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.
Curated OER
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...
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
Design an Instrument
Students design an instrument. For this sound, vibration and pitch lesson, students learn about the characteristics of sound, vibration and pitch. Students design a guitar using the assembled craft materials and demonstrate how they...
Curated OER
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 cross-curricular extension...
Curated OER
Introduction To The Orchestra
Students listen to a book, "Meet the Orchestra." They observe a PowerPoint presentation, listen to the sounds in "Peter and the Wolf" and then match illustrations of instruments to their specific sound. Students identify instrument...
Curated OER
The Classical Orchestra
Students study the classical orchestra in this technology-based general music lesson for the high school classroom. Emphasis is placed on the use of the "Microsoft Musical Instruments" software. This lesson can be accomplished in one...
Curated OER
Exploring Musical Instruments of the Orchestra
High schoolers 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...
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
Grouping Musical Instruments
Students study about musical instruments and group them into these categories: percussion, strings, woodwinds, and brass. After discussing these instruments, they independently complete the worksheet.
Curated OER
Families of Instruments
Students identify families of instruments. In this music lesson, students read Berlioz the Bear and identify the families of instruments. Students sing "Mr. Gus Goes Goofy," and listen for the sounds of the instruments.
Curated OER
Performance Evaluation
Students evaluate in class performance of music previously prepared by the ensemble. The rubric and assessment criteria are adaptable to any orchestra setting which allows the teacher to choose music to be assessed. Critical thinking...
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...
Curated OER
What Is My Family Name?
Students listen to selected solo instruments and place the instrument in its correct family of instruments; students also identify from listening to examples: orchestra, band, vocal solo, and choral performance.
Fun Music Company
Treasure Island Clues: Intervals
You may know about A, B, and C, but now you can include "arrrrr" to the list of music notes to practice! Here is a fun pirate-themed activity in which young musicians determine the intervals of various notes in the treble clef to work...
Curated OER
Overture to 'William Tell' by Gioacchino Rossini
Students create an awareness of how music creates a setting in a story or legend. They identify the instrumentation, dynamics and tempo used to create various settings for a musical story. They perform rhythmic patterns from listening...
Curated OER
Percussion Instruments and Pitch
Young scholars play string instruments to discover how the pitch changes on various string instruments. In this pitch lesson, students listen to video clips and play an online music game. Young scholars become familiar with music...
Curated OER
Meet The Instruments Of The Orchestra
Students identify brass, woodwind, string, and percussion instruments and group them into appropriate families in this technology-based Music lesson for 2nd through 5th grades. Each students is required to have a handheld device or laptop.
Perkins School for the Blind
Familiar Sounds
To foster concept development and auditory discrimination skills, learners with visual impairments listen to identify a variety of common sounds. The teacher makes recordings of various sounds, including those found in the home, at the...
Curated OER
Meet Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov!
Learners listen to music and review instruments of the orchestra. They explore musical terms, solo, texture and theme of the music and discuss other features of the music. Students research and discuss the life of Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov.
Curated OER
Orfeo: Sinfonie e Ritornelli
Students identify the dramatic expression made by performance and how it relates to the content of the story L'Orfeo. They determine the form of orchestra and each instrumental group within the orchestra for this piece.
Curated OER
Orchestral Scores
Eighth graders listen to Beethoven's Symphony Number Five and identify the instruments playing. They observe the score and discuss the movements, and at what time each instrument plays. Students choose an instrument and transcribe the...
Curated OER
Peter And The Wolf: Instrument Listening Game
Students match the instruments to the characters they represent in Peter and the Wolf. They also identify the instruments by name from listening to their sound.
Curated OER
The Brass Family
Learners observe a PowerPoint presentation to explore how brass instruments produce wounds. They observe the teacher demonstrate the proper use of the mouthpiece and slides to produce a tone. With and without the mouthpiece, students...