Fun Fall Elementary Music Lessons for September 2024
Engage your students with elementary music lessons and activities that will become fall favorites for teachers and students.
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Fall is my favorite season. The days are cooler and the evenings are crisp. Everything at school is still new and fresh. The lessons you teach this month set the tone for the entire year. Nurture your students’ initial excitement and keep them engaged in fun music activities.
Take a peek at the September holidays and observances below to see if they spark any ideas for your elementary music lesson plans.
What’s in this post? Click to open the Table of Contents
- Holidays and Observances
- The Perfect Bilingual Storybook
- A Fun Storybook Video
- Sneak in Music Literacy Activities
- Oktoberfest Begins in September
- Fun Seasonal Lessons
- Rhythm Clip It Cards as Observational Assessments
- Learning to Read Music Should be FUN
- Easily Find Perfect Elementary Music Resources
- Enjoy the Fall Season
- FREE Fall Clip It Rhythm Cards
- Planning Ahead? Need More Lesson Plan Ideas?
September Holidays and Observances
Hook your students with fun music activities and themes.
- September 2 – Labor Day
- September 5 – National Cheese Pizza Day
- September 7 – National Play Outside Day (The first Saturday of each month)
- September 8 – National Grandparents’ Day
- September 9 – National Teddy Bear Day
- September 11 – 9/11 Remembrance
- September 13 – Uncle Sam Day
- September 15 – October 15 – National Hispanic Heritage Month
- September 16 – National Collect Rocks Day/Play-Doh Day
- September 17 – Citizenship Day/Constitution Day
- September 18 – National Respect Day
- September 19 – Talk Like a Pirate Day
- September 21 – Oktoberfest begins in Munich
- September 21 – International Day of Peace/World Gratitude Day/National Dance Day
- September 22 – Autumnal Equinox, First Day of Fall
- September 23 – International Day of Sign Languages
- September 26 – Johnny Appleseed Day
- September 28 – National Good Neighbor Day
- September 30 – National Hot Cider Day
Weekly Observances
- Oktoberfest (Munich) September 21 – October 6
- National Keep Kids Creative Week – September 22 – September 28
Monthly Observances
- Good Manners/Courtesy Month
- Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 – October 15)
- National Piano Month
Perfect Bilingual Storybook for Elementary Music Classroom
Rin, Rin, Rin, Do, Re, Mi by José-Luis Orozco with illustrations by David Díaz is a perfect addition to your elementary music classroom library. In this charming storybook, a young child asks his parents to “sing to me, say letters to me, rhyme with me, count with me, read with me.”
This book is a part of the Scholastic Lee y Seras literacy campaign. Check your Scholastic book order for this title or ask your librarian to order it for your school.
Storybook Video to Introduce “Found Instruments”
Marching band season is here and it’s time to get out your rhythm sticks and “drum up” some excitement in your elementary music classroom. Thank you to the Boulder Philharmonic for this wonderful reading of Max Found Two Sticks by Brian Pinkney.
Welcoming Storybooks 📚
Help your students feel welcome and valued with one of these storybooks. Check your school and public libraries for copies of these popular titles.
Sneak in Music Literacy Activities with Fun Songs and Games
Hop Old Squirrel is a tried and true FAVORITE game song for the elementary music classroom. The NO-PREP game requires no materials and allows students to have some good old-fashioned fun while being creative.
Extend the activities with this MUSIC LITERACY guided lesson. The easy-to-use resource includes the following DIFFERENTIATED elements allowing the resource to be used with multiple grade levels.
- PowerPoint guided lesson (may be used with Google Slides)
- Iconic and standard notation
- Rhythmic Orff ostinato pattern
- Teaches and reinforces solfege hand signs
- Recorder notation
- Printable Take Home pages
- Digital online activities which may be used for practice, review, or assessment
P.S. National Squirrel Day is in January. This would be a fun time to revisit Hop Old Squirrel. 🐿️
Oktoberfest Celebrations Begin in September
Oktoberfest is all about FUN! Traditionally celebrations start in September and last into October. The festival originally began in Germany, but now many cities and countries all around the world celebrate Oktoberfest and the German culture and traditions. Activities include wiener dog (dachshund) races and costume contests, polka bands, singing, dancing, and traditional German foods and costumes.
Teaching and learning about Oktoberfest have been some of my students’ favorite music activities. Singing and dancing with a real polka band at our community festival has been a highlight of our year.
Join the fun and learn about Oktoberfest traditions and customs. Take a peek at the music activities in this differentiated Oktoberfest Music Activities. This NO-PREP resource includes the elements below.
- German folk song
- Hand clap patterns
- Orff accompaniments
- Boomwhackers notation
- History of Oktoberfest
- Beautiful photos of German castles and more.
Don’t speak German? No problem. Two screencasts are included to teach German counting to 10 and the pronunciation of a simple German folk song.
Need Fun Seasonal Lessons for Fall or Halloween?
Fall Version
Some students and schools do not celebrate Halloween. So, I changed the lyrics but kept the same engaging activities to turn the song into a fall elementary music lesson.
Pass the Pumpkin Pie may be used all season long and the activities will be a hit for all your students.
Halloween Version
Your kids will beg to sing these songs and play the game ALL YEAR LONG! (Yes, we have done it in April. 😊) Pass the Pumpkin includes a full Orff arrangement with differentiated activities for grades K-5.
✅ These kid-tested and approved activities go on my list of all-time favorite elementary music lessons.
Fall Rhythm Clip Cards as Observational Assessments
Rhythm practice and assessment can be fun with these Fall Rhythm Pattern Clip Cards. Whether you need a review, practice, or assessment tool, these versatile clip cards fit the bill.
The activities work well for both whole-class participation and center-based tasks. The leveled cards are differentiated for use in grades K-5 making them an excellent addition to your classroom resources.
🎶 Pick up your FREE Primer Set of Fall Rhythm Clip Cards when you subscribe to our helpful elementary music teacher email list at the bottom of this post. Our elementary music teacher email list is free too! 😊
Music Reading Lessons Should Be FUN
Targeted music reading lessons can, and should be, among your favorite elementary music lessons. More importantly, music reading lessons should be some of your students’ favorite lessons.
Developing elementary students’ music reading skills requires sequential lessons that build one upon another and introduce only one new element at a time. The NO-PREP guided music reading lessons below include fun games and activities to build music reading skills naturally. They also include authentic, quick, easy-to-administer assessments.
Click below to see more about these time-saving activity bundles.
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Need help squeezing music reading activities into every lesson? Take a peek at this post for actionable tips – Integrate Music Reading Into Every Music Class.
Easily Find the Perfect Elementary Music Resources
Need help to find the perfect songs and activities to teach specific music elements?
This user-friendly Elementary Music Activity Guide includes a detailed “at-a-glance” index of music elements allowing you to quickly find the perfect activities. The guide encompasses a wide range of FREE and paid resources and valuable music teacher tips that benefit your elementary music classroom.
Enjoy the Fall Season in Your Classroom and at Home
I hope you are inspired by the cooler, crisp weather and the changing of the seasons. Save some time for yourself and your family to enjoy the fall celebrations in your area.
Send me a quick email through our Contact Form if you have any questions or need help planning your fall elementary music lessons.
Auf Wiedersehen!
💡 Planning Ahead? Need More Lesson Plan Ideas?
- Elementary Ideas and Activities for October
- Elementary Ideas and Activities for November
- Elementary Ideas and Activities for December
Get FREE Fall Rhythm Clip Cards When You Subscribe to Our Email List
🎶 Remember to pick up your FREE Primer Set of Fall Rhythm Clip Cards when you subscribe to our helpful elementary music teacher email list below. It’s free too! 😊
Meet the Author
Terri Lloyd is a former elementary music teacher with over 25 years of experience. She holds a Bachelor of Music, a Master of Science in Education, and a Technology Certificate in Instructional Design.
Terri is active in music education through blogging, presenting and attending workshops, and curriculum development. She serves on the music staff at her church and volunteers for an after-school children’s program. Terri is an active musician in the community, performing in a local Big Band, pit orchestras, and various events.
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