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Lesson 2 of 6
  • Year 3

Songs that bring people together

I can participate in playground singing games and know that these can be used to bring communities together.

Lesson 2 of 6
New
New
  • Year 3

Songs that bring people together

I can participate in playground singing games and know that these can be used to bring communities together.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Playground singing games are unaccompanied songs that are often inspired by folk songs.
  2. Playground singing games are shared orally by friends teaching one another in the playground.
  3. Children teach one another playground songs in playground communities all over the world.
  4. A group of people performing together is called an ensemble.
  5. To be a successful ensemble, it is important to look at one another and listen to one another and to work as a team.

Keywords

  • Folk song - a song that originates from a particular country, culture or people that is usually passed down orally

  • Pulse - the regular, steady heartbeat of the music

  • Beat - the playing or showing of the steady pulse, like the ticking of a clock

  • Ensemble - a group of people who perform together

  • Unaccompanied song - a song that uses voices only

Common misconception

Playground singing games, such as clapping games, are different to "real music" or are not "real music."

Playground singing games are a fantastic example of real music making! The skills needed to play them are used by musicians in other contexts. This unit draws a comparison between playground songs and these skills in action in a string quartet.


To help you plan your year 3 music lesson on: Songs that bring people together, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

For the restricted audio clip, it would be beneficial for the pupils to watch a clip of the Maxwell Quartet playing 'Oot in Da Harbour' to enable pupils to see how the quartet work as an ensemble. For example, the group are sitting in a circle/making eye contact/tapping their feet to the beat etc.
Teacher tip

Equipment

Claves (enough for one pair per pupil)

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Prior knowledge starter quiz

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4 Questions

Q1.
Hi Lo Chickalo and Double This That are examples of ...

hymns and carols
assembly songs
Correct answer: playground singing games

Q2.
Match these musical elements to their definitions.

Correct Answer:tempo,how fast or slow the music is played

how fast or slow the music is played

Correct Answer:beat,the playing or showing of the steady pulse like the ticking of a clock

the playing or showing of the steady pulse like the ticking of a clock

Correct Answer:dynamics,how loudly or quietly the music is played or sung

how loudly or quietly the music is played or sung

Correct Answer:pulse,the regular, steady heartbeat of the music

the regular, steady heartbeat of the music

Q3.
A is a group of people that are connected because they have things or places in common.

Correct Answer: community

Q4.
A quartet is an ensemble made up of __________ musicians.

3
Correct answer: 4
5

Assessment exit quiz

Download quiz pdf

4 Questions

Q1.
Playground singing games are __________ songs that are often inspired by folk songs.

accompanied
Correct answer: unaccompanied
pop

Q2.
Playground singing games are often shared __________ by friends teaching one another in the playground.

Correct answer: orally
through notation
on recordings played

Q3.
A group of people making music together is called ...

a conductor
a composer
Correct answer: an ensemble

Q4.
To play singing games successfully, we need to have a good sense of to help our ensemble.

An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: pulse