Unit Plan 20 (PreK Music): Music Makes Me Feel

Focus: Describe feelings that music creates (happy, sad, excited, calm) and connect those feelings to personal experiences at home and school.

Grade Level: PreK

Subject Area: Music (Exploring • Performing • Responding • Connecting)

Total Unit Duration: 3–4 sessions (2+ weeks), 20–30 minutes per session

I. Introduction

In this unit, children explore how music and feelings go together. They listen to short pieces of music and decide if it sounds happy, sad, excited, or calm, using faces, words, movements, and drawings. As they share, they connect songs to times in their lives (celebrations, quiet time, playtime). The teacher models simple language for talking about feelings and helps children notice how tempo and dynamics can change the mood of music.

Essential Questions

• How can music make us feel happy, sad, excited, or calm?
• How can we show or tell how music makes us feel?
• How is music we hear at home, school, and in our community connected to our feelings and experiences?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Listen to a short piece of music and identify one feeling it creates (e.g., happy, sad, excited, calm) using words, pictures, or gestures.
2. Use faces, movement, or drawings to show how a piece of music makes them feel.
3. Connect a piece of music to a personal experience (e.g., “We hear this at birthdays,” “I listen to this at bedtime”).
4. Participate in simple class discussions about music and feelings, listening to peers’ ideas respectfully.

Standards Alignment — PreK Music (NAfME-Aligned)

• MU:Re7.2.PK — Describe how music makes them feel.
  • Example: “This song makes me happy,” “This music sounds sleepy.”
• MU:Cn10.0.PK — Relate music to personal experiences.
  • Example: Recognizing a song sung at home or school and connecting it to play, rest, or celebrations.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can say or show how music makes me feel.
• I can use a feeling word like happy, sad, excited, or calm when I talk about music.
• I can move, draw, or make a face to match how the music feels.
• I can tell about a time in my life that goes with the music (like a party, bedtime, or playing).