Music activity
Write Your Own Song
Make up a silly song about your day.
Materials and setup
- paper and pencil
- instrument or app (optional)
- recording device
How this changes by age
Pre-K (ages 3–4)
Make up a silly song about your day.
Steps
- Pick a topic: your pet, your breakfast, or a favorite toy.
- Sing a few words to any tune you like — make it up as you go.
- Try singing the same line twice — that's a chorus!
- Add a second line that's different.
- Sing the full song for a grown-up.
Learning objectives
- Improvise a short song
- Repeat a line as a hook
- Share a performance
Kindergarten (ages 5–6)
Write a 4-line song with a melody you can repeat.
Steps
- Write 4 lines that rhyme in pairs (line 1 rhymes with 2; line 3 with 4).
- Sing line 1 to a tune of your own making — keep it simple.
- Sing line 2 to the same tune.
- Sing lines 3 and 4 to a different tune.
- Sing the whole song twice so the tune is exactly the same both times.
- Record or perform for a family member.
Learning objectives
- Write rhymed lyrics
- Create and repeat an original melody
- Distinguish verse and bridge lines
Early elementary (ages 6–8)
Compose a song with a verse and a chorus.
Steps
- Pick a theme (a friend, a season, a feeling).
- Write 4 lines for a verse and 2 lines for a chorus (the chorus repeats).
- Compose a verse melody — keep it in a small range of 5 notes.
- Compose a chorus melody that's different and catchier.
- Sing: verse 1, chorus, verse 2, chorus.
- Record it. Listen back — does the chorus stick in your head?
Learning objectives
- Structure a song with verse and chorus
- Write contrasting melodies
- Evaluate your own hook
Upper elementary (ages 8–10)
Compose a full song with verse, chorus, bridge, and chord changes.
Steps
- Pick a key — C major is easiest.
- Choose a 4-chord progression (e.g., C - G - Am - F) — this one appears in many pop songs.
- Write verse lyrics (4 lines) and chorus lyrics (2-4 lines).
- Compose a melody for each that fits the chord progression.
- Write a bridge: 2 contrasting lines with a different chord pattern (e.g., F - G - Am - G).
- Record a full performance: verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus.
- Write liner notes explaining your choices.
Learning objectives
- Use a chord progression as a compositional scaffold
- Structure a song with verse/chorus/bridge
- Document compositional decisions
Safety and evidence note
Read the full activity before beginning. An adult should supervise tools, heat, food, outdoor work, movement, and experiments as appropriate. Completion records that the activity was done; the child’s explanation, work sample, photo, or demonstration is stronger evidence of learning than a completion check alone.
Related music activities
Articulation: Staccato and Legato
Sing bouncy (staccato) and smooth (legato).
Body Percussion Beatbox
Your body is an instrument! Clap, stomp, and pat to make a groove.
Call and Response
Echo back whatever the grown-up sings or claps.
Clapping Games Around the World
Learn a simple partner clapping game and sing along.