KS1/2 MUSIC: PUPIL PROGRAMME – THREE SONGS
KAERU NO UTA GA LESSON PLAN
Unit 8 Ongoing skills Unit 11 The class Orchestra
Learning objective Learning outcome
 to recognise and control changes in

 pitch to relate sound to symbols to explore melodic phrases
 sing in tune
 use notation as a support
 identify phrases to use as a ostinato
Key vocabulary
Pitch/ high/low scale, step by step score unison ostinato (repeating pattern) drone round
Use the television programme to listen to, then learn this Japanese song as it is taught phrase by phrase.
Kaeru no uta ga
Kiko ete kuruyo
CDEFEDC
EFGAGFE
Gwa gwa gwa gwa C C C C
Gero gero gero gero gwa gwa gwa CCDDEEFF E D C
 Sing the song all the way through in unison (all together).
Teaching note* use a chime bar to play the beat four times on the starting note –
C - as an introduction to give the singers the pitch and tempo. Accompany the song with a drone – notes C and G played on the beat - to help keep the pitch.

 Show the children the picture score and discuss how the symbols relate to the melody and its pitch shape. Sing the phrases as you point to the score.
Ask the children to conduct as they sing, using their hands in the air to show the pitch shape of each phrase
Phrase 1: up and down step by step
Phrase 2: up and down step by step but starting on a higher pitch
Phrase 3: Staying on the lowest pitch
Phrase 4: Up and down step by step
Assessment point*
Are the children able to match their hand movements with the pitch shapes of the
 song?
Are there any children who can confidently conduct the class?
Divide into two groups. Group one repeats phrases three and four as an
ostinato, while group two sings the whole song. Swap parts.

 Ask the children to suggest other phrases from the song which they can repeat as an ostinato, e.g. ka-er-u-no or kero kero. Try these with a small group singing the ostinato while the class sings the song.
Assessment point*
Can the children maintain a steady beat when singing in two parts?
Are they able to sing with an awareness of how the parts fit together?
 Now sing the song as a round in two parts. Group two starts when the first group have sung phrase one.
 Ask small groups or the whole class to devise their own arrangement of the song using the elements they have explored: singing in unison combining melody with ostinato singing as a round
 They may like to include an accompaniment played on chime bars: introduction drone (C and G played together) ostinato (e.g. one of the phrases from the song played as a repeating pattern)
 Record the performances, then listen and discuss the arrangements which have been chosen, making any appropriate improvements.
 Perform the class arrangement/s to an audience, e.g. another class.