Are you looking for extra resources to extend your students’ musical learning online?
Whether you have access to 1:1 technology in your classroom, there are many uses out there for online music games for the classroom.
Even if all you do is link to the resources on your teacher website, your students will get a lot of these 19 best online music games for your classroom.
The top picks for online music games for classroom use are:
4Four.io
Music Memory
Rhythm Randomizer
Garageband
Music Tech Teacher
Kahoot
Bach Google Doodle
Magic Flute Orchestra Game
BeMuse Ninja
BBC Instrument Matchup
Inside The Orchestra
Blooket
Theremin
Carnegie Hall Listening Adventures
Incredibox
Chrome Music Lab
Whack-a-note
Peg + Cat Music Maker
Mario Paint
Quizizz
Look ahead for a brief review of each of these interactive music games.
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Review Of The Best Online Music Games For Your Classroom
In this section, I’ll break down my picks for educational music games. Look ahead for details on what music ideas the game teaches and other teaching considerations.
Note: This list is for online games not apps. Some of these games may also have an app version.
Everything is browser-based here, so no need to worry about device compatibility.
It’s basically a collection of mini-games all based on rhythm to help expand your music theory.
But, my favorite feature is how you can customize each game to match where your students are at.
Music Memory
My children and my students love memory. In fact, memory is one of those games you play from a toddler all the way to adulthood.
Music memory is a great way to challenge yourself and your aural skills. This game works on tablets and Chrome.
This music memory game trains remembering the solfege pitches. You don’t need perfect pitch to play this game, but it will drill pitch relationships into your ear.
Extension: Post a high score somewhere in your room and invite students to beat the score. The competition will inspire even the most reluctant kids to try their hardest.
Rhythm Randomizer
Rhythm Randomizer is less of a game and more of a practice tool. Basically, you give it rhythm values, meter, length, and other variables, and it’ll spit out random rhythm music samples for you to practice.
It’s not based on a real piece of music, so the randomness results in some odd-feeling patterns.
But to improve your technical music skills, there’s not much better.
Garageband/Audiotool
While Garageband isn’t strictly a game, it is a fun tool to play around with. For interactive music games, this one is always popular with kids of elementary, middle school, and high school.
Garageband has an app on Apple devices and is available online. You don’t need to be connected to the internet to play this game.
Garageband is a music writing and arranging program for beginners and advanced musicians. There are different instrument sounds available, and you can layer different sounds on top of one another to make songs.
For those looking for a Windows or Chrome equivalent. Audiotool does much the same thing as the music mixing giant.
Extension: Give students specific instructions on building a song with different sections, layers, and instruments depending on their age level and musical understanding.
Music Tech Teacher
The Music Tech Teacher features some simple games and applicable quizzes for your kids to check out.
There is a whole range of concepts here, so check them all out.
Kahoot
Kahoot is a online quiz platform you can assign to kids and go through together in person or on their own. It’s super fun to play and free to use.
While not strictly a music-only platform there are a ton of options out there for Kahoot’s using muscial concepts. Making them is super easy as well.
Basically, you input a melody, and the algorithm will make it sound like it would have in Bach’s day.
(Click the speaker for a rock version too!)
Magic Flute Orchestra Game
This Magic Flute Orchestra game is designed for elementary music ages. The graphics and game are somewhat basic, but this doesn’t mean it isn’t a good game for kids.
One of the reasons I love this game is that it pulls music from Mozart’s opera. I believe the more familiar students become with classical music, the more they’ll learn to enjoy it.
The game revolves around hearing an instrument playing music and selecting the correct picture. This is a great way to reinforce the instruments of the orchestra including piano and harpsichord.
Note: This game does require Adobe Flash Player meaning you may have some trouble using this one Chromebooks.
BeMuse Ninja
BeMuse Ninja is one of those rhythm games like Dance Dance Revolution or Guitar Hero.
But this one is free and browser-based!
BBC Instrument Matchup
Along the same lines as the game above, BBC’s Instrument Matchup game is a fun, educational music game for…well, matching up instruments with their sounds.
While the game may be simple, there are other games available through their site along the left-hand side including:
Sound
Rhythm
Mood
Music Quiz
Note: This game also requires Adobe Flash Player.
Inside The Orchestra
With Flash going out of style and not being supported, a lot of simple and free games are becoming unavailable. But this simple set of games is still usable and perfect for many people.
Blooket is a quiz game site like Kahoot or Quizziz.
This one is more based on little games.
There are some good music ones on there, but don’t be afraid to make up your own to suit your students’ needs too!
Theremin
This learning music (check out other music distance learning resources) game is a synth-soundwave player. With Theremin, students create different types of soundwaves by changing elements with the mouse.
This is fun for elementary music students to play around with the different sounds (and is a great way to reinforce timbre).
Older students can dig into the scientific aspect of the soundwaves more than the younger ones can.
This is available online as well as through an app.
Extension: Create your own sound and take a screenshot of the wave. Play the sound for the students and challenge them to create a sound as close to yours as possible.
The team or student closest to your actual setting wins.
Carnegie Hall Listening Adventures
Honestly, I believe most people naturally enjoy classical music, but because they don’t have the framework to listen to such longer pieces, their minds have trouble organizing it.
By the same token, one of the reasons most people love music in the popular genres is because it is very similar in form and harmonic structure.
I believe if we could help students and others understand the pieces better, they would be able to enjoy it more.
Along these lines, listening maps have been a great way to help inexperienced ears through complicated pieces for decades.
Incredibox is a beat box builder that’s a super fun way for kids to create grooves.
There are some paid assets and beats, but much of it is free.
It’s also available in app form.
Chrome Music Lab
Check this free music playing tool that uses a bunch of different cute and creative visual based music-related activities. This one is simple to use for all age levels.
Whack-a-note
Who doesn’t remember the arcade and county fair standard, Whack-a-mole?
Well, this twist put out by the Kennedy Center, Whack-a-note, provides a fun game for staff-note placement reinforcement. This is great for upper elementary and middle school students learning where notes are placed.
Extension: This would be another great candidate for a score wall to motivate students.
Pro-tip: When I do score walls and competitions, I always invent scores from my “previous school” to measure themselves against. I offer a good mix of scores from really high to really low.
This way, even your slower learners will earn a higher spot on the board and feel accomplished.
Peg + Cat Music Maker
This Peg + Cat Music Maker gives three different areas for kids to explore and create music in different ways.
For those unfamiliar with the PBS kids show, Peg + Cat solve problems with math, but this song heavily features historical figures and composers in a fun way.
The music in the show is amazing as well.
This game is played on tablet and Chromebook well. While you’re at it, check out all the other PBS Kids music games as well. Speaking of games, check out my favorite circle games for music class if you’re interested.
Extension: As my students become more melodically literate, I encourage them to figure out their songs from class using these tools.
Not-Mario Paint Music
This Not-Mario Paint Music program is based on the old game where you drag icons of Mario things to make music.
Some people make really crazy cool songs, and it’s fun to play with.
This version is NOT Mario, but it is free and browser-based.
Quizizz
I only just discovered Quizizz and wow, it’s cool. It’s like Kahoot in that its an online quiz platform, but this one is even more game-like.
Find any number of free music quizzes or make your own and assign or take the Quizizz together. This one uses more powerpoints and makes it more like a game. It seems more complex than Kahoot, but it’s actually even easier to use.
How To Use Music Games For Kids Online
There are several ways to integrate these educational music games with your students. However, the availability of these ways depends on what technology you have at your fingerprints.
Still, there are some ways you may want to check out to include these online music games in your classroom.
Over the projector
Most music teachers have access to some kind of computer and projector. Even when I was in the cafeteria, I was able to project from a computer.
For those limited on technology, you’re still able to throw these games up on the projector. Show the kids how to find them and play them a little.
They may end up using them at home at getting more reinforcement.
If you have access to no technology in your classroom, you should be able to at least post the links on your teacher website.
If you don’t have a teacher website, the technology departments at your school may be able to help you.
Otherwise, check out Weebly.com or WordPress.com. Either of those are easy to figure out and set up.
Music Centers
When you only have access to a handful of tablets or computers, it seems like a big hurdle to overcome. But if you make playing these games one of your music centers, you know the kids will be on task and learning.
1:1 Instruction
A lucky few may have access to a device for every student. If this is the case, you have the opportunity to use these games as part of a specific whole group lesson.
Field Trip To Computer Lab
Even without any technology at your hands, it’s possible to organize a “field trip” to your school’s computer lab or to borrow a chrome-cart or something like this.
Talk to your admin about your options and come up with a plan to help you use technology. You may be surprised how willing they are to support you.
Just make sure you’re involved in the process, and it’s not just “free time” for the kids. Your admin probably won’t like that.
Here are some ideas too for adapting your existing activities.
Conclusion
Hopefully, you’ll find these online music games for your classroom helpful. These are a great way to buy student engagement and reinforce musical ideas.
Zach VanderGraaff is a K-5 music teacher in Michigan with 12 years of experience. He's the President of the Michigan Kodaly Educators and founder of the Dynamic Music Room.
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