Modern readers apply classic themes to Victor Hugo's masterpiece, Les Miserables. After they discuss tricky vocabulary and plot elements from the novel, class members compare Hugo's written work to a stage or film adaptation of the...

Students explore the Swing Era and its implications. They answer questions and listen to music from the era.

Students gain a fundamental understanding of the role of jazz in the Harlem Renaissance. They explain its historical significance and cultural implications.

Students discuss the effect music videos have had on the role of the music. They examine how developments in technology have effected the music industry.

Students examine the suggestion that the subjective experience of everyday life and sense of identity has changed in America in recent years. In this post-modernism and mass culture lesson, students engage in 4 multi-step exercises that...

Eighth graders examine the Mexican War and its outcome through music. In this primary source analysis lesson, 8th graders analyze the lyrics of selected songs to consider the 2 perspectives regarding U.S. involvement in the war. Students...

In this music worksheet, students locate and identify various vocabulary terms related to Medieval music. They select the best response for each multiple choice question. Then, students draw some notes the way they were written in the...

Watching Great Performances’ Eric Clapton Crossroads Guitar Festival Chicago launches an investigation into and discussion of how the electric guitar and guitarists have changed the sound of the blues over time. An engaging way to...

Ezell Blair, Jr., David Richmond, Franklin McCain and Joseph McNeil changed history. Their sit-in at the lunch counter of the Woolworths in Greensboro, North Carolina on February 1, 1960 became a model for the nonviolent protests that...

Did you know that the world's first novel was written by a woman? Murasaki Shikibu's The Tale of Genji, was published in 1021. Class members research Eastern and Western cultures in the 10th and 11th centuries, view modern adaptations of...

Students 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.

Research, art history, and web page creation! Sounds too good to be true. With tons of links and resources, the lesson provides you with everything needed to engage the class in an amazing art and research activity. They create...

Cell phones are likely made of gold—at least part of them! An interesting lesson explains the conventional and not-so-conventional uses of the popular element gold. From the Inca empire to modern-day technology, learners discover gold...

An ancient puzzle game meets a modern implementation. Challenge mathematicians of all ages with this mind-bending geometric puzzle game. 

In this English folk music instructional activity, 8th graders read about the characteristics, instruments, and purpose of traditional music. They read about the history of folk music and contemporary uses of this type of music. They...

Students explore the Jazz Era in America not only by answering questions but listening to music as well.

Students analyze the origins of jazz music by examining work songs, spirituals, blues, and gospel songs as well as works of poetry from African American artists. They create their own poems from either the narrative, dramatic, or lyric...

Two sonnets, both alike in theme and story, break from ancient language to new glory. The prologue to Act I of Romeo and Juliet provides scholars with an opportunity to examine the language Shakespeare uses to create timeless stories....

The 41 slides in a professional development seminar model how to use close reading techniques to examine the many layers of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. In addition to passages from the novel, slides provide biographical...

Middle schoolers develop an understanding of how African culture impacted modern dance in the United States.

Students explore the American dream. In this contemporary music lesson, students analyze the lyrics of songs by Neil Diamond, Bruce Springsteen, and David Massengill. Students create 3-D representations of the American dream and write...

Students read three short texts which give clues to the identities of three famous Britons. The texts explore the fame of the three personalities and the growing interest in celebrities in modern British life. Students participate in a...

Students conduct research into the life of Americans and how working conditions have changed over time from the 1880's to modern times. They use primary and secondary resources in order to compile research in order to report the findings...