K-5 Music

Kindergarten

NEST Musicians explore the sounds their voices make such as speaking, whispering, shouting, and singing. They learn basic audiation by using their "inner" voice. Through rhythmic speech and movement activities like those shown below students explore basic elements of music. 

Kindergarten musicians explore the elements of percussion technique through mallet exploration activities. These prepare musicians for playing on the classroom barred percussion instruments. These activities engage their sense of pulse and changing movements reflect the formal structure of the music they play along to. 

Mirroring exercises are a core element of elementary music classes. Students immitate the teacher and each other to learn expressive movement with music, the elements of dance, and instrumental technique. 

Rhythmic speech practice in the form of nursery rhymes forms the basis for instrumental and movement activities that teach basic elements of drumming. Students learn to connect their words to their movements and specific instrumental sounds to an auditory kinesthetic experience.  

1st Grade

In First Grade, NEST musicians explore elements of movement in formation. Rhythmic speech and movement give them opportunities to use their sense of pulse in creative ways. They learn about form through activities like the one shown below as a synthesis of their choreographed movements and speech. Students in First Grade learn to play games while singing like "Gomsaemariga" below. Games engage students' playful energy while they explore with instruments like xylophones to accompany the game and singing. 

NEST Musicians learn rhythm syllables that teach elemental music literacy. Engaging in games like this one allows them to apply what they learn through immitating the teacher. 

2nd Grade

Second Grade NEST Musicians learn that songs have parts that we can label A and B in order to talk about their form. When learning songs, we practice diction and can explore the difference between the two ways to pronounce "the" and when to use each when singing. 

Singing rounds in Second Grade lets students apply their knowledge of form and movement while exploring singing harmonies. Movements are choreographed for the different sections of a song and the separate groups sing together to form the round. 

Students in Second Grade at NEST participate in the Carnegie Hall Musical Explorers program where they are introduced to musicians and dancers from around the world who share their cultural heritage and musical traditions with the students. After learning the music in class, the students go to Carnegie Hall for one of two interactive concerts with the musicians they met that year. You can learn more about the Musical Explorers program by going to their website.

Students imitate each other while learning the fundamental elements of music. They can lead their classmates in instrumental and singing practices and share their particular musical interests and cultural heritage. NEST musicians make music with and for their community.  

3rd Grade

3rd Grade NEST Musicians apply and expand their repertoire of creative movement with interpretive exercises and folk dances. Some songs engage students in seasonally inspired interpretive movement like "Something's Hiding." Songs and games like "Paw Paw Patch" engage students in traditional folk dances with complex forms. 

3rd grade NEST musicians learn to play the ukulele in music class. Every song engages students in movement, instrumental technique and playing, and vocal exploration. Students are introduced to all of these elements one at a time and then are give opportunities to choose their part in practice. 

3rd and 4th Grade NEST Musicians learn to play the recorder. You can find a link to the recorder curriculum in the slides shared here. We will also be participating in the Carnegie Hall Link Up program where students will learn a variety of repertoire from the Western Art Music and other traditions and go to Carnegie Hall to play, sing, and move along to a live orchestra in an interactive concert experience. You can find the Link Up concert repertoire and other resources for practicing at home at the following link: https://www.carnegiehall.org/Education/Programs/Link-Up/New-York-City#concert 

4th Grade

4th Grade NEST Musicians explore Native American music in connection with their study of indigenous peoples in social studies. They learn traditional music for community celebrations, songs for children's games, dances and movements, and contemporary music from composers Martha Redbone and Joanne Shenandoah. 

4th Grade musicians participate in the Carnegie Hall Link Up program where they learn to play the recorder and explore music from the Western Art Music tradition and others from throughout the world and history. They attend an interactive concert where they sing, move, and play the recorder along with a live orchestra. 

3rd and 4th Grade NEST Musicians learn to play the recorder. You can find a link to the recorder curriculum in the slides shared here. We will also be participating in the Carnegie Hall Link Up program where students will learn a variety of repertoire from the Western Art Music and other traditions and go to Carnegie Hall to play, sing, and move along to a live orchestra in an interactive concert experience. You can find the Link Up concert repertoire and other resources for practicing at home at the following link: https://www.carnegiehall.org/Education/Programs/Link-Up/New-York-City#concert 

Below, you will also find the slides for the song "Aloha Oe" a song 4th graders are learning to sing, play along to on the ukulele, and perform with traditional hula dance. 

NEST musicians learn to play a variety of instruments in percussion, string, and woodwind families and explore creative movement with singing inspired by traditional music and synthesize this knowledge through arrangement and composition. They use the classroom instruments and props to create performances of traditional songs learned in class. Everyone gets a chance to choose their role and explore co-creating musical performances.  

NEST Musicians perform for their community on stage every year. 

5th Grade

5th Grade NEST Musicians learn West African and Caribbean music through a curriculum inspired by the World Music Drumming program by Will Schmid. Students learn traditional vocal, dance, and percussion music and discover the connections between music, history, and culture.