Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Songwriting

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students watch the "The Greatest TV Moments: Sesame Street Music A to Z" video and brainstorm what the songs may be about. They choose a theme for a song, write a short topic-related poem, and compose music for it.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Trash or Treasure?

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners explore their experiences and reflect on how one person can make a difference in our world. In this service learning lesson, students analyze themes in music related to encouragement. Learners perform a service learning project...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Heaven or Ground Hog Day?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners discover the ideas of enlightenment by reading historical poetry. In this philosophical lesson, students read poems by Sir Walter Scott and Sergeant Joyce Kilmer while discussing the themes of the writing with classmates....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shange's Novel Betsey Brown & Jazz

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students read a work of fiction and investigate literary values and structure of the work. They demonstrate understanding of the family values, cultural and historical context of the novel;
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Writing Lyrics

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students examine the themes and structure of a bluegrass song and identify the common themes in bluegrass music. They practice songwriting by rewriting the lyrics of "Oh! Susanna" as a bluegrass tune.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Les Mis'rables

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Pupils read, understand, and enjoy Les Miserables. They improve their skills in literary analysis, writing, and listening. Through the study of biblical and historical allusions, symbols, metaphors, and other figurative language, they...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Musical Makeover

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students explore the importance of folk music is various ethnic cultures.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Four-Note Range in Music

For Teachers K
Students sing melodic patterns and songs within a four-note range using sol, la, and mi. They echo simple melodic patterns and maintain the tonal center singing two Thanksgiving-related songs, "Hello, hello..." and "Five Fat Turkeys."
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

All About Me

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Students examine who they are through the arts and sciences. They create a portfolio entitled, " All About Me."
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

THE TRAVELS OF BABAR: An Adventure in Scale : Integrating Visual Art and Social Studies

For Teachers 1st - 5th
Students comprehend how the use of color impacts a work of art. They research how a theme can be rendered in a variety of ways (words, music, visuals). Students analyze how an artist's choices affect the aesthetic quality of artwork.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Literature Through Silent Movies

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students watch Charlie Chaplin films and discuss film elements. They select a story written by Edgar Allen Poe to write and produce a movie of. They film scenes, edit, and create a final iMovie project.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Louisiana's Tragic Hero - "Evangeline"

For Teachers 8th
"Ye who believe...List to a Tale of Love in Acadie." Longfellow's epic poem, "Evangeline," launches a study of tragic heroines, epic poetry, the expulsion of the Acadians from Canada, and their subsequent migration to Louisiana. The...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Talking Stick

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Young scholars examine the lives of the Aboriginal peoples of Saskatchewan. For this talking stick lesson, students discover dance, art, music, and traditions of the First Nations people.  Young scholars design and create a talking...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

History of Ponce de Leon in Florida

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Based in sound Educational Theory, this lesson uses art to convey the story of Ponce de Leon. Mild to moderately disabled students hear the story of the Fountain of Youth, examine a paining of Ponce de Leon, and act out a scene as Ponce...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Those Fabulous Fables

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
A video leads off this activity on fables, introducing the class to this important form of traditional storytelling. The group defines fable and hears an explanation of the origin of this type of folk tale. They summarize the story they...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Aristotle's Six Elements Of A Play

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders view the play, The Ant and the Grasshopper. They define Aristotle's six elements of a play. At the end of the lesson plan, 5th graders be asked to participate in the play by acting like busy ants. This lesson plan would tie...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Summertime

For Teachers K - 2nd
Explore expressive reading through the read-aloud Summertime: From Porgy and Bess. Readers will make predictions about the text and listen to the song Summertime. They will also identify how the story relates to the song lyrics.
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

Counting in Tactile Journals

For Teachers K - 6th
This is one of those great ideas I totally love. Youngsters with visual impairments practice counting and left-to -right sequencing by counting out a set number of edible objects from the left and putting them in a bag on the right. They...
Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

Walt Whitman to Langston Hughes: Poems for a Democracy

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Explore the idea of democratic poetry. Upper graders read Walt Whitman, examining daguerreotypes, and compare Whitman to Langston Hughes. They describe aspects of Whitman's I Hear America Singing to Langston Hughes' Let America Be...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Yankee Doodle... More than Just a Catchy Tune

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Students investigate the history of patriotic music and practice singing the tunes with classmates.  In this U.S. History lesson plan, students examine lyrics of the traditional song "Yankee Doodle Dandy" and discuss the differing...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What Makes a Hero?

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners identify the characteristics of a hero. In this character development and writing lesson, students listen to music with a hero theme and discuss the common traits of heroes. Learners explore individuals and charitable...
Lesson Plan
Friends of Fort McHenry

Sensory “Star Spangled Banner”

For Teachers 4th - 8th Standards
Music can help us to access memories and events in a meaningful way, and Francis Scott Key used specific words to convey what he had seen and felt when writing what would become America's national anthem. Help your class connect to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Introduction to musical reading for Drumset and Percussion.

For Teachers 2nd - 7th
Young scholars analyze the functions of musical scores as they relate to percussion instruments. They follow an audio and video presentation as they count and follow beat patterns.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Responses To Twentieth Century Music: A High School Art Curriculum

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students explore their own responses to sound by hearing the music as a regular part of the class structure. They develop an awareness that certain art evokes certain sounds and moods and develop an intuitive responses to the music.