Listening activities in music class are a great low barrier to entry way to get kids engaged and interested in music. They can also make for a great sub plan or a plan for a day you can’t be in your room due to school events. If you’re looking for some music to try for your next music class, check out these seasonal suggestions of both classical and pop choices to suit different times of the year.
Fall:
Autumn – Vivaldi
October: Autumn Song – Tchaikovsky
Autunno - Verdi
Autumn Leaves – Various Artists (Personally, I like this version by LAYERS for a more laid back version and this version by Chet Baker and Paul Desmond for a more upbeat version)
September – Earth, Wind & Fire
Autumn in New York – Various Artists (I love Billie Holiday’s version!)
Winter:
Winter – Vivaldi
January: By the Fireside – Tchaikovsky
Sleigh Ride (Winter Night) – Delius
Sleigh Ride – Anderson (this could make a great compare/contrast with the previous piece!)
Fantasia on Christmas Carols – Vaughan Williams
Des pas sur la neige – Debussy
Winter Winds – Mumford & Sons
Spring:
Spring – Vivaldi
Spring Sonata – Beethoven
To Spring – Grieg
Here Comes The Sun – The Beatles
Good Day Sunshine – The Beatles
Some Other Spring – Billie Holiday
Summer:
Summer – Vivaldi
Verano Porteño (Summer in Buenos Aires) – Piazzola
Summer Night on the River – Delius
Summertime – Various Artists (but it’s hard to beat the Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong version)
Summer Skies – Anderson
Summer of ’69 – Bryan Adams
Walking on Sunshine – Katrina and the Waves
If you’re looking for a fun and easy listening lesson plan, try out a listening glyph! I just released a set of 16 geometric listening glyphs over on my TPT store that can be used for any piece of music!
You can also check out my blog post on 5 engaging listening activities that can be used for any piece of music here.
