Teaching with a Tune: How to Add Music to Each Homeschool Subject
Have you ever wondered how to best incorporate the subject of music into your homeschool routine?
If so, you’re not alone—and the good news is, music doesn’t have to be one more subject to squeeze into your busy day. In fact, music can enhance your homeschool experience when it’s woven naturally into the subjects you’re already teaching.
Rather than treating music as something separate, here are some creative ways to blend it into your curriculum:
History & Geography: Travel Through Time and Cultures with Music
Music can bring history and world cultures to life in a way that sparks curiosity and creativity.
Music from the Past: Play music from each time period you study—Bach & Handel during the Baroque era (1400-1600s), Mozart & Haydn during the Classical Era (1700-1800s), Beethoven & Chopin during the Romantic era (1800-1900s), Copland & Debussy during the Modern era (early 1900s), swing music for the 1940s, etc.
World music: Explore instruments, rhythms, and traditional songs from the countries you’re learning about. Older kids may enjoy learning more about each culture’s music using the podcast Sonic Atlas (Note: this podcast appears kid-friendly, however I have not listened to all episodes to confirm).
Composer or genre spotlight: Choose a composer, style, or instrument to explore alongside your current unit.
Language Arts: Let Lyrics and Rhythm Lead the Way
Music and language are deeply connected. Whether it’s reading, writing, or speaking, here are a few ways to let music support literacy:
Reading fluency: Invite your child to read aloud with rhythm and a steady beat using nursery rhymes or musical storybooks (Ex. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom is a great children’s book to practice this).
Creative writing: Invite your child to write their own lyrics, poems, or even short stories inspired by a song.
Lyric study: Choose a song with meaningful lyrics and explore literary devices like metaphor, alliteration, and rhyme. For example, you could use A Million Dreams from The Greatest Showman for metaphor, Betty Botter Bought Some Butter for alliteration, and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star for rhyme.
Math: Making Numbers Musical
Music is full of patterns, structure, and math concepts. Try these ideas:
Rhythmic math: Use note values to teach fractions (whole note = 1, half note = ½, quarter note = ¼, etc.). This post explains this teaching method in more depth.
Memorize with Melodies: Use melodies or rhythm games to help children memorize multiplication tables or count by 2s, 5s, and 10s.
Beat patterns: Clap rhythmic patterns to introduce sequencing and symmetry.
Science: Discover the Science of Sound
From vibration to volume, music fits right into STEM learning too!
Sound experiments: Use water glasses or rubber bands to explore vibration and pitch. You could also apps on your phone to introduce and explore the concept of hertz (how we measure frequency and pitch) and decibels (how we measure volume).
Build an instrument: Learn how sound travels by creating simple homemade instruments. (For example, you could make a homemade guitar using rubber bands to teach that strings vibrate to create sound, and that the sound hole in the body of the guitar amplifies the sound.)
Brain science: Talk about how music impacts the brain, emotions, and memory—and even helps with learning!
Art & Movement: Inspire Creativity Through Music
Music naturally enhances visual arts and movement:
Draw what you hear: Play instrumental music and have your child draw or paint what the music makes them feel or imagine.
Music & movement breaks: Invite your children to dance to different types of music making their movements resemble the sound of the music. (Slow movements for slow tempo, fast movements for a fast tempo, big movements for loud sounds, and small movements for soft sounds). This is a great way to provide a reset between subjects!
Mood boards: Create a collage based on the mood of a particular song.
Bringing It All Together
Whether it’s singing a skip-counting song, painting to a piece of classical music, or listening to Mozart as you study early American history, music has the power to make learning more joyful, memorable, and engaging.
Let your homeschool be full of rhythm, creativity, and harmony—and watch your children thrive.
🎶 Ready to Go a Step Further?
If you're looking for more structured support in building your child’s musical foundation, I'd love to help! At Corinne’s Music Studio, I offer fun and engaging private lessons in piano, voice, ukulele, and guitar—perfect for homeschoolers of all ages.
Lessons are tailored to your child’s pace and personality as we focus on both skills and creativity. Whether your child is a beginner or has some experience, music lessons are a great way to enrich your homeschool rhythm with something meaningful and lasting.
Want to Learn More?
We’d love to help make music a part of your homeschool rhythm. Simply fill out the form below or contact Corinne directly at 717-578-5551.
