Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Popular Music and Music Videos

For Teachers 9th - 12th
This resource is part of a three-activity unit that introduces your class to the concept of popular culture and the role that it plays in their lives. Here, learners examine the importance of the music industry and music videos in pop...
Unit Plan
Broadway GPS

The Lion King—The Broadway Musical Study Guide

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
Musicals have been adapted from stage plays, novels, and movies. With The Lion King, Disney transforms its animated film into show-stopping, live-action musical theatre. The guide Disney provides to accompany a study...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The South, the North and the Great Migration: Blues and Literature

For Teachers 8th - 12th Standards
Here is a complex lesson plan that interweaves the history of the Jim Crow South and the Great Migration with the study of poetry, art, and blues music from the Harlem Renaissance. The plan helps young historians develop a deep...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Trey and Dave go to Africa: Music

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Trey from Phish and Dave from the Dave Mathews Band took a trip to Africa to explore music, culture, and history. Your class watches this episode from VH1's Music Studio to understand how African culture and music have influenced modern...
Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

The Birth of an Icon: Learning and Performing the Origins of the Drum Set and Early Jazz Drumming in New Orleans, Louisiana

For Teachers 5th - 12th
Bass drum, snare drum, tom-toms, cymbals. Perched behind their drum sets, wielding their drum sticks and wire brushes, drummers lay the grove and are the heartbeat of a band's performance. A dynamic activity introduces young musicians to...
Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Songs, Sounds and Stories from the Georgia Sea Islands

For Teachers K - 12th
American music is the result of the influence of many cultures, including the traditions brought by the African slaves. Young scholars study the polyrhythms, the call-and-response format, and the vocal improvisations of the Gullah...
Unit Plan
English Language Support Programme

Traditional Irish Music

For Teachers 4th - 8th Standards
Celebrate sean-nós, céilí, and the lilting music of the Emerald Isle with a set of language arts activities! Learners complete word puzzles, vocabulary exercises, and comprehension questions about traditional Irish music.
Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Spirits Across the Ocean: Yoruban and Dahomean Cultures in the Caribbean Brought by the Slave Trade

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Much of Latin American music owes its origins to the slave trade. Peoples from the Yoruban and Dahomean cultures brought with them the distinctive rhythms, time signatures, and eighth note patterns that now characterize Caribbean music....
Unit Plan
iTheatrics and Broadway

School of Rock the Musical: Education Guide

For Parents 6th - 12th Standards
That old fashioned rock and roll comes alive as theatre arts students prepare to attend a live performance of the musical School of Rock. Packed with both pre- and post-production materials, the guide has it all. Rock on!
Unit Plan
Broadway GPS

ALADDIN: Broadway's New Musical Comedy

For Parents 5th - 9th Standards
Aladdin, Disney's Broadway musical comedy, is a magic carpet ride. Prepare your class for a field trip to the show with a study guide that is a treasure trove of activities, cultural connections, and background information.
Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

African American Music: Let’s Sing and Play Clapping Games

For Teachers K - 2nd
Two lessons focus on making a beat. Using popular African American music of its time, scholars listen and analyze the rhythm then recreate it with hands drums, and cups. 
PPT
Curated OER

Indian Film Music

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Music has been used with many different art forms, but none more obvious than film. Explore the history, cultural influences, and music found in Indian Film. Text in this presentation is bulleted, making it great for taking notes....
Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Braiding Rhythms: The Role of Bell Patterns in West African and Afro-Caribbean Music

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed
Africans transported to the Caribbean as part of the transatlantic slave trade brought with them a rich tradition of music and dance. Four lessons teach young musicians the rumba clave rhythm, cascara rhythm, and the 6/8 bell patterns...
Lesson Plan
Center for History Education

The Federal Theatre Project: Analyzing Conflict Among Relief, Art, and Politics in 1930s America

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
In the effort to soothe the suffering of the Great Depression, New Deal programs funded a variety of approaches - including a theater project that proved controversial! Using documents such as oral histories, as well as photographs of...
Activity
National Constitution Center

Born in the U.S.A: Music as Political Protest

For Students 10th - 12th Standards
Though often used in shows of patriotism, Bruce Springsteen's 1985 song "Born in the U.S.A." is critical of America's role in the Vietnam war and its treatment of American veterans. High schoolers analyze the song's lyrics in an activity...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Art and History of Japanese Calligraphy

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Chinese and Japanese calligraphy is beautiful and significant in both culture and tradition. Engage your class in this expressive fine art form through a lesson on using, holding, and creating brush strokes common to Japanese writing...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Romantic and 20th Century Period Music

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Upper graders explore the similarities, differences, and depth of pop music from the Romantic era and the 20th century. They listen to selections that exemplify the Baroque, Romantic, and 20th century periods, then create presentations...
Lesson Plan6:21
TED-Ed

From Aaliyah to Jay-Z: Captured Moments in Hip-hop History

For Teachers 4th - 8th
To take "the definitive portrait of that person in that moment" is the quest of photographer and hip-hop historian Jonathan Mannion. In this short video, Mannion details his dedication to his art and the process he goes through to catch...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Japanese Tea and Teacups

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Upper graders use the potter's wheel to make Japanese style tea cups, which they will use in a Japanese style tea ceremony. They hone their sculpting techniques while exploring Japanese cultural and the history of tea. There are two...
Activity
Teaching Tolerance

Community Arts Showcase

For Teachers 6th - 12th
An art showcase encourages class members to explore the themes of social justice and tolerance. They create an original artwork, engage in group discussions, and journal writing. The art gallery also provides a chance for families and...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Curated OER

Renaissance Music Questions

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Add a comprehension resource to a unit on the Renaissance or music of the Renaissance period. Middle schoolers answer eight comprehension questions and complete ten additional questions in order to fill out a crossword...
Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Affirmation, Assimilation, and Acculturation: Middle School

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Latin American culture is deeply embedded in American culture as a whole. From the Latin rock scene in San Francisco to the hip-hop world of New York, Latin American artists have influenced every genre of modern music. Learn about the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Applying Music to Literature

For Teachers 1st - 6th
Kids explore music, history, culture, and literature in a multi-faceted lesson plan. They discuss how both historical and cultural contexts shape music, art, and literature, and then apply these concepts as they engage in a listening...
Lesson Plan
John F. Kennedy Center

Musical Harlem: How Is Jazz Music Reflective of the Harlem Renaissance?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Bring jazz music and the Harlem Renaissance to light with a lesson that challenges scholars to research and create. Pupils delve deep into information materials to identify jazz terminology, compare types of jazz and jazz musicians,...

Other popular searches