You don’t need a background in music to be able to teach basic music history and music theory. There are some amazing Montessori resources that will do most of the work for you … and you’ll learn a lot, too!
Disclosure: Disclosure: I’ve been given a copy of these materials to review. My opinions are honest and my own. This post contains affiliate links (at no cost to you).
I’ve loved all the materials I’ve used from Every Star Is Different. The music history and music theory bundles that I’m sharing activities from today are extra special. Renae has a degree in music. And you’ll see that in both the clarity and depth of music materials.
Here are the Wonderful Materials That Are Included in the Montessori-Inspired Art and Music Bundle:
Montessori-Inspired Music History Bundle: 105 pages
Montessori-Inspired Music History Bundle includes:
26 of the greatest composers of all time with the following activities:
- Nomenclature Cards
- Composer and Spotlight Musical Composition Match Up
- Composer and Information Match Up
- First Letter Sound Clip Cards
- Syllable Counting Clip Cards
- Composer Writing Strips
Musical Instruments from Around the World Continent Sort
Composers by Time Period Sort
I love that I can include both art and music in my unit studies so easily. Whether I want to focus on one musician, the music from one historical period, a comparison of the music from many historical periods, or instruments from around the world, I can do it easily.
Montessori Shelf with Renaissance Materials
Our latest unit and free subscriber pack have a solar system theme. Since Copernicus and Galileo were important scientists related to the study of the solar system, I decided to focus on art and music during the same period in history. So the activities I’m sharing are related to the Renaissance.
The books on my shelf are The Renaissance (not available inexpensively at the moment), Galileo, Michaelangelo, and DaVinci: Invention and Discovery in the Time of the Renaissance (to add to our Renaissance, solar system and art history work), and Piero Ventura’s Great Composers. I still had a number of our world history books from when I homeschooled my kids, so I’ve mainly used those for this unit. My granddaughter Zoey is 4½, so she just needs brief introductions rather than indepth study. (Note: There are some interesting Renaissance books for children on Amazon.)
In these photos, I’m only sharing a fraction of the materials included in the music history and theory bundles. And I’m not sharing activities from some of the most famous composers, such as Bach or Vivaldi, who were from the Baroque Period.
Claudio Monteverdi Music History Resources
Claudio Monteverdi was from the Renaissance (and the beginning of the Baroque Period). He’s known for writing the first modern opera.
Montessori-inspired Music Theory Bundle: 95 pages
Montessori-Inspired Music Theory Bundle
- Includes multiple activities to help children learn musical notation
- Heavy focus on note names and values
- Helps children learn the keyboard
I was a clarinetist in All-State Band in high school. The audition included a music theory test, which we studied for diligently. The Montessori-Inspired Music Theory Bundle is actually more thorough than what we needed for that test! But don’t worry if you aren’t a musician. The bundle is laid out so well that anyone can use the materials.
Because Zoey hasn’t had training in music theory or opera, I chose some of the most basic, kid-friendly materials from the music theory bundle.
Some of my favorite parts of the music theory bundle are the creative animal photographs used to sort the musical terms “piano-soft,” “forte-loud,” “adagio,” and “allegro,” as well as low note and high note.
Sorting Animals by Musical Terms Piano, Forte, Adagio, Allegro, Low, and High
Zoey sorted the animals according to musical terms.
Then I told her a very short, kid-friendly version of the opera L’orfeo. I told her that Orpheus’s bride died, and he was very sad. He tried to raise her from the dead with his enchanting music. But only God and Jesus can raise someone from the dead. So Orpheus couldn’t bring his bride back to life and he was still sad.
Then I played bits and pieces of the opera from YouTube. I played it on my phone so that I could occasionally show Zoey the singer or singers.
Identifying Musical Terms for Claudio Monteverdi’s Opera L’orfeo
Zoey decided which musical terms fit various parts of the opera best and pointed to them. Obviously, there was a lot of adagio, low music from Orpheus!
I love the animal images for introducing a variety of classical pieces to a young child. And the music bundles are so thorough that they can be used for many years.
Montessori-Inspired Art History Bundle: 105 pages
Montessori-Inspired Art History Bundle includes:
- Nomenclature Card
- Artist and Art Match Up
- Artist and Information Match Up
- First Letter Sound Clip Card
- Syllable Counting Clip Card
- Artist Writing Strip
Sorting activities by art time period, as well as an explanation about what each art period was like.
Art pieces sorted by continent.
Different art technique nomenclature cards, sorting cards, and definitions.
There are 105 pages in the art history bundle … so many fabulous resources for multiple ages that I can’t begin to show you them all.
You can read how we’re using some of the materials right now in my “Montessori Art History Resources for Preschool Through Elementary.
My Reviews of More Montessori Printables from Every Star Is Different
How I Like to Use the Ultimate Montessori Planner for Multiple Ages
Beautiful Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced Montessori Language Resources
Montessori Addition and Subtraction Resources for Preschool Through Early Elementary
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