This document outlines a thematic unit plan focused on music and movement for preschoolers. It includes center activities for each day of the week focusing on art, dramatic play, science, music and movement, blocks, sand/water, health and safety, math manipulatives, and woodworking. Large group, small group, and individual activities are planned each day exploring musical concepts like rhythm, tempo, instruments, and lyrics. Books related to music will be read each day and transitions between activities will incorporate music. The unit aims to engage families through a music concert series and community resources. Key vocabulary and information about musicians and musical elements are provided.

1. Thematic Unit Planning Sheet Theme: Music & Movement
Center Activities:
Art: (5)
M Paint How You Feel
T Drum Diddie Drum
W Where Does the Instrument
Go
Th Water Bottle Percussions
F String Instruments
Dramatic Play: (1)
Concert Hall
Science/Discovery: (3)
Musical Bottles
Quiet Loud
Balloon Amplifier
Music/Movement: (2)
Creative Scarf Movement
Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Ti Do
Blocks: (2)
Instrument Shape Sorter
Music Venues
Sand/Water/Sensory: (3)
What Instrument Do You Hear?
Let’s Make Water Sounds
Feely Box
Health/Safety (1)
Tempo Light
Math Manipulatives: (3)
How Many Beats
It’s Raining Rhymes
Musical Note Patterns
Woodworking: (1)
Instrument build
Other (1)
Visitor Musician
Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5
Large Group “I Got the Rhythm”
Picture File
Musical Junk Do You Hear What I
Hear?
Who’s Got the
Rhythm?
Vibrating Vocal
Chords
Small Group 1 Same Sound Sort Instrument Sorting &
Classifying
Rhythm and Tempo Jumping Bean Writing Lyrics
Small Group 2 Counting and
Comparing
Instruments
Shared Writing
Percussion
Reading Music Music Feelings Geoboards
Instruments
Book of the Day “I Got the Rhythm”
by Connie Schofield-
Morrison
“Creepy Crawly
Calypso” by Tony
Langham
“Quiet Loud” by
Leslie Petricelli
“Olivia Forms a
Band” by Ian
Falconer
“We Play Music” by
Dolores Johnson
Planned Transitions Clap The Beat Dinky Do La, La, La, Scat singing Clap The Missing
Word
Motor Development Let’s Groove Musical Hopscotch Walking a Line My Body Jumps Balloon Dancing

2. Thematic Unit Planning Sheet page 2 Theme:
Children’s books that support unit:
Never Play Music Right Next to the Zoo by John Lithgow
Knick Knack Paddy Wack by Barefoot Books
Pecorino’s First Concert by Alan Madison
My Family Plays Music by Judy Cox
I Want to Be a Musician by Dan Liebman
Gabriella’s Song by Candace Fleming
Resources to support unit:
Children’s Book of Music by Dorling Kindersly
Meet the Instruments of the Orchestra by Genevieve Helsby
101 Music Games for Children by Jerry Storms
World Music: A Global Journey, 3rd
Ed. By Terry Miller
Teaching Strategies: The Music Making Study
Families/Community will be engaged through:
Chamber Music Charleston: Classical Kids Concert Series
Children’s Museum of the Low Country
Fun facts and vocabulary:
Musician: a person who writes, sings, or plays music
Note: a musical sound
Pitch: highness or lowness of sound
Tempo: the rate of speed at which a musical piece is being played or sung
Tone: the sound of a musical note
Vocal: sung by the human voice
Interactive bulletin board that supports unit
“It’s Raining Rhymes” focuses on rhyming by using a sorting and
matching concept. The board has a simple yet colorful background
of blue and green paper representing an outdoor scene. The paper
is securely attached to a magnetic dry erase board. Each piece is
laminated and attached to the board using magnetic pieces.
Students will use the clouds with the “main” rhyming word to sort
through the rhyming words on the raindrops. Each cloud and
raindrop have a picture and the corresponding word. I tried to use
as many real pictures as possible. As the students begin to say the
pictures while looking at the words, they are becoming familiar with
letter patterns. This activity can be used as a small group, large
group, or even independent activity.