What Is Chrome Music Lab?

      According to Google, Chrome Music Lab is "a website that makes learning music more accessible through fun, hands-on experiments."

      If you were to ask me, I would tell you that Chrome Music Lab is one of the easiest ways to allow our students to explore music composition and the science of sound.

      Each of the 13 different "experiments" cover different areas from harmonics, oscillators, to color-based composition. What makes these experiments extra awesome is that they are entirely free and web-based, which means you don't need to worry about installing any apps!

      I've used Chrome Music Lab in a few different ways. When I first started using these with my kiddos, I projected it onto my interactive whiteboard and we worked as a class to create a composition using the Song Maker experiment.

      That being said, my all-time favorite way to use Chrome Music Lab in my classroom is as a center. I unfortunately don't have 1:1 devices in my classroom, so when I am able to reserve Chromebooks or iPads, it's usually just a few.

      I use centers in my classroom for a lot of reasons, but the biggest reason I use them is to allow me to work with smaller groups to help differentiate my instruction.

      I like being able to leave these task cards as a center because it allows my students to work through each card without them needing my help.

      Let's be honest, if you've tried centers before, you've probably had at least one day where you ended up spending the entire class helping students in centers rather than working with groups individually.

      All students need is an iPad, Chromebook, or other web-enabled device. Point a QR code reader (already installed on most devices) and each card brings up the appropriate web app! No set-up required! Just print and go! 

      I also absolutely love using the Spectogram experiment, especially with my younger kids. It's a great way to show melodic contour, and I love that you are able to use the microphone on your device to have my students make their voices go high and low.

      I've been working on including more opportunities for vocal exploration with my younger kids, and this is a great way to mix modalities to hopefully reach more of my students in order to help them discover their head voices.

      All in all, Chrome Music Lab is one of my favorite free resources to use with my students. If you have never experimented with the 13 experiments, I strongly encourage you to take a few minutes and just play around with it for a bit.

      If you end up using Chrome Music Lab in your classroom, I would love to hear how it went! You can always send me an email at [email protected] or can DM me on Instagram at @ThatMusicTeacher.

      Want to learn more about how I use technology in the music room? Join my free five-day challenge on implementing instructional technology into your music curriculum! Click here to get started!