Kindergarten Music

Kindergarten students will explore musical concepts through speech, movement, singing, and playing instruments. 

Concepts taught will include: 

• steady beat

• long/short

• high/low

• solfege: sol/mi

• 4 voices (whisper/talk/shout/song)

• same/different

• fast/slow

• loud/soft

Students will also have the opportunity to play percussion instruments such as rhythm sticks, triangles, maracas, wood blocks, egg shakers, drums, etc. 

Musical activities will include reading literature, listening to songs, creative movement, and playing musical games. 

1st Grade Music

1st grade students will continue to explore musical concepts through speech, movement, singing, and playing instruments. 

Concepts taught will include: 

• beat vs. rhythm

• rhythms: quarter note/rest, paired 8th

• melody: high/medium/low

• solfege: sol/la/mi (add hand signs)

• harmony/texture: layers in music

• AB form

• dynamics: forte/piano

• percussion family identification

1st graders will learn how to login to Quaver Music on their own. They will also continue playing instruments from the percussion family. Musical activities will include reading literature, listening to songs, creative movement, and playing musical games. 

2nd Grade Music

2nd grade students will continue to explore musical concepts through speech, movement, singing, and playing instruments. 

Concepts taught will include

• rhythms: half note/rest, whole note/rest

• melody: steps/skips/repeats

• solfege: sol/la/mi/re/do

• harmony/texture: ostinato

• string family identification

• form: repeat & ABA

• dynamics: gradually softer/louder

Musical activities will include reading literature, listening to songs, creative movement, and playing musical games. Students will continue to learn rhythmic as well as melodic notation.  We will also continue to utilize Quaver Music and instruments from the percussion family. 2nd grade students will have a performance in the spring! 

3rd Grade Music

Concepts taught will include

• rhythms: 16ths, 2/4, 3/4, 4/4

• solfege: so/la/mi/do/re/high do

• introduction to treble clef

• harmony/texture: canon, round

• woodwind family identification

• ABC form

• tempo

3rd graders will learn most of our curriculum will playing the recorder! The recorder is a wonderful instrument to reinforce music literacy skills that we have been working on since kindergarten. All 3rd graders will be required to purchase a recorder to be used during music class (or bring one from home). We will learn some songs from Quaver and begin a program called Recorder Karate. We will also continue to utilize Quaver Music during music time. 

4th Grade Music

Concepts taught will include

• rhythms: dotted half

• solfege: sing major scale

• treble clef (identification, performing, writing)

• harmony/texture: partner song

• brass family identification

• rondo form (ABACA)

• dynamics: ff-f-mf-mp-p-pp, crescendo/decrescendo

4th grade students will continue to play the recorder.  Students will learn more challenging songs to finish recorder karate. Students will continue to login to Quaver Music from time to time. In 4th quarter, we will complete a music technology project using QSoundFX in Quaver. At the end of 4th grade, we'll also start learning how to play the ukulele! We'll focus on learning how to hold the instrument, identify parts, and playing the 4 strings.

5th Grade Music

5th grade students will continue to build on all the musical skills (rhythmic notation, solfege, musical symbols, form, expression, etc.) they have obtained throughout elementary school. We will also be continuing the ukulele later in the school year and learning how to play several chords! At the end of our unit, we will do a ukulele composition project using QGrooves from Quaver. 

In the beginning of the school year, 5th graders will start a process called prelude. 

5th Grade Prelude: In class, we will review every single band/orchestra instrument option. Later in the fall, music teachers from Granger will visit and assist students in holding each instrument. Students will get a chance to document their experience and pick a couple to try and hopefully pick for 6th grade!