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Year 1

Reading rhythms from pictures

I can use pictures to help me play a rhythm accurately.

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New
New
Year 1

Reading rhythms from pictures

I can use pictures to help me play a rhythm accurately.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. We warm up before singing so that our bodies, minds and voices are ready to sing.
  2. We play instruments on the beat and to the rhythm as we sing.
  3. We know music can be shared by listening or by writing it down.
  4. We can use pictures and words to help us play rhythms accurately.

Keywords

  • Pulse - the regular, steady heartbeat of the music

  • Beat - the playing or showing of the steady pulse, like the ticking of a clock

  • Rhythm - the pattern of sounds that we play and sing

Common misconception

Pulse, beat and rhythm are the same thing.

Pulse is the underlying feeling of uniformed beats - it is the heartbeat of the music. When organised into metres, we then feel it as beats e.g. counting 1,2,3 1,2,3. Rhythm is the pattern of sounds and silences of differing durations.


To help you plan your year 1 music lesson on: Reading rhythms from pictures, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Help pupils to keep a steady pulse as they tap their rhythms by counting them in and by practising counting and pointing to each rhythm box in turn with a steady pulse.
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Teacher tip
equipment-required

Equipment

Class set of percussion instruments, ideally instruments that give a strong beat e.g. claves

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Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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4 Questions

Q1.
In a call and response song, the leader sings the call and the children sing the .
Correct Answer: response, Response
Q2.
How many syllables are in the word 'ant'?
Correct Answer: one, 1
Q3.
How many syllables are in the word 'spider'?
Correct Answer: two, 2, to, too
Q4.
True or False. Rhythm and beat are the same thing.
True
Correct answer: False

4 Questions

Q1.
When we play instruments on the steady pulse, we are playing the .
Correct Answer: beat, Beat
Q2.
True or false. The beat feels steady and the same throughout our songs and chants.
Correct answer: True
False
Q3.
Who do you agree with?
Correct answer: Jun: music can be written down to be remembered for another day.
Correct answer: Izzy: music can be written down to share with other people.
Laura: music is always written down.
Q4.
Match the musical element to the definition.
Correct Answer:pulse,the regular, steady heartbeat of the music
tick

the regular, steady heartbeat of the music

Correct Answer:beat,the playing or showing of the steady pulse, like the ticking of a cloc
tick

the playing or showing of the steady pulse, like the ticking of a cloc

Correct Answer:rhythm,the pattern of sounds that we play and sing
tick

the pattern of sounds that we play and sing

Correct Answer:timbre,the way an instrument sounds that helps us identify it
tick

the way an instrument sounds that helps us identify it