How-to Guides for Teacher Planners, Curriculum, and More

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Here’s the problem.

Have you ever looked at a scope and sequence document and given up trying to make it work because there’s so much more than you could ever accomplish?

Or maybe the document doesn’t really reflect your philosophy for elementary music teaching.

My aha moment came while reading Jane Frazee’s book, “Artful, Playful, Mindful.” (affiliate link) She straight up talks about the need to simplify and deepen our activities in elementary music.

Let’s lessen your load and simplify elementary music curriculum planning with how-to guides for planners, templates, and lessons.

How Do You Lesson Plan in Elementary Music?

First start with a realistic yearly curriculum overview template. Then use that template to write detailed lesson plans in a lesson planner document.

Let’s look in more detail.

The Playlist!

Yearly Overview | Planning Template for Elementary Music Curriculum

It all starts with your yearly curriculum. Instead of starting with an overflowing number of objectives that you have to cull, let’s start with some basics and add to it.

Less Is More!

Create a template with what you want as your focus objectives for each month. Remember to include space for activities that are important to your program which might include monthly celebrations, holidays, concerts, etc.

Don’t spend hours. Don’t get bogged down and overthink it. It’s a living document that can change and grow with you and your students.

It’s easier to add to our goals than to have too many! Too many means we’re either behind or rushing to teach them and keep up so learning is probably not happening.

The K-5 Elementary Music Curriculum Scope & Sequence on TPT

Let me do the heavy lifting for you!

If you’d like a pre-made doc, here’s a manageable scope & sequence TEMPLATE for K-5 elementary music, with very basic rhythm and pitch learning, and flexibility to adjust or add curriculum that reflects your teaching philosophy and your students.

But even better?

This TPT resource also includes 12 (multi-lesson) song LESSON PLANS to get you started. There are two song resources per grade level K-5.

These no/low prep resources are enough to provide guidance and still do that thing I keep talking about, allow you to add the extras to fill in what’s important to your school program.

Bonus

Just for you: If you’d like just the template, you can get it for FREE here on the blog.

Once you have your template, it’s time to write more specific lesson plans to use in your weekly teaching.

Digital Lesson Planner for Microsoft Word & Google Doc

Once you have your yearly curriculum template, it’s time to write weekly lesson plans. Teachers use everything from physical planners to digital. Planners are often set up in ways that don’t work for special area teacher schedules. And because of multiple grade levels and grading periods, digital documents can be in so many different locations.

Tabs, bookmarks, and folders. Oh, my!

Finding a great teacher planner is SO hard!

Here’s a different approach that puts all of your elementary music curriculum resources in ONE location. No tabs, bookmarks, or folders but everything in one master document. I created this method and I’m sharing it with you. It’s not for everyone but you should take a look.

It works in both Microsoft Word and Google Docs and because it’s digital, it follows you everywhere.

See it action in the video below.

Master File Planner Instructions DOWNLOADS

These FREE downloads will make MUCH more sense after watching the above video.

Microsoft Word Template

Google Docs Template

K-5 Song Repertoire

Here’s an example of my song repertoire for one year. About 80% stayed the same each year and 20% would change. It would change because of curricular needs, school performance needs, and sometimes because I needed to teach something new.

These images are examples. If you want K-5, download button is below.

The Oodles Newsletter

Join the hundreds of other teachers who receive the Oodles Newsletter every Monday morning with timely tips like this digital planner to help you in your teaching!

Writing Cohesive Plans

You have a yearly overview template and a planner that works for you, it’s time to write the plans. Here’s one way to approach it.

Help! I Can’t Keep Up With Lesson Planning

Being truthful here.

Many new teachers and some who are more experienced are not using a curriculum/scope & sequence to write lesson plans and it’s a CREATE-AS-YOU-GO situation.

• If you’re flying by the seat of your pants sometimes or often, keeping track of what you’re teaching is IMPORTANT!
  • For example, did you use a play along in third grade in three different lessons with some nice differentiation in each lesson that reinforced quarter notes and eighth notes?
  • Maybe you planned it out or it happened as a result of you layering new learning as you saw the opportunities.

Document it!

How I did it!

• I used the systems above.
• There were “fly by the seat of my pants days” and I’d put those lessons (the good ones) in my master document!

How YOU Can Get Started

• Use whatever format you want. How about a simple Google Slide/Sheet and set it up by month and grade level?
• If you do this a little bit at a time, you will thank yourself.
• For example, if it’s the beginning of October, don’t try to go back and pick up August. Start with October and try to copy/paste/write what you taught last week. Just ONE week at a time.

And don’t try to make it look perfect & pretty. Just get last week’s lessons into a simple document!

By the end of the year, you’ll have SO much, organized and ready to go for next year.

Helpful Tools to Save You Time!
🎯 This easy-to-use digital tool lets you design and download barred instrument visuals for your elementary music classroom. FREE!

Tell Me More

Please share your favorite template, planner, or lesson writing resource, hint, tip, or trick.

Leave it in the comments below!