Feel the Beat

Lesson Overview

Learning Area: The Arts – Music
Year Level: Year 3
Duration: 45 minutes
Class Size: 29 students
Curriculum Reference:
Australian Curriculum: The Arts – Music (Version 9.0)

AC9AMU3P01 – Perform music in informal and formal settings and respond to music, demonstrating aural skills by singing and playing instruments.
AC9AMU3E01 – Explore how music expresses ideas, mood and story, including cultural values and beliefs.
AC9AMU3O01 – Create music to communicate ideas, using rhythm, pitch, dynamics and form.

Focus: Music for Wellbeing – Exploring how music can help us feel better and express our emotions.

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WALT (We Are Learning To):

• Understand how music can influence and support our emotional wellbeing.
• Explore rhythms and melodies that reflect different moods and feelings.
• Collaboratively create simple music pieces that express a chosen emotion.

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Success Criteria:

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

✅ Identify how certain types of music make them feel and explain why.
✅ Participate in a class rhythm activity using body percussion and classroom instruments.
✅ Create and perform a short music piece with a small group to express a feeling (e.g. happy, calm, excited, sad).
✅ Demonstrate respectful listening and provide positive feedback to peers.

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Lesson Outline

⭐ Warm-Up (5 minutes)

Activity: Emotional Soundscapes

• Teacher plays short 15–20 second clips of 3 contrasting pieces:

  1. Upbeat (e.g. fast tempo percussion)
  2. Calm (e.g. soft, slow melody)
  3. Sad (e.g. minor key violin or piano piece)

• Ask students after each clip:

  “How did that music make you feel?”
  “Did it remind you of anything?”

• Teacher introduces the idea that music can help us feel better and express how we feel, linking to wellbeing.

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🎶 Whole Class Activity (10 minutes)

Activity: Feel the Beat – Body and Rhythm

• Students stand in a circle and create a ‘feel-good’ rhythm using body percussion.
  • Teacher models a 4-beat pattern: e.g. clap–tap–clap–stomp
  • Students repeat it and then suggest their own 4-beat rhythm
  • Each rhythm is repeated 3 times by the whole class

Purpose: Explore how shared rhythm creates connection and boosts mood.

• Discuss:

  “How did it feel when we performed that rhythm together?”
  “Did it make your body feel more awake, relaxed, or excited?”

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🎵 Group Exploration (15 minutes)

Activity: Music Mood Makers

• Divide the class into small groups of 4–5 students.

Task: Each group selects one mood or feeling they’d like to express through music:
– Happy
– Calm
– Sad
– Excited
– Proud

Using these options, students:

1. Choose 2–3 classroom instruments (e.g. maracas, tambourine, glockenspiel, rhythm sticks).
2. Develop a 30-second musical piece that expresses their chosen feeling.
   • They can use rhythm, pitch (high/low), volume (loud/soft), tempo (fast/slow) to convey emotion.

Teacher circulates the room to provide guidance and ensure all group members are contributing.

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🎤 Sharing & Reflecting (10 minutes)

Activity: Group Performances ↔ Peer Feedback

• Each group performs their music piece for the class.

Peer Reflection Questions:

“What feeling did this piece make you think of?”
“What part made you feel that way? The beat? The sound?”

• Students are encouraged to give compliments:
  “I liked how you used the soft tapping to make it feel calm.”

Teacher wraps up with a reminder:

“Music isn't just something we listen to – we can use it to express how we feel and even help ourselves feel better.”

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Differentiation Strategies

For diverse learners:

• Visual emotion cards to support mood identification.
• Modelled examples and scaffolded questioning (e.g. “Would it sound sadder if we slowed it down?”).
• Sentence starters for reflection and feedback (e.g. "I felt ___ because...").

For students with sensory sensitivities:

• Offer ear defenders or create a quieter music-making station.
• Allow choice between movement-based and instrument-based tasks.

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Extension Activities

For advanced learners:

• Introduce basic melodic patterns using xylophones to accompany rhythm.
• Encourage composing in ABA form (e.g. happy–sad–happy).
• Ask students to lead their group and conduct performances with attention to dynamics.

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Conclusion & Quick Reflection (5 minutes)

Exit Ticket (Verbal or Written):

One word to describe how you feel after making and hearing music today.
Optional sentence stem:
“The music made me feel ___ because…”

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Resources Required

• Audio device for music tracks (upbeat, calm, sad examples)
• Printed emotion cards or visuals
• Classroom instruments (glockenspiels, maracas, tambourines, rhythm sticks, etc.)
• Whiteboard and markers for mood brainstorming
• A4 or mini whiteboards for group planning (optional)

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Teacher Reflection

Ask yourself:

• Were students empowered to explore their feelings through music?
• Did students demonstrate an understanding that music can support wellbeing?
• Would integrating music-making regularly support classroom connection and emotional regulation?

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Big Ideas Reinforced

🎧 Music is powerful – it helps us feel, express and connect.
🧠 Music supports mental and emotional wellbeing.
💬 Music makes us better listeners, friends, and creative thinkers.

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Next Lesson Idea:
Create a personal “Feel-Good Playlist” where students identify 3 songs that lift their mood – and explain why! They could draw how each one makes them feel, linking music to visual arts and emotional literacy.

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Let’s help students not just learn music – but feel it.