What does music look like in pre-K?

Students sing simple songs, clap and tap to a beat, move to music, and try out instruments like shakers and drums. They also talk about how music makes them feel and start making up their own sounds and short songs.

How can I help my child build music skills at home?

Sing together in the car, clap along to favorite songs, and let students bang on pots or shake a jar of beans to keep a beat. Five minutes a day of singing or moving to music does more than any app or lesson.

Does my child need to learn to read music this year?

No. Reading notes on a page comes much later. Right now the focus is hearing the difference between loud and soft, fast and slow, and high and low, and feeling a steady beat in the body.

How should I sequence music across the year?

Start with steady beat and call-and-response singing in the fall. Add loud and soft, fast and slow, and high and low through the winter. By spring, students can make up short songs or sound patterns and perform them for the class.

What if my child is too shy to sing in front of others?

That is normal at this age. Singing along at home, humming in the bath, or tapping a beat counts as real practice. Confidence usually grows once students hear the same songs many times.

Which skills usually need the most reteaching?

Keeping a steady beat is the one students need to revisit again and again. Many can sing a tune before they can clap a beat without speeding up. Build short beat-keeping moments into transitions and line-ups all year.

How do I know students are ready for kindergarten music?

By the end of the year, students should keep a steady beat for a short song, sing a simple tune in tune most of the time, and tell whether a piece sounds fast or slow, loud or soft. They should also be willing to perform a short piece for the group.

What songs should we be singing at home?

Nursery rhymes, lullabies, and call-and-response songs work best. Songs with hand motions, like the ones about a spider or a bus, help students connect sound to movement. Repeat the same few songs often instead of always picking new ones.

What does a student learn in ?

This is the year music becomes something students make, not just hear. Students sing simple songs, tap along to a steady beat, and try out instruments to see what sounds they can create. They also start talking about music, sharing what a song reminds them of or how it makes them feel. By spring, students can keep a beat, sing a short song from memory, and tell a grown-up what they liked about it.

Singing songs
Steady beat
Exploring instruments
Listening to music
Sharing favorites

Source: Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Core Standards

Year at a glance

How the year usually goes. Every school and district set their own curriculum, so treat this as a guide, not official pacing.

1
Exploring sound and voice
Students get comfortable making music together. They sing simple songs, clap to a steady beat, and notice the difference between loud and soft or fast and slow.
2
Making up their own music
Students try out their own musical ideas. They invent short tunes, pick instruments to match a feeling, and add sounds to stories or rhymes.
3
Practicing and sharing songs
Students rehearse songs and short pieces to share with classmates or family. They learn to start together, listen to each other, and show feeling through how they sing or play.
4
Listening and responding
Students listen closely to different kinds of music and talk about what they hear. They notice how a song makes them feel and connect it to music from their own families and communities.

Mastery Learning Standards

The required skills a student should display by the end of Pre-Kindergarten.

Connecting

Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art

MU:Cn10.pk

Students connect music to their own life. They draw on what they know and what they've felt to respond to songs and sounds around them.
Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural

MU:Cn11.pk

Songs and musical sounds connect to the world around us. Students notice how music can tell a story about a place, a celebration, or a community they belong to.

Standard	Definition	Code
Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art	Students connect music to their own life. They draw on what they know and what they've felt to respond to songs and sounds around them.	MU:Cn10.pk
Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural	Songs and musical sounds connect to the world around us. Students notice how music can tell a story about a place, a celebration, or a community they belong to.	MU:Cn11.pk

Connecting

Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art

MU:Cn10.pk

Students connect music to their own life. They draw on what they know and what they've felt to respond to songs and sounds around them.
Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural

MU:Cn11.pk

Songs and musical sounds connect to the world around us. Students notice how music can tell a story about a place, a celebration, or a community they belong to.

Standard	Definition	Code
Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art	Students connect music to their own life. They draw on what they know and what they've felt to respond to songs and sounds around them.	MU:Cn10.pk
Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural	Songs and musical sounds connect to the world around us. Students notice how music can tell a story about a place, a celebration, or a community they belong to.	MU:Cn11.pk

Creating

Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work

MU:Cr1.pk

Students make up short songs, tapping out beats or humming melodies they invent on their own. This is the beginning of learning to create music from scratch.
Organize and develop artistic ideas and work

MU:Cr2.pk

Students pick sounds, movements, or rhythms they like and put them together to make something of their own.
Refine and complete artistic work

MU:Cr3.pk

Students finish a song or sound idea by trying it more than once and making small changes until it feels right.

Standard	Definition	Code
Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work	Students make up short songs, tapping out beats or humming melodies they invent on their own. This is the beginning of learning to create music from scratch.	MU:Cr1.pk
Organize and develop artistic ideas and work	Students pick sounds, movements, or rhythms they like and put them together to make something of their own.	MU:Cr2.pk
Refine and complete artistic work	Students finish a song or sound idea by trying it more than once and making small changes until it feels right.	MU:Cr3.pk

Creating

Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work

MU:Cr1.pk

Students make up short songs, tapping out beats or humming melodies they invent on their own. This is the beginning of learning to create music from scratch.
Organize and develop artistic ideas and work

MU:Cr2.pk

Students pick sounds, movements, or rhythms they like and put them together to make something of their own.
Refine and complete artistic work

MU:Cr3.pk

Students finish a song or sound idea by trying it more than once and making small changes until it feels right.

Standard	Definition	Code
Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work	Students make up short songs, tapping out beats or humming melodies they invent on their own. This is the beginning of learning to create music from scratch.	MU:Cr1.pk
Organize and develop artistic ideas and work	Students pick sounds, movements, or rhythms they like and put them together to make something of their own.	MU:Cr2.pk
Refine and complete artistic work	Students finish a song or sound idea by trying it more than once and making small changes until it feels right.	MU:Cr3.pk

Performing/Presenting/Producing

Analyze, interpret, and select artistic work for presentation

MU:Pr4.pk

Students choose a song or musical piece to perform and think about how they want it to sound before they play or sing it.
Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation

MU:Pr5.pk

Students practice a song or rhythm until it feels ready to share. Getting it right takes more than one try.
Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work

MU:Pr6.pk

Singing a song or playing an instrument is its own kind of communication. Students share what they feel and think by performing music for others.

Standard	Definition	Code
Analyze, interpret, and select artistic work for presentation	Students choose a song or musical piece to perform and think about how they want it to sound before they play or sing it.	MU:Pr4.pk
Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation	Students practice a song or rhythm until it feels ready to share. Getting it right takes more than one try.	MU:Pr5.pk
Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work	Singing a song or playing an instrument is its own kind of communication. Students share what they feel and think by performing music for others.	MU:Pr6.pk

Performing/Presenting/Producing

Analyze, interpret, and select artistic work for presentation

MU:Pr4.pk

Students choose a song or musical piece to perform and think about how they want it to sound before they play or sing it.
Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation

MU:Pr5.pk

Students practice a song or rhythm until it feels ready to share. Getting it right takes more than one try.
Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work

MU:Pr6.pk

Singing a song or playing an instrument is its own kind of communication. Students share what they feel and think by performing music for others.

Standard	Definition	Code
Analyze, interpret, and select artistic work for presentation	Students choose a song or musical piece to perform and think about how they want it to sound before they play or sing it.	MU:Pr4.pk
Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation	Students practice a song or rhythm until it feels ready to share. Getting it right takes more than one try.	MU:Pr5.pk
Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work	Singing a song or playing an instrument is its own kind of communication. Students share what they feel and think by performing music for others.	MU:Pr6.pk

Responding

Perceive and analyze artistic work

MU:Re7.pk

Students listen to a short piece of music and talk about what they hear, noticing things like how fast or slow it moves or whether it sounds happy or scary.
Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work

MU:Re8.pk

Students listen to a song or watch a performance and share what they think it feels like or what story it might tell.
Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work

MU:Re9.pk

Students listen to a song or watch a performance and say what they liked or what sounded different. They start learning that music can be talked about, not just heard.

Standard	Definition	Code
Perceive and analyze artistic work	Students listen to a short piece of music and talk about what they hear, noticing things like how fast or slow it moves or whether it sounds happy or scary.	MU:Re7.pk
Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work	Students listen to a song or watch a performance and share what they think it feels like or what story it might tell.	MU:Re8.pk
Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work	Students listen to a song or watch a performance and say what they liked or what sounded different. They start learning that music can be talked about, not just heard.	MU:Re9.pk

Responding

Perceive and analyze artistic work

MU:Re7.pk

Students listen to a short piece of music and talk about what they hear, noticing things like how fast or slow it moves or whether it sounds happy or scary.
Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work

MU:Re8.pk

Students listen to a song or watch a performance and share what they think it feels like or what story it might tell.
Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work

MU:Re9.pk

Students listen to a song or watch a performance and say what they liked or what sounded different. They start learning that music can be talked about, not just heard.

Standard	Definition	Code
Perceive and analyze artistic work	Students listen to a short piece of music and talk about what they hear, noticing things like how fast or slow it moves or whether it sounds happy or scary.	MU:Re7.pk
Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work	Students listen to a song or watch a performance and share what they think it feels like or what story it might tell.	MU:Re8.pk
Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work	Students listen to a song or watch a performance and say what they liked or what sounded different. They start learning that music can be talked about, not just heard.	MU:Re9.pk

Common Questions

What does music look like in pre-K?
Students sing simple songs, clap and tap to a beat, move to music, and try out instruments like shakers and drums. They also talk about how music makes them feel and start making up their own sounds and short songs.
How can I help my child build music skills at home?
Sing together in the car, clap along to favorite songs, and let students bang on pots or shake a jar of beans to keep a beat. Five minutes a day of singing or moving to music does more than any app or lesson.
Does my child need to learn to read music this year?
No. Reading notes on a page comes much later. Right now the focus is hearing the difference between loud and soft, fast and slow, and high and low, and feeling a steady beat in the body.
How should I sequence music across the year?
Start with steady beat and call-and-response singing in the fall. Add loud and soft, fast and slow, and high and low through the winter. By spring, students can make up short songs or sound patterns and perform them for the class.
What if my child is too shy to sing in front of others?
That is normal at this age. Singing along at home, humming in the bath, or tapping a beat counts as real practice. Confidence usually grows once students hear the same songs many times.
Which skills usually need the most reteaching?
Keeping a steady beat is the one students need to revisit again and again. Many can sing a tune before they can clap a beat without speeding up. Build short beat-keeping moments into transitions and line-ups all year.
How do I know students are ready for kindergarten music?
By the end of the year, students should keep a steady beat for a short song, sing a simple tune in tune most of the time, and tell whether a piece sounds fast or slow, loud or soft. They should also be willing to perform a short piece for the group.
What songs should we be singing at home?
Nursery rhymes, lullabies, and call-and-response songs work best. Songs with hand motions, like the ones about a spider or a bus, help students connect sound to movement. Repeat the same few songs often instead of always picking new ones.