YourStateStandards

West Virginia K–6 music standards

West Virginia writes its own music standards. They are published as West Virginia College- and Career-Readiness Standards for the Arts (Policy 2520.9), adopted 2025 and are not a version of a national framework. Every one is matched to a national standard.

CURRENT 2025 edition of Policy 2520.9 (series 126-044I, filed 2025-06-11, eff 2025-07-12; replaces the superseded 2018 Fine Arts edition). GENERAL MUSIC only (NCAS-five-arts split; `music` = MU:). Superseded/mis-routed CSP 'Fine Arts (2018-)' music bucket (88 grade-6 secondary rows) replaced by a direct extraction from the state WORD doc (SOS DocId 58189). Codes MU.<band>.<n> (bands K-2/3-5/6-8) and text are the state document verbatim; re-run scripts/extract-wv-arts.mjs --area MU after any re-fetch (the fetcher will not regenerate this manual CSV; the subjectMap Fine Arts exclusions keep a CSP re-fetch from clobbering it).

Framework
West Virginia College- and Career-Readiness Standards for the Arts (Policy 2520.9)
Adopted
2025
Source last checked
August 11, 2026
Read the official document

53 standards, kindergarten through 6th grade

  • MU.K-2.1K-2
    Participate in a variety of singing.
  • MU.K-2.2K-2
    Demonstrate beginning rhythmic and melodic comprehension through imitating and performing basic patterns.
  • MU.K-2.3K-2
    Communicate by moving expressively to various musical selections, while maintaining elements such as tempo, form, instrumentation, and pitches.
  • MU.K-2.4K-2
    Perform an accompaniment (e.g., rhythm, melodic instruments, or body percussion).
  • MU.K-2.5K-2
    Discover and begin to demonstrate knowledge of music contrasts in musical selections from a variety of cultures with appropriate guidance (e.g. high/low, beat, fast/slow, melodic contour, tonality/timbre, and meter).
  • MU.K-2.6K-2
    Analyze selected music; read and perform rhythmic and/or melodic patterns using iconic or standard notation.
  • MU.K-2.7K-2
    Identify musical instruments visually and aurally, from a variety of ensembles and cultures.
  • MU.K-2.8K-2
    The teacher will introduce and discuss appropriate musical terminology (e.g. dynamics, tempo, expression and general music theory).
  • MU.K-2.9K-2
    Explore and/or create musical ideas through a variety of medium, with appropriate guidance.
  • MU.K-2.10K-2
    Explain and/or demonstrate musical ideas/devices that represent expressive intent.
  • MU.K-2.11K-2
    Explain and demonstrate how personal interests and experiences influence musical selection for specific purposes.
  • MU.K-2.12K-2
    Sing, perform, and relate West Virginia songs to West Virginia history and West Virginia geography.
  • MU.K-2.13K-2
    Demonstrate understanding of relationships between music and other arts, other disciplines, varied contexts, and daily life.
  • MU.K-2.14K-2
    Evaluate live or recorded musical performances through active listening, using personal and expressive preferences.
  • MU.3-5.13-5
    Demonstrate singing a variety of musical styles.
  • MU.3-5.23-5
    Demonstrate understanding of the structure and the elements of music (e.g., rhythm, pitch, form, and harmony) in music for selected performances.
  • MU.3-5.33-5
    Read and perform music using standard notation.
  • MU.3-5.43-5
    Demonstrate a variety of tempi and form through movement.
  • MU.3-5.53-5
    Perform music following the cues of a conductor.
  • MU.3-5.63-5
    Demonstrate and explain intent through interpretive decisions and expressive qualities (e.g., dynamics, tempo, timbre, and articulation/style).
  • MU.3-5.73-5
    Increase aural and visual skills by identifying musical instruments, vocal timbres, and music ensembles from a variety of cultures.
  • MU.3-5.83-5
    Demonstrate understanding of musical concepts through the use of standard and/or iconic notation and/or recording technology.
  • MU.3-5.93-5
    Read and notate from treble and bass clefs, based on appropriate musical development.
  • MU.3-5.103-5
    Discover a variety of expressive qualities (e.g., dynamics, phrasing, articulation, form, and tempo) relating to musical performance.
  • MU.3-5.113-5
    Analyze and understand appropriate tone production for instruments and voices.
  • MU.3-5.123-5
    Improvise rhythmic, melodic, and harmonic ideas, and explain connections to specific purpose and context (e.g., social, cultural, and historical).
  • MU.3-5.133-5
    Generate musical ideas (e.g., rhythms, melodies, and accompaniment patterns) within specific related tonalities, meters, and simple chord changes.
  • MU.3-5.143-5
    Create rhythmic and melodic ideas based on varied music forms.
  • MU.3-5.153-5
    Demonstrate and interpret the influence of personal enjoyment, interest, knowledge, context, and technical skill on music selection.
  • MU.3-5.163-5
    Relate contextual influence (e.g., social, cultural, and historical) to music performances.
  • MU.3-5.173-5
    Expand civic literacy skills and exposure to history by performing, experiencing, and relating American and West Virginian musical selections to other disciplines.
  • MU.3-5.183-5
    Compare and contrast personal and expressive preferences in the evaluation and active listening of music for specific purposes, citing evidence from the elements of music.
  • MU.3-5.193-5
    Apply teacher-provided, collaboratively developed, and/or established criteria and feedback to evaluate accuracy of ensemble and personal performances.
  • MU.3-5.203-5
    Demonstrate connections between music and other arts, other disciplines, varied contexts, and daily life.
  • MU.3-5.213-5
    Explore life skills relevant to musical careers.
  • MU.6-8.16-8
    Perform vocal or instrumental melodies, including various tonalities and voicings.
  • MU.6-8.26-8
    Play and identify major/minor chords
  • MU.6-8.36-8
    Perform, explore, and characterize music in a variety of styles and genres, (e.g., classical, global, or jazz).
  • MU.6-8.46-8
    Aurally identify soprano, alto, tenor, and bass voices.
  • MU.6-8.56-8
    Aurally distinguish between major and minor tonalities.
  • MU.6-8.66-8
    Visually and aurally identify musical instruments.
  • MU.6-8.76-8
    Read rhythmic patterns in multiple meters (e.g., 2/4, 4/4, 3/4, and 6/8).
  • MU.6-8.86-8
    Read notation for bass and treble clef, including grand staff notation.
  • MU.6-8.96-8
    Follow a music score identify common musical symbols, terms, and form.
  • MU.6-8.106-8
    Evaluate vocal and instrumental performances.
  • MU.6-8.116-8
    Improvise various rhythmic patterns and forms using assorted percussion instruments (e.g., drum circle or percussion ensemble).
  • MU.6-8.126-8
    Compose a piece in 2/4, 3/4, 4/4, or 6/8 meters with an established rubric based on standards mastery.
  • MU.6-8.136-8
    Improvise various melodic patterns and forms using melodic musical instruments and teacher-created criteria.
  • MU.6-8.146-8
    Develop civic literacy by singing and relating West Virginia songs to West Virginia history and geography.
  • MU.6-8.156-8
    Discuss the evolution of musical styles, including relationships to historical events.
  • MU.6-8.166-8
    Explore the science of acoustics.
  • MU.6-8.176-8
    Use information and current technology to explore the financial, economic, business, and entrepreneurial aspects of music careers.
  • MU.6-8.186-8
    Discuss and demonstrate social responsibility through appropriate performer and audience behavior in a given setting.

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