Students study black history, examine portraits and portrait making and create their own portraits, and  investigate their natural environment. This humanities lesson provides a text that can be used to teach lessons in black...

Students explore development of jazz music in the 1930s by forming imaginary jazz bands which tour several cities in Depression-era America. Jazz band members create imaginary identities for themselves, develop publicity for their tour,...

Describe the general characteristics of Kwanzaa after reading Seven Candles of Kwanzaa. For this Kwanzaa lesson plan, learners study the principles of the Kwanzaa holiday and interpret the principles through music and dance. They...

Young scholars engage in a discussion regarding images of war we see, how quickly do we see them, and how they affect us? They view and analyze war photographs taken during World War I.

Working in small teams, learners analyze a variety of primary source materials related to lynching (news articles, letters written to or written by prominent Americans, pamphlets, broadsides, etc.) in order to assess the effectiveness of...

Learners examine the experiences of African American women. In this poetry lesson, students use their literary analysis skills to compare the poetry of Maya Angelou to rap music performed by Queen Latifah and Lauryn Hill.

Young scholars examine African-American communal life. For this Langston Hughes lesson, students read poetry by Hughes in order to gain insight into the Harlem community. Young scholars select artwork that represents their community.

Study African American inventor Jan Ernst Matzeliger and create imaginary monsters using texture.

Slaves laboring in the cotton fields of the old South singing joyously may have convinced overseers that their workforce was happy and content, but in truth, these spirituals contained secret codes. After viewing a short video about...

Students research the history and contributions of Jazz in their local environments. They then design and create a wide variety of presentations to share with the class using as many mediums as possible.

Students study the state of the world before the slave trade. They explain the geography and economics of the slave trade. They explore primary sources and how historians use these sources to create historical interpretations.

Students study the Gullah culture by watching a video about Gullah, Gullah Island. They discuss the customs and crafts of the people such as basket weaving, food preparation, pottery, and quilt making. While working in centers, they make...

Students create a photomontage. In this lesson plan on photography as a means of conveying emotion, students use images gathered from the Internet to create a photomontage comparing how water is used in Africa and the U.S.

Learners listen to songs from the Civil Rights movement. They explain how the music might have inspired African-Americans to be activists in the movement. They examine how the Civil Rights movement affected the common good.

Students examine how African Americans escaping slavery used storytelling to communicate. They listen to and read the lyrics for the song, Follow the Drinking Gourd, view the Reading Rainbow video, and write and illustrate their own story.

Students cooperate in small groups to create an audio tour of a zoo exhibit during a field trip. They record personal reactions, zoo sounds and information learned about the exhibit. They then edit the audio recording and add music to...

A carefully crafted three-day lesson integrates poetry and visual art. By analyzing and comparing Langston Hughes' poem "Mother and Son" and Romare Bearden's collage "The Dove," readers explore the theme of hope. The lesson activates...

The dance elements of body, energy, space, and time are the focus of a lesson on movement and theme. The class follows along as the teacher shows them a new dance that has a theme. They practice the dance, and then change one element in...

Fifth graders explore poems of African Americans. They research a famous African American, write a report, create a timeline of events in African American history, create a map of the New World, and research Molly Walsh. After...

Young scholars complete a graphic organizer reviewing Barb Hoffman's prior lesson," Slave Songs (1840-1876)" as well as listen to and discuss Delta Blues music samples. Students research one Delta Blues singer and write a "color coded"...

Students study Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. In this Martin Luther King, Jr. day instructional activity, students learn about the holiday for Dr. King through literature and music. Students learn the lyrics to Stevie Wonder's 'Happy...

Learners create an African style mask that depicts a value or character trait that is important in their community.

Students sing music representing the Caribbean culture in the calypso style. They discover the role that the event of African slavery and the history of Carribean culture played in generating calypso music.

Students delve into the life and music of Duke Ellington as a major American musician and composer. The elements that made the sound of his orchestra unique and the talents of his band members are explored in this lesson.