The Stage 4 music sample unit ‘Beats and tunes’ builds student knowledge of music literacy through the development of skills in performing, composing and listening. Students will learn about the elements of duration and pitch through engaging with beat and rhythm notation, melody and basic score reading. Participation in class singing and performing activities on body, tuned and untuned percussion, and experimenting with different ways of combining and documenting musical ideas using notation, forms the foundation of learning activities. The unit is supported by two accompanying slide presentation resources, a score booklet, teacher resource booklet, teaching videos and a sample assessment task.

• Unit – Beats and tunes (DOCX 6.4 MB)
• Assessment task – Beats and tunes (DOCX 3.6 MB)
• Beats – Beats and tunes (PPTX 28.3 MB)
• Tunes – Beats and tunes (PPTX 22.8 MB)
• Teacher resource booklet – Beats and tunes (DOCX 417 KB)
• Score booklet – Beats and tunes (PDF 720 KB)
• Teaching videos – Beats and Pieces
• Teaching videos – Good For-tunes

The Stage 4 music sample unit ‘Sound lab’ builds student understanding of layers of sound (texture) and performing media and timbre. Students investigate how composers use performing media and timbre, texture and expression to communicate musical ideas in art, popular and electronic music. They use a range of sound sources, sound production methods, timbres and digital technologies to improvise, generate, compose, manipulate, arrange, notate and record musical ideas. The unit is supported by an accompanying slide presentation resource, a score booklet, teacher resource booklet, and a sample assessment task.

• Unit – Sound lab (DOCX 6.1 MB)
• Assessment task – Sound lab (DOCX 3.8 MB)
• Slide deck – Sound lab (PPTX 17.2 MB)
• Teacher resource booklet – Sound lab (DOCX 9.7 MB)
• Score booklet – Sound lab (PDF 1 MB)

The Stage 4 sample unit ‘Garage to Grammys’ develops students’ performance skills on guitar, keyboard, bass, vocals and drums through selected repertoire. They learn how the foundations of popular music evolved from blues and jazz through to rock and pop. Students are assessed on performing a given piece, demonstrating melodic, harmonic and rhythmic roles within an ensemble. Students listen to and perform music from a variety of styles, periods and genres to identify, understand and describe how the elements of music have been used and manipulated. Students collaborate in small groups to create an original composition or arrange a popular song, making musical decisions that reflect the elements of music. The unit is supported by an accompanying slide deck resource, score booklet, teacher resource booklet, teaching videos and a sample assessment task.

• Unit – Garage to Grammys (DOCX 21.5 MB)
• Assessment task – Garage to Grammys (DOCX 20.4 MB)
• Slide deck – Garage to Grammys (PPTX 16.7 MB)
• Teacher resource booklet – Garage to Grammys (DOCX 5.3 MB)
• Score booklet – Garage to Grammys (DOCX 4.7 MB)
• Infographic – Garage to Grammys – Keyboard chord guide (PDF 81 KB)
• Teaching videos – Garage to Grammys – Feelin' Blues-E

The Stage 5 sample unit ‘Groove Expedition’ builds student understanding of the stylistic features of jazz and funk with a focus on developing improvisation skills. They investigate the unique features of jazz and funk through listening, reading and analysing how rhythm, melody, harmony, expression, performing media and timbre shape these genres. Students develop their listening skills through comparative analysis and notate and transcribe rhythmic and melodic material.

They develop their performance skills and experiment with improvisation on an instrument of their choice. Exploration of chord progressions, chord extensions, rhythm, scales and expressive techniques will form the basis of composition and improvisation activities. Students reflect on their learning through documenting their process and progress.

The unit is supported by an accompanying slide deck resource, 3 score booklets, teacher resource booklet, student reflection booklet, teaching videos and a sample assessment task.

• Unit – Groove expedition (DOCX 5.9 MB)
• Assessment task – Groove expedition (DOCX 2.1 MB)
• Slide deck – Groove expedition (PPTX 18.8 MB)
• Teacher resource booklet – Groove expedition (DOCX 10.9 MB)
• Student reflection booklet – Groove expedition (DOCX 3.1 MB)
• Score 1 – Groove expedition (PDF 5.3 MB)
• Score 2 – Until my life’s a song – Groove expedition (PDF 2.5 MB)
• Score 3 – Look what the cat dragged in – Groove expedition (PDF 2 MB)
• Teaching videos – Until my life’s a song – Groove expedition
• Teaching videos – Look what the cat dragged in – Groove expedition

The Stage 5 sample unit ‘Music of our solar system’ builds student understanding of art music through the study of the work of Holst, Mozart and Macens and music of Australia through the work of Macens.

Students will perform from a range of musical scores and apply terminology to rehearse, refine and perform. Through listening activities, students interpret and analyse musical scores relevant to the genre and style and explain how these are characterised and represented through musical features and conventions. Students experiment with different compositional techniques and structures to develop and refine musical material in their own compositions.

The unit is supported by an accompanying slide presentation resource, a score booklet, teacher resource booklet and a sample assessment task.

• Unit – Music of our solar system (DOCX 5.3 MB)
• Assessment task – Music of our solar system (DOCX 3.8 MB)
• Slide deck – Music of our solar system (PPTX 41.7 MB)
• Teacher resource booklet – Music of our solar system (DOCX 7.2 MB)
• Score booklet – Music of our solar system (PDF 13.2 MB)
• Podcast – Creative cast: Re-formed – music: Perspective through eternity

The Stage 5 unit ‘Australian Perspectives’ explores the stylistic, cultural, historical and social contexts of music composed, arranged, adapted or performed by Australian artists, groups and communities. This includes the music of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. Students will:

• analyse and reflect on the music of Australian artists
• explore how artists share their perspectives through music
• complete a depth study based on their learning, specialising in one or more of the focus areas: Performing, Listening and Composing.

The unit is supported by a sample assessment task, slide deck, teacher resource booklet, student depth study booklet, and score booklet.

• Unit – Australian perspectives (DOCX 22.1 MB)
• Assessment task – Australian perspectives (DOCX 20.6 MB)
• Slide deck – Australian perspectives (PPTX 48.7 MB)
• Teacher resource – Australian perspectives (DOCX 8.9 MB)
• Student depth study – Australian perspectives (DOCX 3.5 MB)
• Score booklet – Australian perspectives (PDF 9.2 MB)

This Stage 5 depth study infographic poster is available to print and display in your classroom.

Depth study – 6 steps to success infographic (PDF 110 KB)

Elements of music posters are available to print and display in your classroom.

• Posters – Elements of music (PDF 730 KB)
• Combined poster – Elements of music (PDF 616 KB)
• Timbre terminology (PDF 549 KB)

Infographics of various performing media groups to print and display in your classroom.

• Tuned percussion instruments (PDF 2.6 MB)
• Untuned percussion instruments (PDF 3.7 MB)
• The symphony orchestra map (PDF 3.5 MB)
• Gamelan orchestra percussion instruments (PDF 3.9 MB)
• The jazz orchestra or big band (PDF 1.5 MB)

Repertoire requirements posters are available to print and display in your classroom.

• Posters – Repertoire requirements (PDF 351 KB)
• Combined poster – Repertoire requirements (PDF 373 KB)

This resource can be used as a guide teaching and learning related to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander content.

Learning map – Working with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander content in Creative Arts (PDF 486 KB)