Choose exam board for KS4 Computer Science (GCSE)
Choose exam board for KS4 English
Choose exam board for KS4 French
Choose exam board for KS4 Geography
Choose exam board for KS4 German
Choose exam board for KS4 History
Choose tier for KS4 Maths
Choose exam board for KS4 Music
Choose exam board for KS4 Physical education (GCSE)
Choose exam board for KS4 Religious education (GCSE)
Choose exam board for KS4 Spanish

      Responding to different musical moods

      Lesson details

      Learning outcome

      I can listen carefully and share ideas about how music makes me feel.

      Key learning points

      1. We warm up before singing so that our bodies, minds and voices are ready to sing.
      2. Music can make us feel different emotions like happy, sad, sleepy or excited.
      3. We can show different feelings in our singing with our voice, face and body.

      Keywords

      • Singing - creating musical sounds with our voice that can be a mixture of high sounds and low sounds

      • Warm up - a sequence of exercises used to prepare the mind, body and voice for singing

      • Lyrics - the words of a song

      Common misconception

      Everybody responds to music in the same way

      While there are common musical features that makes a song sound happy, sad or scary, these are not always experienced in the same way. One person may find a song calm, wheras another may find it sad.

      Teacher tip

      When teaching longer songs, break it down in to different sections and use plenty of repetition.

      Licence

      This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2026), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0
      except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions
      (Collection 2).

      Lesson video

      Loading...

      Prior knowledge starter quiz

      4 Questions

      Q1.
      What is a warm up?

      when we put on a big coat before we start singing.
      Correct answer: when we do an activity to get our voices and bodies ready for singing.
      when we start singing with our loudest voices.

      Q2.
      What is meant by your "singing voice"?

      the voice we use when we talk to each other.
      the loudest voice you can make
      Correct answer: the voice we use that can be a mixture of high sounds and low sounds

      Q3.
      What is it called when we speak in time to music rather than singing?

      Correct answer: a chant
      a melody
      a song

      Q4.
      What do we warm up to be ready for signing?

      Our voices
      Our faces
      Our bodies
      Our minds
      Correct answer: All of the above

      4 Questions

      Q1.
      When you are warmed up, your body should feel...

      tense and tight
      Correct answer: relaxed and tall
      tired and slow

      Q2.
      Which of these might be true of a song that makes us feel happy?

      Correct answer: the singer sounds joyful
      the words are sad
      the song sounds slow and tiring
      Correct answer: the words are positive

      Q3.
      How could you make your singing sound cross?

      I could sing quietly.
      Correct answer: I could sing loudly.
      I could make a happy face.

      Q4.
      What are lyrics?

      The background music in a song.
      The instruments used in a song.
      Correct answer: The words of a song.

      To help you plan your 1 music lesson on: Responding to different musical moods, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...