Creating a Scope and Sequence for Elementary Music

Music is essential to a child’s education. It’s important for you to have a well-organized scope and sequence for elementary music class. A scope and sequence is a document that outlines the content, skills, and knowledge that will be taught in a particular course, and the order in which they will be taught. Here are some steps to follow when creating a scope and sequence for an elementary music class.

First, why have a scope and sequence? Well, if you don’t know where you’re going, how will you know when you get there? A scope and sequence is great for keeping you on track with students’ learning. It helps make sure that you are covering the concepts you need to cover. It also makes planning throughout the year much easier as you already know what units you’re teaching and when!

Want a template to go off of? You can grab my free New Teacher Checklist, which has a template to a sample scope and sequence for K-5, here.

Step 1: Define Your Goals

The first step in creating a scope and sequence for an elementary music class is to define your course goals. Ask yourself what you want your students to learn, and what skills and knowledge you want them to acquire. Are you trying to teach basic music theory, or are you more focused on performance skills? Do you want your students to be able to read sheet music or to sing in a choir? 

As you think about your goals as an elementary music teacher, keep in mind that not all of your students will want to continue in an ensemble when they leave elementary school. I don’t teach my students as if they will. Yes, of course, I teach concepts they will need to know should they choose to be in an ensemble. However, the larger goal is to instill a love of music and learning in different ways. This is something I think about as I think about my goals for the class.

Goal setting is one of my favorite things! I love being able to have a fresh start and dream big. I used to just write my goals on an index card, but that was boring to look at, so I created a set of goal setting and reflection worksheets for you to use. There are worksheets for the school year, performances, units, and observations. You can get those worksheets for free here.

Step 2: Identify Key Concepts and Skills

Once you have defined your course goals, you should identify the key concepts and skills that you want to teach. These might include things like quarter and eighth notes or sixteenth notes, solfege, harmony, and theory like dynamics. Consider which concepts and skills are most important for your students to learn, and make sure they are incorporated into your scope and sequence. To learn more about how I assess concepts easily, click here.

Your district may already have this listed out for you. If so, have that list handy for the next step! If not, start with the end of fifth grade (or your last year with them). When your students leave your music room, what do you want them to know? Then, move to kindergarten and list out the basics of what they can really learn that first year. Then, fill in the gaps for grades 1-4 to build a sequential plan for their years as musicians in your room. I’ll just list these out on a scrap piece of paper and set it to the side for later.

Step 3: Organize Your Content

With your course goals and key concepts and skills in mind, you can begin to organize your content. This might include deciding on the order in which you will teach different concepts and skills and grouping related topics together. You might also want to consider how you will build on concepts and skills throughout the year, so that students can gradually develop their musical abilities.

Step 4: Create a Timeline

Once you have organized your content, you can create a timeline for your course. This might include dividing the year into units, and deciding how long you will spend on each unit. When I do this, I start with a Google Sheet with every week listed. I also color-coordinate the dates so I know if a week is a shorter week instead of a typical week. This helps me know at a glance whether I will see all of my classes that week.

Then, I’ll add in performance units. My students take about 7-8 weeks to prepare a program because I only see them once per week, so I block that off first thing. I’ll also block off weeks that we have any reward days, our pre and post-tests, and weeks before breaks for fun, flex activities (because how much really gets done that week before winter break?) 

Now it’s time to take that list from step 2 and input the different units and concepts in a sequence that makes sense for my students and our schedule. When I’m done, I have a general map of the year for every grade level!

Step 5: Refine Your Scope and Sequence for Elementary Music

As you begin teaching your course, you may find that some aspects of your scope and sequence need to be refined. You may need to adjust the pace of your teaching or reorder certain concepts and skills. It’s important to be flexible and responsive to what your students need, and to make changes to your scope and sequence as necessary.

Creating a scope and sequence for an elementary music class takes time and careful planning. By following these steps, you can create a well-organized and effective course that will help your students develop their musical abilities and foster a lifelong love of music! Don’t forget to grab your new teacher checklist here, which has a link to a sample scope and sequence! If you want to chat more about creating a scope and sequence for your classroom, comment below or DM me on Instagram (@caffeinated.j). I love to talk about planning and assessing!