National Standards for Music Education for Four-year-olds

The standards in this section are intended for 4-year-old children. It is important to remember that the skills of young children develop along a continuum, and developmentally appropriate activities can be used with younger children (Music Educators National Conference, 1994).

Singing and Playing Instruments

Young children enjoy singing and playing instruments. Four-year-olds are able to differentiate between their singing and speaking voices. They are also able to express themselves by playing instruments. The following standards identify the type of singing and instruments that are most suitable for 4-year-olds.

• Children use their voices as they speak, chant, and sing.
• Children sing a variety of simple songs in various keys, meters, and genres, alone and in groups, becoming increasingly accurate in rhythm and pitch.
• Children experiment with a variety of instruments and other sound sources.
• Children play simple melodies and accompaniments on instruments.

Creating Music

Four-year-olds are quite capable of creating sound patterns with their bodies, their voices, and instruments. They often create simple melodies while at play. They also create musical sounds to express an idea. The following standards focus on a child’s ability to create music.

• Children improvise songs to accompany their play activities.
• Children improvise instrumental accompaniments to songs, recorded selections, stories, and poems.
• Children create short pieces of music, using voices, instruments, and other sound sources.
• Children invent and use original graphic or symbolic systems to represent vocal and instrumental sounds and musical ideas.

Responding to Music

Four-year-olds are able to recognize musical phrases and show an awareness of simple cadences. They can identify the speed of music (fast/slow, getting faster/slower) and can describe the volume of music in their own words. The standards listed below focus on responding to music.

• Children identify the sources of a wide variety of sounds.
• Children respond through movement to music of various tempos, meters, dynamics, modes, genres, and styles to express what they hear and feel in works of music.
• Children participate freely in music activities.