Here’s a whole bunch of lesson plans for using the Skoog in the classroom as part of the music curriculum from Early Years to KS4.
The Skoog is an exciting new musical instrument designed to empower those unable to play traditional instruments. The Skoog is a soft, squeezable object that simply plugs straight into your computer or laptop’s USB port. By touching, pressing, squashing, twisting or tapping the Skoog you can play a wide range of instruments, intuitively.
Designed to adapt and fit with your own natural movements, the Skoog sets you free to explore sounds and music in your own way.
Maths Lessons with Skoog
Use the Skoog as a customisable buzzer and introduce a fun multi-sensory element to basic arithmetic. Adaptable to other subjects across all primary years.
To download the Maths Lessons with Skoog lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Morse Code
A World War II themed lesson about Morse Code to incoporate the Skoog in the primary classroom. In this lesson, pupils are going to create, individually, their very own melody using the rhythm of the morse code alphabets. Through each step of this lesson, pupils will learn that Morse Code works in a similar way to music notation – as just another form of communication – with an emphasis to appreciate technology through the ages.
Specifically tailored for children in nursery to primary 4. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the Morse Code lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Spring Garden
A lesson based around Spring to incoporate the Skoog in the primary classroom. In this lesson, pupils are going to create, individually, their very own piece of music, while taking inspiration from the nature. They will improvise with a dynamic instrument of their choice against the backing of a birdsong to create the scene of spring garden.
Specifically tailored for children in nursery to primary 4. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the Spring Garden lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
St Patrick’s Day
A St. Patrick’s Day themed lesson to incoporate the Skoog in the primary classroom. In this lesson, pupils will invent a piece of Irish folk-inspired composition as a class; their work can then be expanded and elaborated upon with the help of an audio editor.
Specifically tailored for children in nursery to primary 4. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the St Patrick’s Day lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Autumn Leaves
An Autumn themed lesson to incoporate the Skoog in the primary classroom. In this lesson, pupils will take inspiration from nature, and create their own piece of music to reflect the season.
Specifically tailored for children in nursery to primary 4. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the Autumn Leaves lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Valentine’s Day
A Valentine’s Day themed lesson to incoporate the Skoog in the primary classroom. In this lesson, pupils will take inspiration from romantic music and songs, and create their very own piece of romantic music using the Skoog for Valentine’s Day. They will play the Skoog duets in pairs and learn to play with and listen to each other.
Specifically tailored for children in nursery to primary 4. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the Valentine’s Day lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Dice Music System
Three lessons full of game ideas for playing the Skoog with the dice music system. Let the dice decide what and how you will play; explore all of these innovative and mega fun ways to make the most of your Skoog.
Perfect for Skoog beginners and experts, adults and children alike!
To download the Dice Music System lesson plans click here for Lesson 1, here for Lesson 2, here for Lesson 3, or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Chinese New Year
Two lessons themed around Chinese New Year to incoporate the Skoog in the primary classroom. Throughout this series of lessons, pupils will learn about the traditional customs around celebrating Chinese New Year, and will express and describe these festivities musically using the Skoog. As a group they will create a piece of relaxation music that will accompany their Tai Chi excercises.
Specifically tailored for children in nursery to primary 4. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the Chinese New Year lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Happy New Year
A New Year-themed lessons to incoporate the Skoog in the primary classroom. Throughout this series of lessons, pupils will learn about their local traditions of celebrating New Year, and will express and describe these festivities musically using the Skoog. They will manipulate with samples and experiment with repetitions and timbres.
Specifically tailored for children in nursery to primary 4. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the Happy New Year lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Winter
A couple of winter-themed lessons to incoporate the Skoog in the primary classroom. Throughout this series of lessons, pupils will create a musical image of a winter night by improvising on the Skoog alongside other instruments, and against a backing track.
Specifically tailored for children in nursery to primary 4. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the Winter lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Playtime for the Penguins
A penguin themed lesson plan for using the Skoog in the classroom. Throughout this series of lessons pupils will have the opportunity to create and use samples and sounds to express feelings and ideas, and to improvise on the Skoog, creating simple musical patterns. They will also learn to recognise the different tone colours of various musical instruments and other sound sources, as well as to describe sounds and musical performance.
Specifically tailored for children in nursery to primary 4. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the Playtime for the Penguins lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Learning Simple Melodies
A lesson plan to teach simple melodies on the Skoog to pupils who already have a basic understanding of simple staff notation. Throughout this series of lessons, pupils will use the Skoog as a tool to learn and familiarise themselves with tradtional musical notation. They will also have the opportunity to perform and create melodies on the Skoog, as well as learning to play with a backing track that encourage them play rhythmically accurately and playing with others.
Specifically developed for pupils with complex needs. Suitable for children across all primary years. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the Learning Simple Melodies lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
My Bonnie
A series of lessons incoporating the Skoog in the classroom, based on the traditional folk song, ‘My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean’. Throughout this series of lessons, pupils will learn to express their feelings and ideas through playing with sounds. They will use the Skoog to create and manipulate sound effects, by recording samples and backing tracks on the Skoog. They will also learn and play melodies by following the simple Skoog notation, and accompany their own and others’ singing on the Skoog.
Specifically tailored for children in nursery to primary 4. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the My Bonnie lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Halloween
A Halloween themed lesson plan for a single lesson, or across several shorter sessions, to incoporate the Skoog in the primary classroom. Throughout the lesson, pupils will have the opportunities to create and manipulate samples and sound effects on the Skoog, as well as using the Skoog’s instrumental voices to improvise and create musical patterns in order to exlplore and express their own ideas about the central theme of Halloween.
Specifically developed for pupils in nursery to primary 4. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download the Halloween lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
The Sea
A series of sea-themed lessons to incoporate the Skoog in the primary classroom. Throughout this series of lessons, pupils will use the Skoog along with other instruments – using both its MIDI sounds and its dynamic instruments, as well as using it as a sampler to record and creatively manipualte sound effects to create background sounds.
Specifically tailored for children in nursery to early senior school. Lessons with progression and/or differentiation.
To download The Sea lesson plan click here or use the link under ‘Files and Media’ below.
Skoog User Guide
This is the user guide for the Skoog. Follow these step-by-step guides for fun and innovative ideas to reach the full potential of what the Skoog offers!
To download the Skoog User Guide click here
