Storytelling through song
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can hear and understand part of a story told through song.
Key learning points
- Humans have told stories through song for thousands of years.
- A griot shares family history, stories and knowledge through song and poetry via the oral tradition.
- The oral tradition is a means of sharing songs by passing them down through singing rather than being written down.
- Traditional ballads tell stories nd have been passed through generations via the oral tradition.
- Thinking about the meaning of the words when we are singing helps us to communicate the story to the audience.
Keywords
Griot - (pronounced ‘gree-oh’) a West African storyteller and musician
Narrative - how a song or piece of music conveys a story through lyrics and/or melody
Ballad - a form of narrative verse, often put to music
Common misconception
Songs are written based on the beliefs and experiences of the person writing or singing.
Songs have been used for so many purposes from preserving history, sharing family history, entertaining people, to protesting, sharing political messages and to tell a huge range of stories both factual and fiction.
Teacher tip
Encouraging the pupils to begin to think about how they can express the meaning of the lyrics of a song will develop their vocal performance skills.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
4 Questions
Q1.What does the 'oral tradition' mean?
Q2.What is rhythm?
Q3.The guitar is a type of __________ instrument.
Q4.When we chant, we ...
Assessment exit quiz
4 Questions
Q1.We before music lessons to protect our voices from injury.
Q2.__________ is a means of sharing songs and stories by passing them down through singing rather than being written down.
Q3.Traditional __________ tell stories and have been passed through generations via the oral tradition.
Q4.__________ shares West African family history, stories and knowledge through song and poetry via the oral tradition.
To help you plan your 4 music lesson on: Storytelling through song, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 4 music lesson on: Storytelling through song, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 music lessons from the Singing together: how stories are shared through song unit, dive into the full primary music curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.