Unit Plan 13 (Grade 6 Vocal Music): Organizing Musical Ideas

Focus: Arrange melodic ideas into a simple song structure (such as verse + refrain or AB) with a clear beginning, middle, and ending.

Grade Level: 6

Subject Area: Vocal Music (Creating • Organizing • Form)

Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 45–55 minutes per session

I. Introduction

In this unit, students take short melodic ideas (motives and phrases) and learn how to organize them into a short song with clear sections. Building on their experience creating melodies, they experiment with repeating, contrasting, and rearranging ideas to form simple structures like AB or verse + refrain. By the end of the week, students will have arranged selected melodic ideas into a short vocal piece with a clear beginning and ending that they can sing.

Essential Questions

• What makes a musical idea feel like part of a song instead of just a random tune?
• How do repetition and contrast help listeners recognize sections (like verse and refrain)?
• Why is it important for a song to have a clear beginning and ending?
• How can I organize my own melodic ideas into a short piece that is easy and enjoyable to sing?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Identify song sections (such as verse and refrain) in simple vocal music examples.
2. Select and arrange short melodic ideas into a clear structure (AB, ABA, or verse + refrain).
3. Create a short song or section with an obvious beginning and ending, using repetition and contrast.
4. Rehearse and perform their organized song with attention to form cues (where to repeat, where to change).
5. Explain how they organized their ideas and why they chose their particular song structure.

Standards Alignment — Grade 6 Vocal Music (custom, NAfME-style)

• VM:Cr2.6a — Organize selected vocal ideas into a short song or section with a clear beginning and ending.
  • Example: Students arrange a verse and refrain using their own melodic ideas.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can point out where the sections of a song begin (A, B, verse, refrain).
• I can choose melodic ideas and put them in an order that makes sense as a song.
• I can show where my song starts, where something changes or repeats, and where it ends.
• I can sing my short song and follow the form (when to repeat, when to move on).
• I can explain why I organized my musical ideas the way I did.