Your class hasn’t even sat down yet, and already you can feel it. This one’s gonna be a battle! They’re either completely wired from recess or exhausted from a long math test. You try pushing forward with your carefully crafted lesson, but it feels like driving a car with the parking brake on. Read on to find out what to do when your elementary music lesson plan fails.
So, what do you do when your elementary music lesson plan fails?
First of all, drop the guilt right now! When a lesson flops, it usually has nothing to do with your planning and everything to do with an energy mismatch. Trying to run a heavy, deep-learning activity when kids are mentally wiped out is exhausting for them and totally draining for you. The fix isn’t a better plan—it’s learning how to read the room and pivot without the panic!
Run a 15-Second Energy Audit
The second your kids walk through the door, use your teacher spidey senses. Look at their body language and ask yourself: Are they exhausted? Are they hyper? Are they wiggly?
If you notice that their energy doesn’t match what you had planned, you haven’t failed! Making a professional decision to shift your plan on the spot is what great teaching actually looks like.
Don’t Be Afraid to Flip the Sequence
You don’t always have to throw out your entire lesson when things aren’t working. Sometimes, all you need to do is flip the order!
For example, if you planned to start with a quiet storybook lesson, but your students walk in totally wiggly, start with a movement game instead! Let them burn off that energy first, then bring them down for the story. Guess what? The kids don’t have your lesson plan sitting in front of them—you’re the only one who knows the original order!
Keep “Fluffy Lessons” in Your Back Pocket
Sometimes, you just need a complete 180-degree pivot. That’s why I always keep what I call a “fluffy lesson” pulled up on my Smartboard ready to go. A fluffy lesson is a light, fun activity where nobody has to think too hard—like a YouTube rhythm play-along, body percussion, or a quick game like Mr. Henry’s Four Corners.
I once had a fifth-grade class that had been begging to play ukuleles for months. But by week four of the unit, they walked in groaning. Instead of fighting them and ruining their love for music, I literally took a class vote. They voted to quit the unit, we put the ukuleles away, and we pivoted to a lighter activity!
When you stop fighting the room’s energy and start adapting to where your kids are actually at, teaching gets so much easier.
Check it out! Here’s your Monday-ready action plan:
- Use Your Spidey Senses: Spend the first 15 seconds reading your class’s energy level before starting your lesson.
- Swap the Order: Swap the order of your activities if the room energy feels off.
- Always Have a Backup Plan: Keep one “fluffy lesson” or play-along open on your board every morning.
- Stop the Tug-of-War: If an activity is causing endless moans & groans, pivot to protect their love of music!
Want to hear the whole story of how I let my fifth graders quit ukuleles? Check out this episode of The Happy Music Teacher.
🛋️ Want more Monday-ready strategies? You don’t have to keep struggling through a chaotic schedule. [Check out my shop for more great fluffy lessons]