Annenberg Foundation
Rhythms in Poetry
Rhyme, rhythm, free verse, imagery: Do these words describe poetry, or jazz music? The answer is both! A resource explores these similarities as scholars watch a video, engage in discussion, read author biographies, write poetry and...
Curated OER
The Great Migration
Students explore how migration to Harlem created a new life for African Americans. In this cross curricular lesson, students illustrate maps showing the migration, paint murals representing African American life in the South and create a...
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Digital Fashion Show
Students research the dress of the 40's/50's in Harlem and create a multimedia presentation of at least 15 slides. They present a Fashion Show for the class.
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The Negro Renaissance
Students research the Negro Renaissance, its important contributors, and society's affect upon the Negro Renaissance contributor's products. Students create an online biographical presentation of Negro Renaissance contributors as a...
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The Poetry of Langston Hughes
Learners read aloud Langston Hughes poems. They select a poem and read aloud to music.
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Use of Symbolism to Convey the Author's Message - The Negro Speaks of Rivers
Students identify the literary devices, symbolism, and first-person narration in the poem A Negro Speaks of Rivers. In this poem analysis lesson, students discuss African Americans and the Harlem Renaissance. Students watch a video about...
General Motors Corporation
Jazz
Over the history of the world, music has been at the heart of some of the greatest social and political movements. Scholars discover their musical roots as they dive into the sounds and emotions of renowned jazz players. They see how...
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Murals, Memories, and Making Art
Fourth grade reading students study art works by famous artists. They use various tools for learning about the artist, and they present their information by writing and speaking about the artist. They also create artwork in the style of...
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Map Making Exercise
Pupils complete a Web Quest in order to determine why Harlem was an attractive place for African Americans to live. They study a map of Harlem in the 1930's.
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Romare Bearden and the Face Collage
Fourth graders create a collage from magazines and newspapers to create a face. After finishing the face, they use mixed media to complete the background. They write their own description and examine the life and works of Romare Beardon.
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Jazz's Beginnings
High schoolers examine jazz's roots and their hybridization in New Orleans in the early 20th century. They listen to ragtime and jazz recordings, then complete worksheets imbedded in this plan.
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Deep like Rivers: Four African American Poets of the 1920s and 1930s
Students examine work by outstanding African American poets from the time period of the 1920s and 1930s. They study aspects of American and African American social, cultural and artistic history that influenced the content of some of the...
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Lift Every Voice and Sing
Students analyze sculpture, poetry, and music to gain an understanding of historical events. In this critical thinking skills lesson, students take a closer look at African-American history as they examine "Lift Every Voice and Sing'"...
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Langston Hughes
Students identify similarities between Hughes' poetry and music (jazz and the blues).
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Performance Poetry as Social Commentary
Students explore poetry that examines social concerns. In this poetry instructional activity, students research poems and poets. Students present their findings to their classmates.
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Zora Hurston Teacher's Guide
Students explore American culture by reading classic literature in class. In this African-American history lesson, students read the story Zora Hurston and the Chinaberry Tree while identifying the work and contributions of the real life...
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The Search for Identity: "Their Eyes Were Watching God"
Students read the novel "Their Eyes Were Watching God". While reading the novel, they identify and discuss the figurative language used and use a passage of interest to them and analyze it in a written paper. They also discuss events...
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Modernism
Students engage in a study of the literature of modernism in America. They conduct research and read different texts for clarification of the genre style. Students discuss the background influences of culture that shaped modernism.
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Carson McCullers: Loneliness and Frustrated Love
Learners examine the themes of loneliness and frustrated love in the work of Carson McCullers. In this theme analysis lesson, students complete a comparison of patterns in the novels of McCullers as a part of a theme analysis.
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Marian Anderson: From Page to Stage
Students become immersed in a compelling anecdote of the civil rights movement through the experience of constructing dramatic scripts. An added goal is to equip students, through this "hands-on" experience, to critique dramatic...