Fine Arts · Class 4

Active learning ideas

Indian Wind Instruments: Flute and Shehnai

Active learning helps students connect the physical experience of playing wind instruments to the cultural and technical aspects of Indian music. When children handle materials or mimic sounds, they internalise how breath and finger positions create different tones, making abstract concepts concrete.

• CBSE Learning Outcomes
• NCERT Art Education: Appreciating the melodic quality of Indian wind instruments.
• CBSE Syllabus, Class 4 Performing Arts: Identifying the distinct sounds of the Bansuri (flute) and Shehnai.
• NCFSE 2023: Exploring the cultural significance of various musical instruments in India.

• 15–30 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Think-Pair-Share
• 15 min · Whole Class

Sound Hunt

Play short clips of bansuri and shehnai mixed with other sounds. Students raise hands to identify each instrument and describe its tone. Follow with a class vote on favourites.

What does the bansuri look like and how does a player make sound on it?

Facilitation Tip

During Sound Hunt, remind students to listen for differences between soft, flowing sounds and bright, piercing tones rather than just the instrument itself.

What to look for

Give students two pictures, one of a bansuri and one of a shehnai. Ask them to write one sentence describing a difference in their sound and one sentence about where each instrument might be played.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 02

• Think-Pair-Share
• 20 min · Pairs

Blow and Mimic

Give students straws or recorders to blow across and into, mimicking bansuri and shehnai techniques. They note differences in sound. Share experiences in pairs.

How does blowing air into a flute produce a musical note?

Facilitation Tip

For Blow and Mimic, demonstrate proper lip positioning for each instrument by holding a straw or ruler to show the airflow direction.

What to look for

Ask students to hold their hands as if holding a flute and mimic the blowing action. Then, ask: 'What part of the flute makes the sound vibrate?' (Answer: the air column). Repeat for shehnai: 'What special part vibrates to make the shehnai sound?' (Answer: the reed).

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 03

• Think-Pair-Share
• 25 min · Small Groups

Cultural Match

Show pictures of festivals and instruments. In small groups, students match shehnai to weddings and bansuri to concerts, then draw one scene.

Can you name one special occasion or celebration where the shehnai is traditionally played?

Facilitation Tip

In Simple Flute Craft, use pre-cut bamboo strips to save time and focus on the finger-hole placement activity.

What to look for

Play short audio clips of the bansuri and shehnai. Ask students: 'Which instrument sounds calm and flowing, and which sounds bright and loud? Can you guess which one you might hear at a wedding ceremony?'

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 04

• Think-Pair-Share
• 30 min · Individual

Simple Flute Craft

Students make mini flutes from cardboard tubes with holes. They test blowing to produce notes and compare to bansuri.

What does the bansuri look like and how does a player make sound on it?

Facilitation Tip

For Cultural Match, prepare a short list of events (wedding, funeral, festival) to help students link instruments to occasions accurately.

What to look for

Give students two pictures, one of a bansuri and one of a shehnai. Ask them to write one sentence describing a difference in their sound and one sentence about where each instrument might be played.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

A few notes on teaching this unit

Start with hands-on activities before explaining theory, as children learn wind instruments best by doing. Avoid long lectures about airflow or reed vibration; instead, guide students to discover these through guided practice. Research shows that students retain musical concepts better when they experience both the cause (blowing technique) and effect (sound quality) together.

By the end of these activities, students will confidently describe how the bansuri and shehnai produce sound, identify their roles in different settings, and demonstrate basic playing techniques. They will also articulate one key difference between the instruments in both sound and cultural use.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Sound Hunt, some students may assume all wind instruments are played in the same way.

  Pause the activity and ask students to listen for the sharp attack of shehnai versus the smooth, breathy notes of bansuri. Have them mimic the blowing action for each to notice the difference in airflow and embouchure.

• During Cultural Match, students might associate shehnai only with sad or serious occasions.

  Use the matching cards to highlight celebratory events like weddings and festivals. Ask students to recall real-life celebrations where they have heard shehnai, prompting them to correct the misconception with personal examples.

• During Blow and Mimic, students may think bansuri requires electricity or special equipment to play.

  Hold up the bamboo flute and blow through it loudly to show that sound comes only from the air vibrating inside the tube. Ask students to feel the air moving out of the flute’s end to reinforce the acoustic nature of the instrument.

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Methods used in this brief

• Think-Pair-Share