Take students on a musical journey with this interactive Giraffes Can’t Dance music lesson! Designed for grades K–3, this ready-to-use resource uses music, movement, instruments, geography, and listening to explore the musical styles featured in the popular children’s book.
Students don’t just learn the names of different musical styles—they hear the music, explore the instruments, discover where the styles originated, and move along with the music.
Musical Styles Included
Students explore six contrasting styles:
- Waltz
- Tango
- Cha-Cha
- Scottish Reel
- Rock
- Boogie-Woogie
What’s Included
Interactive PowerPoint Music Lesson
Guide students through each musical style with engaging, student-friendly slides.
Students will:
- Locate each musical style on a world map
- Listen to musical examples
- Explore instruments associated with each style
- Use interactive “Tap & Hear” instrument activities
- Watch easy-to-follow dance and movement examples
- Compare the sounds and characteristics of different musical styles
Music & Movement Activities
Get students actively responding to the music with simple movement and dance activities connected to each style.
These activities make it easy to incorporate active listening and movement into your elementary music lesson.
Musical Style Coloring & Listening Pages
Printable coloring pages give students another way to interact with each musical style. Play the accompanying music while students color for a simple listening activity, center, extension lesson, or sub-plan activity.
What Students Will Learn
Students will practice:
- Identifying and comparing contrasting musical styles
- Recognizing instruments by sight and sound
- Connecting music with different places and cultures
- Responding to music through movement
- Developing active listening skills
- Describing what they hear in music
Perfect For
- Elementary general music
- Grades K–3
- Giraffes Can’t Dance book extensions
- Music and movement lessons
- Musical styles units
- Children’s literature connections
- Classroom teachers
- Homeschool music
- Sub plans
Music, Literature, Movement & Geography in One Lesson
This resource makes a natural cross-curricular connection between music and children’s literature while giving students an opportunity to listen, move, explore, and compare.
Use it alongside Giraffes Can’t Dance or as a stand-alone introduction to contrasting musical styles.
Standards Alignment
Supports the National Core Arts Standards areas of Responding, Connecting, and Performing through active listening, movement, comparison, and exploration of musical styles and instruments.
