Unit Plan 22 (Grade 4 Music): Music in Daily Life

Focus: Connect music experiences at school, home, and in the community to students’ interests, choices, and identities.

Grade Level: 4

Subject Area: Music (General Music • Creating • Performing • Responding • Connecting)

Total Unit Duration: 1–3 sessions, 50–60 minutes each

I. Introduction

Students explore how music is part of their everyday lives—from school assemblies and classroom transitions to sports events, family celebrations, and community activities. They identify where and why they hear music, how it makes them feel, and how their own interests, knowledge, and skills shape the music they choose to listen to, perform, or create. By the end of the unit, students can clearly explain how music connects to their personal identity, daily routines, and future musical goals.

Essential Questions

• Where do I experience music in my daily life at school, at home, and in the community?
• How do my interests, knowledge, and skills influence the music I like, choose, and perform?
• Why does music fit certain events or purposes (celebrations, focus, calm, energy) better than others?
• How can understanding my own music choices help me grow as a musician and listener?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Identify and categorize real-life examples of music in school, home, and community contexts (e.g., assemblies, games, family events).
2. Explain how their personal interests, knowledge, and skills influence the music they choose to listen to, perform, or create.
3. Describe how music in daily life serves different purposes (celebration, focus, background, ceremony, fun, calm).
4. Create a simple “Music in My Day” map or timeline that connects specific musical moments to feelings, choices, and intent.
5. Share a short reflection or presentation explaining one way music is important in their daily life and how it connects to who they are.

Standards Alignment — Grade 4 Music (NAfME-Aligned)

• MU:Cn10.0.4a — Demonstrate how interests, knowledge, and skills relate to personal choices and intent when creating, performing, and responding to music.
  • Example: Choosing percussion because of interest in rhythm-based music.

Success Criteria — Student-Friendly Language

• I can list places and times where I hear or use music at school, at home, and in my community.
• I can explain how my interests (what I like), knowledge (what I know), and skills (what I can do) affect the music I choose.
• I can describe what music in my day is for (to celebrate, to calm down, to help focus, to have fun, etc.).
• I can create a map, chart, or timeline that shows where music appears in my day and why it matters.
• I can share at least one way that music is part of who I am and what I want to do as a musician.