Rhythm Games for Children: Changing Patterns

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Rhythm Games for Children: Changing Patterns

Hello! Here’s a really simple but powerful game I love using in primary music lesson plans – a rhythm-based activity called Changing Patterns. It works brilliantly in EYFS music lessons, with KS1 music resources, and even as part of KS2 music lesson plans. It’s one of those classroom music activities that is easy to learn, fun to play, and can actually fill a whole lesson.

Why This Game Works

So much of music learning is about inner thinking—keeping a steady pulse in your head, anticipating what comes next, and developing confidence with rhythm. Changing Patterns is one of those active music games that supports this beautifully. It encourages children to keep counting silently while focusing on different physical or instrumental actions.

This is exactly the kind of playful learning that fits into a progressive music curriculum, whether you’re teaching in the UK with national curriculum music planning or working with a K–5 general music curriculum in the US.

How to Play Changing Patterns

Start by asking the children to tap their knees on the un-bolded numbers and clap on the bold numbers:

Tap 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8  

Tap 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 

Tap 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 

Tap 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Tap 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Tap 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Tap 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Tap 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

It sounds easy, but once the patterns start to change, it becomes a real challenge!

Here are some variations you can try:

  • Think the non-bolded numbers and clap only the bold numbers.
  • Tap knees on the non-bolded numbers, clap on the bold numbers.
  • Clap your own hands on the non-bolded numbers, clap a partner’s hands on the bold numbers (a great circle time music game).
  • Play one instrument on the non-bolded numbers, another on the bold numbers (ideal for classroom percussion activities).
  • Swap roles—one group claps the non-bolded numbers while another group plays the bold numbers.
  • Extension: Try reversing the pattern completely!

Why Teachers Love It 👩‍🏫

  • It works as a music warm-up for the classroom or as a full lesson.
  • It’s flexible: perfect for Year 1 music activities, Year 2 music planning, or junior music teaching resources in Years 3–6.
  • It adapts easily across curricula: from the complete music scheme UK to elementary music lesson plans in the US, or even music programs for Foundation to Year 6 in Australia.
  • It supports step-by-step music learning, helping children develop pulse, rhythm, and coordination.

Making it Child-Centred 🎶

The best part of Changing Patterns is that it gets children working independently, in pairs, or in groups. They love inventing their own versions and setting challenges for each other. It’s the perfect example of musical development through play—building essential skills while having fun.

And for teachers (especially non-specialists), it’s proof that you don’t need complicated resources. This is one of those easy music lessons for classroom teachers that requires no instruments, no specialist training, and no prep—just your voice, your hands, and a willingness to join in!

So next time you need a rhythm game for children, or you’re looking for fun classroom music activities to keep your class engaged, try Changing Patterns. It’s simple, flexible, and guaranteed to get everyone clapping, thinking, and smiling.

How Active Music aligns with the Model Music Curriculum KS 2

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How Active Music KS2 aligns with the MMC

1) Singing

MMC asks for: widening repertoire; good vocal production; accurate pitch; part-singing (rounds/partner songs); phrasing, dynamics; frequent performance.

Active Music delivers:

  • Y3–Y6 Singing Games & Core Units: sing in unison with clear diction; move to pulse; part-singing/rounds and canon (Y4 L4; Y5 L4; Y6 L3–L4); 2-part singing develops to 3–4 parts through rounds/overlapping games.
  • Pitch units (Y3–Y6): progressive solfa (So–Mi → full pentatonic Do–Re–Mi–So–La); accurate pitch-matching; small to larger leaps; sing from notated rhythm/pitch patterns; perform as class/individuals.
  • Expressive control: internalising, phrasing, and dynamic control are baked into cue-word actions, “thinking voices,” and performance/appraisal cycles.

Matches MMC outcomes for ensemble singing, tuning, rounds/partner songs, phrasing/dynamics, and regular performing opportunities.

2) Listening

MMC asks for: critical/active listening; broad repertoire/cultural contexts; repeated encounters; live music where possible.

Active Music delivers:

  • Every unit: “thinking voices,” internalising, memorising/recalling phrases; appraise & improve; compare textures (pulse/rhythm/ostinato layers), form (rounds/echo/call-response).
  • Texture & structure: rounds, canons, ostinatos, rhythm rounds (Y4 L5; Y6 L5) develop listening across parts and ensemble awareness.
  • The songs in Active Music come from a variety of traditional sources, including well-loved nursery rhymes, playground chants and folk tunes that have been passed down through generations. Many are rooted in English traditions, while others have clear links to the USA, Africa and the Caribbean, giving children a culturally rich and varied repertoire. This blend ensures the songs feel both familiar and engaging, while also connecting pupils to the wider traditions of music-making.

3) Composing (Improvise & Compose)

MMC asks for: improvisation; composing for purpose; structures; texture; pentatonic; chords/triads by Y5–6; capture ideas in notation/technology.

Active Music delivers:

  • Improvisation from Y3 onward: improvise rhythm patterns (Y3 L6; Y5 L6; Y6 L4); movement-based improvisation; extend 8–16-beat ideas (Y5 L4; Y6 L4).
  • Composition structures: question/answer, ostinato layering, rhythm rounds, building/reducing layers (Y5 L6; Y6 L6); ternary-like lesson arcs (begin/middle/end).
  • Pitch work: pentatonic composing/playing on tuned instruments (Y3–Y6 Pitch L5–L6; Instrumental Y3–Y6 multiple lessons).
  • Harmony foundations: drones/ostinatos; Y5–Y6 create 3 layers (drone/ostinato/melody); maintain own part with ensemble awareness (Y5 Pitch L5; Y6 Pitch L5).

Aligns with MMC on improvisation, pentatonic composition, textures, form, purpose, and multi-layered works.

4) Performing (including Instrumental & Notation)

MMC asks for: whole-class instrumental access; ensemble skills; increasing independence; staff notation within an octave by Y6; rhythmic values & time signatures; dynamic range; stagecraft.

Active Music delivers:

  • Whole-class instrumental use: tuned/untuned percussion every year; xylophones/glockenspiels/chime bars; pulse/rhythm on instruments; layered parts.
  • Ensemble skills: start/finish together; listen across parts; pass steady pulse; perform/appraise every unit.
  • Notation & reading:
    • Rhythm: Ta, Te-te, rest, Ta-a (crotchets, paired quavers, rests, minims) + 16-beat patterns; read, create, and perform notations (Y3–Y6 Rhythm & Pulse L3–L5; Instrumental Compositions Y4–Y6).
    • Pitch: read/sing from notated rhythm and pitch patterns using solfa; move to full pentatonic reading/playing by Y4; compose/write own rhythm/pitch patterns by Y3–Y6.
  • Range & skills to MMC expectations: maintain parts, duet/2-part textures → multi-part rounds; builds to playing/reading within an octave (do–do) on tuned percussion/chime bars by Y5–Y6 Pitch/Instrumental units.

Strong alignment with MMC performing and notation strands (rhythmic values, part-playing, within-octave pitch work, ensemble independence).

5) MMC “Indicative musical features” (quick tick-list)

  • Rhythm/Metre/Tempo: pulse/beat; accelerando/rallentando (tempo changes), metre via circle passing/games; syncopation approached through rhythm games/ostinato interplay by Y5–Y6.
  • Pitch/Melody: high/low; pentatonic; range widening (do–do); leaps in later years.
  • Structure/Form: call-response; echo, ostinato, rounds/partner songs; sections/repetition/contrast; build-reduce layers.
  • Harmony/Texture: drone, ostinato, tri-layer textures; melody+accompaniment via drones/ostinatos; part-singing.
  • Dynamics/Articulation: loud/quiet; cresc/decresc via cue words; realised through action/playing contrasts.
  • Instruments/Techniques: tuned & untuned percussion, body percussion; developing technique & effects through games.

All present and progressively developed across Y3–Y6.

How Active Music aligns with the Model Music Curriculum (Key Stage 1)

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How Active Music aligns with the Model Music Curriculum (Key Stage 1)

The Model Music Curriculum (MMC) outlines four key areas for KS1:

1. Singing

MMC Requirements:

  • Sing a broad range of simple songs (in tune and with expression)
  • Develop clear diction, control of pitch, and musical phrasing
  • Begin to sing in parts (e.g., simple rounds)

How Active Music Aligns:
Singing is at the heart of every Active Music lesson
Children learn songs, chants, singing games, rounds, and canons — all carefully chosen for vocal range and developmental stage. Solfa (do, re, mi) and hand signs help with pitch accuracy and confidence
Video modelling ensures teachers and pupils see and hear clear examples of quality singing
Singing in parts and rounds is gently introduced with call and response, echo songs, and simple layering

2. Listening

MMC Requirements: * Active Music has a focus on musical development and covers 4 out of the 6 half term periods, leaving space for teachers to provide listening experiences of music from all styles, cultures and time periods. Listening is more to themselves, each other and the teacher.

  • Develop active listening through diverse musical styles and traditions
  • Identify instruments, musical features, and changes in music
  • Listen with concentration and understanding

How Active Music Aligns:
Active Music includes regular “Listen and Respond” activities using music from different styles, and cultures
Children play and learn about different instruments and the sounds they make. They can identify fast, slow, loud, soft and create textures.
Videos model focused listening behaviours — children learn to listen carefully to themselves and each other and respond physically or with movement to what they hear
Children learn musical vocabulary through the teacher making musical elements conscious, after they are naturally engrained in their subconscious through singing and playing.

3. Composing

MMC Requirements:

  • Improvise simple patterns using voices or instruments
  • Create short sequences with beginning, middle, and end
  • Use symbols to represent sound (graphic notation)

How Active Music Aligns:
Children are encouraged to create rhythms, compose simple melodic patterns, and invent new lyrics spontaneously within games
Lessons introduce body percussion, improvisation and learning the rhythm signs for Ta, Te-Te and rest (crotchet, quavers and rests) as well as So, Mi and La notation, which they use to compose their own melodies.

 Composing comes from having learnt the rhythm and pitch names and experimenting by putting them together in their own order.

Additional ways Active Music supports the MMC

4. Performing

MMC Requirements:

  • Use voices expressively and perform with control
  • Play untuned and tuned instruments with rhythm and control
  • Rehearse and share simple pieces with others

How Active Music Aligns:
Every game and song provides a natural performance opportunity — in front of the class, in groups, or as a whole class.
Untuned percussion (e.g., claves, tambourines, hand drums) is used in all the instrumental lessons
Tuned instruments (like chime bars or glockenspiels) are gradually introduced using solfa and simple patterns and also to accompany their singing.
Children practise, repeat, and share performances — with video examples showing real children performing to build confidence

  • Progression: Clear skill-building from Reception to Year 6, in line with MMC’s spiral curriculum
  • Musical Elements: Pulse, rhythm, pitch, tempo, dynamics, timbre, structure, texture — all introduced gradually through games and songs
  • Inclusive and Accessible: Non-specialist teachers can deliver MMC-aligned lessons confidently with video support, structured plans, and downloadable resources
  • Fun and interactive: Lessons are playful and child-led — but every activity is grounded in musical development

Conclusion

Active Music fully supports the aims and outcomes of the Model Music Curriculum at Key Stage 1.
It offers a complete, progressive, and fun approach to developing musical skills — making music simple for teachers and exciting for children.

Rhythm Games for Children: 20 Activities with One Simple Chant

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Rhythm Games for Children: 20 Activities with One Simple Chant

One of the joys of teaching music is discovering just how much you can do with just one simple chant. You don’t need endless resources – sometimes the most effective classroom music activities come from keeping it simple.

Here’s a great example using the chant “Bee, Bee, Bumblebee”. It’s just four lines long, with four beats per line, and uses only the rhythms Ta (crotchet) and Te-te (two quavers).

Bee, bee, bumble bee       (Ta, ta, te-te ta) 

Stung a man upon his knee  (Te-te, te-te, te-te ta) 

Stung a pig upon his snout (Te-te, te-te, te-te ta) 

I say you’re out!          (Ta, ta, ta, ta) 

From this one chant, you can create at least 20 different activities, many of which work across EYFS music lesson plans, KS1 music resources, KS2 music lesson plans, or even elementary music lesson plans.

20 Classroom Music Activities with “Bee, Bee, Bumblebee”

  1. Chant the words in unison.
  2. Chant and tap the pulse on your knees.
  3. Chant and clap the rhythm.
  4. Think the words silently while clapping the rhythm.
  5. Say it using rhythm names (Ta and Te-te).
  6. Half the class taps the pulse, half claps the rhythm (then swap).
  7. Play the Rhythm and Pulse game.
  8. Try the out loud / in your head game.
  9. Chant and tap the pulse on percussion instruments.
  10. Chant and play the rhythm on instruments.
  11. Half the class plays the pulse on one set of instruments, half plays the rhythm on another (then swap).
  12. Create a rhythm composition using instruments.
  13. Chant while walking the pulse.
  14. Chant while walking the rhythm.
  15. Walk the pulse and clap the rhythm at the same time.
  16. Walk the rhythm and clap the pulse.
  17. Tap the pulse on one knee and the rhythm on the other.
  18. Chant while clapping an ostinato.
  19. Divide the class in 4 groups and each group claps one line repeatedly, building layers.
  20. Perform in small groups with different combinations of pulse, rhythm, and ostinato.

Why This Works

  • It’s simple and accessible for all ages.
  • It builds progressive music development, starting with pulse and rhythm, then layering in ostinatos and compositions.
  • It’s flexible: you can use it in Year 1 music activities, Year 2 music planning, or even as part of a Year 3–6 music curriculum.
  • It makes easy music lessons for classroom teachers – no complicated preparation or specialist training required.

A Foundation for Composition

Activities like this show children that from the simplest chant, they can:

  • Keep a steady pulse.
  • Recognise and perform rhythm patterns.
  • Create their own ostinatos and compositions.

This is musical development through play at its best – child-centred, creative, and fun!