🎸 IESS Music

Year 6 Music

Unit 1: Music Styles — Blues, Gospel, Jazz, Hip Hop & Pop

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Weekly planning

v.34 Welcome & Getting Started Unit 1: Music Styles
  • Attendance & first introductions
  • Who Am I? Musical introduction
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: Musical Name Game
  • Classroom expectations & “3 Before Me”
  • What will we learn? Quick preview
  • Getting to know your musical selves
  • Clean up & next week preview

💡 Did you know? The microphone was invented before the loudspeaker — early singers heard themselves through telephone receivers.

v.35 Blues Foundation Unit 1: Music Styles
  • Attendance
  • Welcome back & blues introduction
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: Feel the Blues
  • 3 elements of music in blues
  • Blues singing workshop
  • Clean up & preview

💡 Did you know? BB King named every one of his guitars "Lucille" — after a fire started by two men fighting over a woman with that name.

v.36 Gospel Unit 1: Music Styles
  • Attendance
  • Gospel origins
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: Gospel Celebration
  • Gospel vs blues comparison
  • Gospel singing practice
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? Thomas A. Dorsey, the "father of gospel music", started out playing blues piano under the name Georgia Tom.

v.37 iPad Music Creation Unit 1: Music Styles
  • Attendance
  • Review both styles
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: iPad station setup
  • iPad music creation — style exploration
  • Instrument introduction
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? The "loudness war" is real: many modern songs are compressed so hard that a 1980s vinyl can have more dynamics than a streaming hit.

v.38 Jazz Unit 1: Music Styles
  • Attendance
  • Jazz evolution story
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: Jazz Smooth Moves
  • Jazz musical elements
  • Simple jazz experience
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? Ella Fitzgerald planned to dance at her first amateur night in 1934 — she got nervous and sang instead. She won.

v.39 Jazz Workshop Unit 1: Music Styles
  • Attendance
  • Jazz review & practice
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: iPad jazz lab setup
  • iPad jazz creation workshop
  • Style comparison game
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? Ella Fitzgerald planned to dance at her first amateur night in 1934 — she got nervous and sang instead. She won.

v.40 Hip Hop Unit 1: Music Styles
  • Attendance
  • Hip hop origins & culture
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: Hip hop beat creation
  • iPad hip hop production
  • Hip hop showcase
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? Hip hop was born at a birthday party: DJ Kool Herc spinning breaks for his sister Cindy in the Bronx, August 1973.

v.41 Style Comparison & Review Unit 1: Music Styles
  • Attendance
  • Comprehensive style review
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: Style station rotation
  • Assessment preparation
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? A grand piano has over 12,000 parts, and its strings together pull with a force of around 20 tonnes.

v.42 Assessment — Style Identification Unit 1: Music Styles
  • Attendance
  • Assessment part 1: listening test
  • Assessment part 2: practical
  • Assessment feedback
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? A grand piano has over 12,000 parts, and its strings together pull with a force of around 20 tonnes.

v.43 Song Analysis & Planning Unit 2: Create a Song
  • Attendance
  • Unit 2 introduction
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: Creative energy warm-up
  • Song structure analysis
  • Choose your style & planning
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? The "loudness war" is real: many modern songs are compressed so hard that a 1980s vinyl can have more dynamics than a streaming hit.

v.44 AUTUMN BREAK (Höstlov)

No lessons — enjoy and recover!

v.45 Creation Workshop 1 Unit 2: Create a Song
  • Attendance
  • Song project introduction
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: Creative energy
  • iPad-powered creation workshop
  • Progress sharing circle
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? The "loudness war" is real: many modern songs are compressed so hard that a 1980s vinyl can have more dynamics than a streaming hit.

v.46 Creation Workshop 2 Unit 2: Create a Song
  • Attendance
  • Quick warm-up & iPad setup
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: Performance prep
  • Intensive iPad creation session
  • Final preparation & testing
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? The "loudness war" is real: many modern songs are compressed so hard that a 1980s vinyl can have more dynamics than a streaming hit.

v.47 Performance Preparation Unit 2: Create a Song
  • Attendance
  • Final rehearsals
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: Performance confidence building
  • Performance day setup
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? The Beatles performed live together for the last time on a London rooftop — the police shut it down after 42 minutes.

v.48 Assessment — Performances Unit 2: Create a Song
  • Attendance
  • Student performances
  • Immediate reflection
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? The microphone was invented before the loudspeaker — early singers heard themselves through telephone receivers.

v.49 Reflection & Closure Unit 2: Create a Song
  • Attendance
  • Detailed feedback session
  • ⚡ MOVEMENT BREAK: Musical journey celebration
  • Term journey review
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? A grand piano has over 12,000 parts, and its strings together pull with a force of around 20 tonnes.

v.50 Buffer Week
  • Attendance
  • Optional extra lesson or catch-up time if needed
  • Gingerbread and carols 🎅
  • Clean up

💡 Did you know? Listening to music you love makes your brain release dopamine — the same reward chemical as eating your favourite food.

v.51 Buffer Week & Christmas
  • Attendance
  • Wrap-up
  • Clean up

God jul! 🎄

💡 Did you know? Listening to music you love makes your brain release dopamine — the same reward chemical as eating your favourite food.

Fun & practice 🎮

👂 Name That Style Train your ear for the listening test 🎸 12-Bar Blues Builder Build the classic blues by ear 🥁 Beat Lab Make a beat, then rebuild it in Soundtrap ⚡ Break Wheel Spins the movement break — classroom screen

About the course

But here’s what most people don’t know: every song on your phone, every beat that makes you move, every melody that gets stuck in your head — it all traces back to the same musical DNA. This term, we’re going to discover that DNA and learn how to use it.

Why do we study music? (from the curriculum)

Music exists in all cultures and touches people physically, mentally and emotionally. As a form of aesthetic expression, music is used in a variety of contexts, has different functions and means different things to each of us. It is also an important part of people’s social community and plays a role in the development of an individual’s identity. In our time, music from different cultures and time periods is combined with other art forms in new expressions.

Proficiency in and knowledge of music increases opportunities to participate in the cultural life of society.

Our goals in Year 6 (LGR22)

Music at school follows the Swedish national curriculum, LGR22. The subject develops three long-term abilities:

  1. Sing and play in different musical forms and genres
  2. Create music and express and communicate thoughts and ideas in musical form
  3. Experience and reflect on music’s content, function and meaning in different social, cultural and historical contexts

For Year 6 (the end of the åk 4–6 stage) this means we will:

  • Sing and play melody and accompaniment in different genres, in unison and in parts
  • Improvise and compose using the musical building blocks: pulse, rhythm, tempo, time signatures, dynamics, phrases, musical form and chords
  • Use our voices in different vocal expressions, play chord, melody, bass and percussion instruments, and create music with digital tools
  • Read music symbols, chord symbols and basic notation
  • Take care of our voices and hearing when we make music
  • Combine music with other forms of expression, and learn how instruments work in different ensembles
  • Recognize the musical characteristics of art music, folk music and popular music from different cultures, and reflect on what music means for people and society

Year 6 is a graded year: assessment looks at how you perform your part when we sing and play together, how you express ideas when creating music, and how you identify instruments and style characteristics in different kinds of music.

The purpose of the unit
  • Discover: the origin and evolution of blues, gospel, jazz, and hip-hop — and understand how they connect to today’s music
  • Experience: what it’s like to work as a professional music ensemble — the collaboration, creativity, and problem-solving that happens when musicians work together
  • Create: your own musical expressions using traditional instruments, voices, and modern digital tools
  • Connect: how these musical styles shaped society, culture, and continue to influence the music industry today
Learning outcomes
  • To learn the characteristics and elements of different music styles
  • To learn music theory and music history
  • To learn how to play individually and as a band (ensemble)
  • To learn the proper language and terms to express myself in music as well as to society
Unit 2: Composing and Creation — Create a Song

Studio mixing desk

Later in the term we move from listening and playing to creating: analysing song structure, choosing a style, and building your own song with instruments, voices and iPads, finishing with performances.

Listening examples

Click a style to listen, or an artist name to read about them.

Blues BB King
Gospel Thomas A. Dorsey
Jazz Ella Fitzgerald
Hip Hop DJ Kool Herc

Support times

Updates soon! Room: Folkets Park