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  3. Lower key stage 2 >
  4. Year 4 >
  5. Musical motifs: Reading the stave >
  6. Lesson 5: Performing a motif
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This is preview content for the 2026-27 academic year. Your feedback will help us improve these units.

Learning objective

  • To read notation accurately to play a motif.

Success criteria

  • I can follow notation on the stave to
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National curriculum

Music

Pupils should be taught to:

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Cross-curricular links

English

Spoken language

Pupils should

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Before the lesson

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Lesson plan

Recap and recall

Hand out whiteboards and pens (one each). Show slide 1 of the Presentation: Beat the board. Recap the notes on the stave as a class.

Learning objective

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Adaptive teaching

Pupils needing extra support:

  • Could use only the notes C, D and E for their motifs.
  • Could play their motif first in the group to build confidence before joining others.

Pupils working at greater depth:

  • Should lead the group by keeping the pulse.
  • Could explore using different dynamics when playing their motifs (e.g. play the first phrase loudly and the second phrase quietly).
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Assessing progress and understanding

Pupils with secure understanding can:

  • Follow notation on a stave when performing.
  • Perform a
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Vocabulary definitions

  • motif

    A short, repeated musical pattern.

  • performance

    Playing instruments or singing to others in a confident and clear way.

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In this unit

Assessment - Music Y4: Musical motifs

Lesson 1: Notes on the stave

Lesson 2: Reading the stave

Lesson 3: What is a motif?

Lesson 4: Composing a motif

Lesson 5: Performing a motif

Created by:

Kapow Primary team
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Maintained by: Kapow Primary team

Last update: 26th May, 2026

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Lesson 4: Composing a motif Previous Lesson
Lesson 5: Performing a motif Next Lesson

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