Music
The Orinda Union School District Elementary Music Program offers a comprehensive educational experience that blends weekly classroom instruction with exciting performance opportunities for all students.
Core Music Instruction (Kindergarten – 5th Grade)
Our music program features specialized instruction across vocal and instrumental disciplines.
Classroom Music
- TK classes receive a weekly 30-minute music lesson.
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Kindergarten-Fifth grade classes receive a weekly 40-minute music lesson.
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Instruction focuses on foundational music literacy, including note reading, rhythm, and harmony. Lessons also cultivate music appreciation and provide opportunities for the joy of singing.
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Optional instrumental instruction is available for all fourth and fifth grade students.
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Specialized instruction is provided for students on brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments.
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Students participating in this program can join and perform with the District Elementary Band
Performance Opportunities
Performing for an audience is a crucial part of musical learning, and the District ensures every student has a chance to shine.
All students perform for teachers and parents at two major events each year:
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The Holiday Concert
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The Spring Sing
Fourth and fifth grade students have two additional ways to engage in advanced performing arts:
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Ensemble: This group meets weekly to learn and perfect complex songs and harmonies. The Ensemble performs for both the school and the wider community.
Curriculum Focus: What Students Learn
We follow California's rigorous arts standards, focusing on the core learning processes of exploration, creation, and performance.
Students learn to speak the language of music by actively listening and exploring how music is built.
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Rhythm and Movement: We experience the steady pulse (the beat) and explore how rhythm makes us want to move!
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Melody Mapping: Students learn to visualize music, tracking the movement of a melody (its melodic contour).
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Global Sounds: We study music from diverse cultures, discovering how different styles and traditions structure their sounds.
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Musical Expression: Students identify how composers use expressive qualities—like dynamics, tempo, and timbre—to convey feelings and intent.
We encourage students to find their unique musical voice and become young composers and problem-solvers.
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Inventing Ideas: Students create their own short musical fragments (motives) or physical movements.
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Improvisation: Guided sessions allow students to spontaneously create rhythmic and melodic ideas.
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Composition: Using both traditional notation and modern technology, students document their original ideas.
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Refinement and Intent: Students practice explaining their choices and using feedback to improve their work, linking their expressive intent to the music.
Performance teaches students the value of teamwork, discipline, and confident communication.
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Teamwork and Accuracy: We rehearse as a group, using shared criteria and feedback to perform music with technical accuracy.
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Interpretation and Expression: Students perform with clear expression, making conscious choices about how they interpret the music.
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Stage Confidence: We practice proper performance decorum—learning how to engage the audience with respect and confidence.
