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Year 2 - Music

Playing the pulse to keep in time

Singing together: how singing helps us work together

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupils explore how songs are used for work, productivity, and collaboration. It focuses on working songs at sea. Pupils learn that call and response is a structure found in many sea-working songs and that a strong sense of pulse is essential for completing tasks together.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to play a strong beat to help us sing in time together.

Key Notes

  • When we feel the pulse, we can want to move or clap in time. When we do this, we are sounding the pulse as a beat.
  • Playing the pulse as a strong beat can help us to sing in time together.
  • We can play the pulse using instruments or body percussion to help us to sing in time.
  • Many sea shanties and working songs have a steady pulse that is sounded as a strong beat to help workers sing in time.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • sea shanty: a traditional folk song sung by sailors to help them work together in time
  • pulse: the regular, steady heartbeat of the music
  • beat: the playing or showing of the steady pulse, like the ticking of a clock

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Pulse and beat are the same thing.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain the lesson in two key points.

When we feel the pulse, we can want to move or clap in time. When we do this, we are sounding the pulse as a beat. Playing the pulse as a strong beat can help us to sing in time together.

2. What does this key word mean in this lesson? 'sea shanty'

a traditional folk song sung by sailors to help them work together in time.

3. Correct this common mistake.

Mistake: Pulse and beat are the same thing. Correction: Pulse is the regular, steady heartbeat of the music. We feel the pulse. The beat is when we can hear the pulse out loud, like the ticking of a clock.

More Lessons In This Unit

Browse all guides in the Year 2 Music guide library.