Unit Plan 24 (Grade 2 Music): Cultural Movement

Focus: Move to music representing different cultures and styles, demonstrating knowledge of music concepts (especially meter and tempo) and showing how music connects to movement, contexts, and daily life.

Grade Level: 2

Subject Area: Music (Performing • Connecting • Responding)

Total Unit Duration: 1–3 sessions (3+ weeks), 50–60 minutes per session

I. Introduction

In this unit, students explore cultural movement by responding physically to music from different places and traditions. They listen for tempo, meter (especially duple vs. triple), and overall feel, then create simple locomotor (walking, marching, skipping) and non-locomotor (swaying, clapping, gestures) movements that match what they hear. Students also learn that people use music and movement together in dances, games, parades, and celebrations around the world. Throughout the unit, students practice moving in ways that are respectful and appropriate to classroom expectations.

Essential Questions

• How can we use movement to show what we hear in music from different cultures and styles?
• How do music concepts like meter and tempo help us know how to move?
• How is music connected to dance, celebrations, and daily life around the world?
• What does it mean to move respectfully to music that comes from another culture?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Identify basic music concepts (especially duple vs. triple meter, and tempo) in music from a variety of cultures.
2. Move in ways that match the meter and tempo of selected pieces (e.g., 2-step patterns in duple, 3-step patterns in triple).
3. Describe how music from different cultures is connected to dance, celebrations, and daily activities.
4. Create and perform simple movement patterns inspired by world music examples while following classroom safety and respect norms.
5. Explain, in simple language, how their movement shows what they hear and why people might use that music in life.

Standards Alignment — Grade 2 Music (NAfME-Aligned)

• MU:Pr4.2.2a — Demonstrate knowledge of music concepts (such as tonality and meter) in music from a variety of cultures selected for performance.
  • Example: Identifying duple meter in a folk song from another culture.
• MU:Cn11.0.2a — Demonstrate understanding of relationships between music and the other arts, other disciplines, varied contexts, and daily life.
  • Example: Connecting music to stories, movement, or visual art.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can tell if a piece of music is in duple or triple meter and show it with my steps or claps.
• I can move in a way that matches the music’s tempo (fast/slow) and feel.
• I can say how people might use this music for dancing, celebrating, or other parts of life.
• I can create a simple movement pattern for a piece of world music and perform it safely and respectfully.
• I can explain how my movement connects to the music and the context where it might be used.