Worksheet
Curated OER

Is it Folk Dance?

For Students 8th - 9th
In this folk dance worksheet, students determine the characteristics of folk dancing and the dances that would fit that definition. They learn the actual dance concepts behind folk dancing.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Hangman Puzzles

For Teachers 5th - 6th
In this hangman puzzle worksheet, students are given clues about six different famous hangings. They are to solve each puzzle and write the name of the person who was hanged.
Website
Other

African Genesis: Black Gospel Music

For Students 9th - 10th
This Black Gospel Music site provides information on the history, artists, and spirituality of black gospel music.
Article
Other

Mississippi Arts Commission: Black Gospel Music

For Students 9th - 10th
An extensive article on black gospel music and its origins. Discusses the evolution of the music and it's cultural impact.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs: American Roots Music: Lesson Three: Gospel Music Meets a Wide Audience

For Teachers 9th - 10th
The third lesson deals with the emergence of gospel as a form of popular music among a general public. Gospel is a musical genre with roots in the African American church, particularly in the South. Between the 1940s and the 1960s,...
Website
Other

Black Gospel Music: The History of Gospel Music

For Students 9th - 10th
This site explores the history of Gospel music, including how gospel music began and some of the various incarnations it has gone through.
Website
PBS

Pbs: American Roots Music

For Students 9th - 10th
If teaching a unit about the history of popular music in America, this PBS web site supporting their four-part TV broadcast of a few years ago would make a great resource. Includes lesson plans and oral histories too.
Unknown Type
Other

Gospel Music Soloist

For Students 9th - 10th
This site contains a brief look at the Black gospel soloist Rosetta Tharpe. This site also includes several other articles on early black gospel soloists and groups.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Teachers: Gospel Music Meets a Wide Audience (Lesson Plan)

For Teachers 9th - 10th
A lesson that identifies some of the leading figures in post-World War II gospel music. Pupils compare the differences in style and approach of several gospel musicians and analyze how music has different meanings in different social...
Website
Other

Biographical Sketches of the Pioneers of Gospel Music

For Students 9th - 10th
Brief biographical sketches of a few of the artists of gospel music.
Website
PBS

Pbs: This Far by Faith: The Spread of Gospel Music

For Students 9th - 10th
An explanation of the origins and spread of gospel music from the producers of "This Far by Faith," a series on African-American spiritual journeys, which premiered on PBS stations in June 2003.
Article
English Club

English Club: History of Soul Music

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn the history of soul music from its origins in gospel music, through Motown and Memphis Soul, to contemporary rhythm and blues. The site includes three videos: Sam Cooke singing "A Change is Gonna Come," from 1964, with images from...
Website
Indiana University

Archives of African American Music and Culture

For Students 9th - 10th
Contains resources on black culture and music from the early 1900s to the present.
Handout
PBS

Pbs: This Far by Faith: Thomas Dorsey

For Students 9th - 10th
A biography of Thomas Dorsey, the man known as "the father of gospel music," from the producers of "This Far by Faith," a series on African-American spiritual journeys. (The series premiered on PBS stations in June 2003.) The site...
Website
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: Sam and Dave

For Students 9th - 10th
Sam and Dave were known as "the greatest of all soul duos". Read about the history behind this famous duo and learn about their music and songs. They were 1992 inductees into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Website
Library of Congress

Loc: America's Story: Mahalia Jackson

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn about the " Queen of Gospel", New Orleans born singer Mahalia Jackson.
Graphic
Smithsonian Institution

National Postal Museum: Art of the Stamp: Mahalia Jackson

For Students 9th - 10th
View the artwork for a U.S. postage stamp issued in 1998 to commemorate Mahalia Jackson, known as the "Queen of Gospel Music". With a short biographical passage.
Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

Neh: Edsit Ement: Learning the Blues

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This lesson plan introduces students to the blues. The origin and development of the blues is explored as well as its distinctive structure.
Website
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: Al Green

For Students 9th - 10th
Gifted 1970s soul singer, Al Green, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. After a rewarding R&B singing career, he became a Reverend in 1976 and moved to gospel music.
Handout
Black Past

Black Past: Jackson, Mahalia

For Students 9th - 10th
This encyclopedia article tells the high points of Mahalia Jackson's life. She was a world-renowned gospel singer whose influence was felt in the civil rights movement.
Handout
Black Past

Black Past: Cooke, Sam (1931 1964)

For Students 9th - 10th
Sam Cooke's influence on music, as the pioneer in cross-over from gospel to rhythm and blues, is described in this encyclopedia entry. His music was important to the African-American identity in the Civil Rights movement.
Website
PBS

Pbs: American Masters: Ray Charles

For Students 9th - 10th
PBS presents a biography of the "Father of soul," Ray Charles. He was an internationally famed musician, combining jazz, country, gospel, soul, and R&B in a way that was truly unique.
Website
Other

Ray Charles Online

For Students 9th - 10th
This personal website of Ray Charles contains a very interesting autobiography, including discussions with the artist on how he writes and arranges music in his head, how soul music and rock and roll originated, and much more.
Unit Plan
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Learner: American Passages: Slavery and Freedom: Sorrow Songs

For Students 9th - 10th
Sorrow Songs are examined as the music the African American slaves of the antebellum South to express both sadness and despair as well as well as hope for better. See "Sorrow Songs Activities" for related artifacts and activities.

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