Music lesson plans are an indispensable tool for music teachers. They are critical to the success of one lesson, the whole terms lessons, and the teachers life in general.    

There is nothing like the old saying, “If you don’t prepare, then prepare to fail.” After you get some experience, then arranging music lesson plans wouldn’t be that hard.

For those who have just began their careers, here are some tips you can adapt to create a more engaging music lesson plan:

1.Consider the age group that you will teach  

A very good starting point when you are preparing a music lesson plans is to think about the maturity of the children you are teaching. What are their quirks and fancies? What kinds of music do they have in their playlists? What are the other factors in society that can affect them? Were they at an age they feel diffident and shy in front of their friends?

These are things to consider when you are writing lesson plans This is why ready made, fit all situations music lesson plan usually doesn’t work. Music lesson plans have to be designed according to the needs of each student of a class. After you have gained some teaching experiences, you should be able to adjust successfully, rehashing the music lesson plans prepared, and then shaping up accordingly. However, when you’re just beginning, a good plan should be able to research the age group you will handle and knowing how you’ll be able to reach out to them.

2.Always plan more than you’ll need

You’ll prepare lessons, most often than not, around 10 activities. Sometimes you get to finish  up yo the fifth one and school bell sounds for the end of the period. Another day, perhaps even with the same lesson and a different class you’ll get through all ten activities and there will still be another 15 minutes to go! You can’t always be sure and that’s the reason it’s always good to have plan B. Have an extra interactive game in your bag just in case there would be some minutes to spare.  

3. Jumble up the activities

Some music lessons can be set apart in different activities. Sometimes a week lesson would focus on theory, then practical, aural and then history. Often this is unavoidable due to practical concerns and the length of the school lessons, however why not try and mix them around a bit? If you’re not limited by rooms try spending half the lesson on practical, then moving into theory based on the materials you were just playing. It’ll be exciting for the kids and it keeps them on their seats.  

4. Have it much simpler than you might think!

Its always a good idea, particularly if working with younger students to have the simplest version as a backup of your complicated idea. Such example for this is if you plan to introduce a new piece of music for student practice, you may want to decide for yourself if this will be hard for them. This happened to me most of the time and I learned that if I have prepared a much easier part for the kids, however small, they might be able to get excited with it. Its not always the best idea to start at the very top! You can begin with something they can smoothly breeze by, then you can return on the hardest parts later.    

5. Ask for feedback

Kids can also give feedback – at the slightest bit. Students (particularly teenagers) will never say “Mrs Jones I thought you did a brilliant job today, you gave us a lesson that was lots of fun and we learned heaps.” Perhaps you might have a dream that your student says that – but its not going to happen in real life! What you will see is students eager to come to your classes, and happy to have a joke with you at an appropriate time. You might notice some student forming their own orchestra group  much ahead than the activities of the class. When this happens, you’ll know that what you are doing is on the right track with your music lesson plans.