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Year 1

Choosing a fast or slow tempo for songs, chants and games

I can change the tempo of a song or musical game and can explain how this makes it feel different.

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Year 1

Choosing a fast or slow tempo for songs, chants and games

I can change the tempo of a song or musical game and can explain how this makes it feel different.

Download all resources
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Share activities with pupils
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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. We can describe the tempo of the music. For example, the song has a steady tempo.
  2. The same piece of music can be performed at different speeds. It can be played or sung at a slow, steady or fast tempo.
  3. The tempo of a piece of music changes the mood of the music and how we respond to it.

Keywords

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

  • Tempo - how fast or slow the music is played

  • Pulse - the regular steady heartbeat of the music

Common misconception

Tempo alone can set the musical mood.

All the musical elements work together to help set the musical mood.


To help you plan your year 1 music lesson on: Choosing a fast or slow tempo for songs, chants and games, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

When exploring moving to different tempi be mindful of how difficult different movements may be at different speeds. For example, walking very slowly can be hard for pupils to do accurately. For slower tempi, big sweeping movements may help.
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Teacher tip
equipment-required

Equipment

drum or claves, ball

copyright

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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Starter quiz

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4 Questions

Q1.
We call the regular, steady heartbeat of the music the .
Correct Answer: pulse, Pulse
Q2.
The beat is...
how high or low the note sounds.
how fast or slow the music is.
Correct answer: the playing or showing of the steady pulse, like the ticking of a clock.
Q3.
True or false, you can choose and change the tempo of a piece of music.
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: True
False
Q4.
How can we decide what the tempo of a piece of music is?
listen to how loud or quiet the music is.
listen to how high or low the notes are.
Correct answer: feel the pulse, listen to the beat and decide if it is slow, steady or fast.

Exit quiz

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4 Questions

Q1.
Tempo is...
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: how fast or slow the music is.
how loud or quiet the music is.
how high or low the notes are.
how many layers of sound you can hear.
Q2.
You could describe the tempo of a piece of music as...
low or high.
Correct answer: slow, steady or fast.
thin or thick.
quiet, medium loud or loud.
Q3.
True or false: Changing the tempo is the only musical element that changes how the music will feel.
True
Correct answer: False
Q4.
Which statement is true?
Singing games work really well whatever tempo they are played at.
Singing games can only be played at a steady tempo.
Correct answer: Singing games can be played at any tempo, but steady works best.