlie Brown." They will listen to several jazz pieces from the show,...

Classical period music is defined by its characteristics and distinctive sound. A set of notes assists upper graders in recalling and analyzing music from the classical period based on musical terminology. An example analysis of Eine...

Students compose a simple melody using the notes of the D Major Scale. Criteria/Rubric for evaluation is provided with variations depending on skill level of students. A minimum of one forty-five minute class period is needed for this...

Third graders create a rap using basic AB form composition. Evaluation of performances are based on rubric formed during the first lesson by all students. This three to four day lesson culminates in student performances and evaluation.

Students create and perform original band compositions using their own band instruments. This two day lesson requires student compositions to be done at home. Students evaluate performances using a checklist for composing (included).

Music composition can be easy with a little software assistance. The class uses Garageband to listen to, write, sing, and record a blues song. They listen to the song provided through the software, write their own lyrics to the song,...

Students create a song using the form ABACADAEA. Students listen to a musical piece created by Vivaldi that is an example of this musical form. Then students use software to create their own musical forms representing this pattern.

Learners listen to "The William Tell Overture," identify instruments, sounds and other characteristics of the music. They compare and contrast orchestra music to large band music. Students discuss the musical composition and how the...

Students use the correct music terminology to evaluate a performance, composition, and arrangement of the song "Blinded by the Light" by Bruce Springsteen and compare it to another version recorded by Manfred Man.

Students arrange a short piano composition for a group of four to six instruments of their choice. The musical arrangements should be then demonstrated and analyzed by the class as a unit study.

Students listen to an original recording of Louis Armstrong and discuss instrumentation. They identify an AABA song form as they listen. They list similarities between the following: traditional meets modern and small group vs. big band.

Students identify musical characteristics of baroque, jazz, and psychedelic music. They arrange traditional music into the style of baroque, jazz, and psychedelic music.

Sixth graders listen to recordings and study jazz and the blues music. They identify the instrumentation and explore the 12-bar blues progression. After experimenting with different sound, 6th graders create their own arrangement, with...

Students listen to and discuss various protest songs from the 1960's, and write original lyrics for a song addressing global or societal issues. They write a paragraph evaluating the efficacy of the song to convey a message.

Students create and perform original musical compositions using poetry as a basis for the creative process. This cross-curricular two-day lesson can be done in two 45 minute class periods. Students evaluate performances as part of...