Gender in Music Education: Grade 5 - Role Model Instrumentalists

This is part of a Master of Education research project called Gender in Music Education: Lessons Addressing Gender in Music in Grades K-12 (PDF 4.8 MB) completed by Laura Anne Smith.

In fifth grade, students are often beginning to go through puberty and learning more about their bodies through representation in the media. This can often lead students to feel pressure to present themselves in certain ways, whether or not it aligns with their identity (UN Women, 2025). Neuroscientist and science journalist Zara Abrams (2022). states that at age 10, children’s brains begin to make a large shift toward seeking social attention and approval from their classmates. This is a dangerous tendency because, at a time when students could be encouraged to embrace who they are, they are instead looking to see what their peers are doing and mirroring that behaviour and being rewarded for it (Garey, 2024). Johns Hopkins Pediatrician, Robert Blum, also points out that at age ten, children are beginning to accurately discover the world around them. This is when gendered concepts start to become solidified in the minds of young people and how they understand the world around them (Blum, 2014).

These gendered concepts make their way into music classrooms and contribute to a long history of gendered instrument selection, starting in early childhood (Kim, 2023). Kim argues that in order to disrupt this pattern, it is important to make use of sociological solutions, including providing real-world examples of musicians who break traditional gender expectations, specifically when it comes to instrument selection (Kim, 2023). Parenting experts suggest finding children good role models for them to look up to, who can provide them with alternatives to the typical gender norms that surround them (Bear Bergman, 2022).

This lesson centers around these concepts, ideally allowing students to see themselves and their peers in the lives and identities of successful practicing musicians, and inspiring them to think outside of the typical gendered instrument selection process. 

Students will be given a list of musicians with varying gender identities and asked to research their lives and music-making. This gives students the opportunity to recognize that it is okay to choose any instrument, regardless of gender. The gallery walk of posters is a way to let students experience the wide range of ways they could choose to identify and exist within the world of music, and exposes them to new musicians they may be interested to learn more about. I suggest using the posters to create a role model wall (UN Women, 2025) so that students continue to be reminded that they can push boundaries and make music the way that they want to. I focus on instrumental musicians in this lesson because, in my experience, children in fifth grade are often choosing an instrument to play in school or in private studio contexts, and I hope to intercept concepts of gendered instrumentation.

Grade 5 - Role Model Instrumentalists

Lesson Objectives

• Students will be able to see identify similarities between themselves and successful practicing musicians.
• Students will develop the skills to engage with their peers about issues of gender in music.
• Students will be able to recognize instrumentalists who break the molds of gender in music.

Materials

• Slides + projector
• Worksheets (PDF 156 KB)
• Poster boards and markers
• Tape for hanging posters and worksheets
• Devices with internet access

Lesson

Present to students on Arnetta Johnson (poster attached) or someone of your choosing, to give them an example (PDF 346 KB) of an instrumentalist who breaks molds in relation to instrument gender norms. Explain why it is cool that they are doing what they are doing and how some people might think it is weird or different. Explain that music is about doing what feels right for you in the ways that make your music feel authentic to your identity and your identity as a musician.

1. Alone, or in groups of two, have students choose a musician from the list below*, or feel free to include any other musicians that you or your students are drawn to that break gender norms. (Ideally, if in groups, no overlap, so students have a good range of role models at the end).
2. Have students complete the worksheet about their chosen musician (they will need access to a device for this).
3. Once completed, have students make a poster about the things they find cool about their musician so that their classmates can learn about them too.
4. OPTIONAL: Hang posters on a “role model wall”.

*As the music industry continues to grow, this list of performers will become outdated. Please take it as a suggestion and inspiration, and feel free to update it as time goes on, as you see fit.

References:

Abrams, Z. (2022, February 3). Why young brains are especially vulnerable to social media. American Psychological Association.

Bear Bergman, S. (2021, January 4). How to talk to kids about gender: An age-by-age guide. Today’s Parent.

Garey, J. (2016, February 2). Parenting tweens: Everything you should know. Child Mind Institute.

Kim, S. (2023). Through the lens of Bourdieu: an integral literature review on bringing gender neutrality to the musical instrument selection process. Music Education Research, 25(5), 577–588.

UN Women. (2025, May 13). How to talk to kids about gender equality and stereotypes. UN Women – Headquarters.