Mix and match activities to create a fun lesson in which students will learn the most common chord progression in different musical styles, get familiar with the basic concepts of Western harmony, and practice playing C, F and G chords in a popular song.
💻 Materials:
🕐 Time: 5 min
🎯 Objectives:
🎶 Recommended Songs:
🎲 Activity:
Happy Birthday: Verse 1
Ho Hey: Bridge
Respect: Verse 1 & Chorus 1
What chords did you notice in this section?
Can you play them on the ukulele?
🕐 Time: 5 min
🎯 Objectives:
🎶 Recommended Songs:
🎲 Activity:
🕐 Time: 5 min
🎯 Objectives:
🎶 Recommended Songs:
🎲 Activity:
🕐 Time: 10 min
🎯 Objectives:
🎶 Recommended Songs:
🎲 Activity:
🕐 Time: 5 min
🎯 Objectives:
🎶 Recommended Songs:
🎲 Activity:
🕐 Time: 8 min
🎯 Objectives:
🎶 Recommended Songs:
🎲 Activity:
C-F-G-C (ignore the chords that appear on the screen!)
First, change the chord every 8 beats (every 2 bars).
Later, you can try to switch every 4 beats (every bar).
Did the sound of the chord combination remind you of any popular songs?
If yes, which ones?
🕐 Time: 10 min
🎯 Objectives:
🎶 Recommended Songs:
🎲 Activity:
The combo should be 8 bars long.
Chords can be freely repeated.
If needed, slow the song down by pressing “﹣” on the left side of the “Play” button. You can press it up to 4 times to find the most suitable speed.
Which combination did you like the most? Why?
Which chord sounded the best to start with?
Which chord sounded the best to end with?
Did any of the combinations remind you of popular songs? Which ones?
🕐 Time: 10 min
🎯 Objectives:
🎲 Activity:
Demonstrate how this scale sounds on the piano, ukulele or any other suitable instrument at hand!
C-E-G
D-F-A
E-G-B
F-A-C
G-B-D
A-C-E
B-D-F
Three of them (C-E-G, F-A-C and G-B-D) sound bright and happy - they are major triads. By the way, students played these three chords on their ukuleles just now!
Another three chords (D-F-A, E-G-B and A-C-E) sound sadder - they are minor triads.
The last chord (B-D-F) sounds slightly odd - it's a diminished triad.
It's very common in different musical styles.
It can be noted as I-IV-V-I or 1-4-5-1: those are degrees of the scale the chords are on.
The C chord is located on the 1st degree (I) of the C major scale. It's also called the tonic chord. It sounds like “home” and gives a feel of stability, so the pieces in C often start and end with this chord.
The F chord is located on the 4th degree (IV) of the C major scale. It's also called the subdominant chord. In this chord progression, it gives a feel of departure away from the tonic chord, a sense of exploration.
The F chord is located on the 5th degree (V) of the C major scale. It's also called the dominant chord. In this chord progression, it creates a tension and pulls toward the “home” chord - C.
Finally, going back to the C chord creates a sense of resolution and stability.
🕐 Time: 5 min
🎯 Objectives:
🎶 Recommended Songs:
🎲 Activity:
Happy Birthday: Verse 1
Ho Hey: Bridge
Respect: Verse 1 & Chorus 1
🕐 Time: 4 min
🎯 Objectives:
🎲 Activity:
Was the order of the chords in the song different from the I-IV-V-I progression?
What was the order of the scale degrees in the song?
What was the most challenging part of the lesson?
🕐 Time: 3 min
🎯 Objectives:
🎲 Activity:
Challenge students to go beyond the lesson by…
Ho Hey
Savage Love
Riptide
Stitches
Still Falling for You
Little Talks
In this lesson, students will learn the most common chord progression in different musical styles, get familiar with the basic concepts of harmony, and practice playing C, F and G chords in a popular song.
The timing and pacing of the exercises in this lesson plan example are approximate and will differ depending on your students' skill level. If the pace of this lesson plan is too fast for you, divide it into several lessons and add additional activities (see 'Activities' section). If the pace of this lesson plan is too slow for you, explore the 'Beyond the lesson' chapter at the end of this lesson plan for additional activities.
⏰ Time: 50 min
🎓 Grades: 5-12
🎯 Objective(s): As a result of this lesson, students will be able to...
💡 Required Prior Knowledge and Skills:
💻 Materials:
🕐 5 min - Harmonic introduction
Happy Birthday: Verse 1
Ho Hey: Bridge
Respect: Verse 1 & Chorus 1
What chords did you notice in this section?
Can you play them on the ukulele?
🕐 8 min - Chord exploration
🕐 8 min - Exercise 1 - THE chord combo
C-F-G-C (ignore the chords that appear on the screen!)
First, change the chord every 8 beats (every 2 bars).
Later, you can try to switch every 4 beats (every bar).
Did the sound of the chord combination remind you of any popular songs?
If yes, which ones?
🕐 10 min - Exercise 2 - Same chords, another combo
The combo should be 8 bars long.
Chords can be freely repeated.
If needed, slow the song down by pressing “﹣” on the left side of the “Play” button. You can press it up to 4 times to find the most suitable speed.
Which combination did you like the most? Why?
Which chord sounded the best to start with?
Which chord sounded the best to end with?
Did any of the combinations remind you of popular songs? Which ones?
🕐 10 min - A short theoretical interlude
Demonstrate how this scale sounds on the piano, ukulele or any other suitable instrument at hand!
C-E-G
D-F-A
E-G-B
F-A-C
G-B-D
A-C-E
B-D-F
Three of them (C-E-G, F-A-C and G-B-D) sound bright and happy - they are major triads. By the way, students played these three chords on their ukuleles just now!
Another three chords (D-F-A, E-G-B and A-C-E) sound sadder - they are minor triads.
The last chord (B-D-F) sounds slightly odd - it's a diminished triad.
It's very common in different musical styles.
It can be noted as I-IV-V-I or 1-4-5-1: those are degrees of the scale the chords are on.
The C chord is located on the 1st degree (I) of the C major scale. It's also called the tonic chord. It sounds like “home” and gives a feel of stability, so the pieces in C often start and end with this chord.
The F chord is located on the 4th degree (IV) of the C major scale. It's also called the subdominant chord. In this chord progression, it gives a feel of departure away from the tonic chord, a sense of exploration.
The F chord is located on the 5th degree (V) of the C major scale. It's also called the dominant chord. In this chord progression, it creates a tension and pulls toward the “home” chord - C.
Finally, going back to the C chord creates a sense of resolution and stability.
🕐 5 min - Exercise 3 - Play along!
Happy Birthday: Verse 1
Ho Hey: Bridge
Respect: Verse 1 & Chorus 1
🕐 4 min - Discussion
Challenge students to go beyond the lesson by…
Ho Hey
Savage Love
Riptide
Stitches
Still Falling for You
Little Talks