Music
6th-8th Grade General Music
Course Description
Students in Sixth-Eighth Grade music courses will build upon previously learned music fundamentals. Throughout the courses students will deepen their appreciation of music and music literacy. Students will use various digital resources to create and show their understanding of music.
Grade Level(s): 6th-8th grade
Related Priority Standards (State &/or National): Missouri Grade Level Expectations for Music
Essential Questions
- How can we include others in our performance?
- How do we decide what performances are appropriate for an occasion?
- How do musicians improve the quality of their creative work?
- How do musicians decide when a performance is ready to share?
- How can we predict how music will sound by reading music notation?
- How do we decide when our performance sounds the way that it should?
Enduring Understandings/Big Ideas
- Musicians purposefully conceive and develop artistic ideas.
- Understanding and appreciation of a variety of repertoire.
- Respect the process and performance.
- Everyone can participate in the creation of music.
- Creating music is not an elite art form.
- Responses to music are personal and made with knowledge and understanding.
- Music is created and performed in the contexts of society, culture, and history.
Course-Level Scope & Sequence (Units &/or Skills)
Artist Process Strand 1: Create
Option 1: Students will be able to conceive and develop new artistic ideas and work.
Option 2: Students will be able to develop and improve original artistic ideas and works.
Students will be able to…
- Identify and imitate simple rhythmic patterns
- Identify and imitate simple melodic patterns
- Develop and compose a musical idea using standard notation practices
- Create music using simple rhythmic notation (whole, half, quarter, etc), in the key of C, in 4/4 time
- Evaluate, refine and present an original musical composition
Artist Process Strand 2: Performing
Option 1: Students will be able to realize artistic ideas and work through interpretation and presentation.
Option 2: Students will be able to express artistic ideas by interpreting and presenting them.
Students will be able to…
- Read music using simple rhythmic and melodic notation
- Interpret expressive intent and meaning of musical works
- Infer connections between the arts and non-arts related disciplines
- Identify characteristics and contexts of various historical periods, genres and styles .
Artist Process Strand 3: Responding
Option 1: Students will be able to understand and evaluate how music conveys meaning.
Option 2: Students will be able to recognize and assess how music communicates meaning.
Students will be able to…
- Identify reasons for selecting music citing musical elements, purpose, and/or context
- Identify the form of performed repertoire
- Identify characteristics and contexts of various historical periods, genres and styles
- Understand what the composer is communicating citing musical elements
- Distinguish between quality and non-quality performances citing musical elements
Artist Process Strand 4: Connecting
Option 1: Students will be able to relate artistic ideas and work with personal meaning and external context.
Option 2: Students will be able to connect artistic concepts and work with personal significance and outside context.
Students will be able to…
- Distinguish between quality and non-quality performances citing musical elements
- Interpret expressive intent and meaning of musical works
- Infer connections between the arts and non-arts related disciplines
- Identify characteristics and contexts of various historical periods, genres, and styles
Date Last Revised/Approved: April 2023