Digital Public Library of America
Women and the Blues
A 12-piece primary source packet sets the tone for a study of the role women played in the origins, development, and impact of blues music. Legends like Bessie Smith, Gertrude "Ma" Rainey, Mamie Smith, and Ida Cox are featured, as are...
National Park Service
Lesson 3: Resistance
During the time of slavery, resistance was a way of life for the men and women held in bondage. Using music as evidence of their fight against oppression, learners explore how enslaved people fought back. Writing prompts round out the...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Life Before the Civil War
American life before the Civil War was very different from American life today. To show this difference in a full spectrum, learners compare two communities that illustrate the differences between Northern and Southern life. Throughout...
Curated OER
Musical Genre Pie Charts
In this pie chart worksheet, students transpose musical genre data to the charts and then answer questions about the results.
Curated OER
Rockin' Data
Fifth graders are given the questions, "What type of music would you suggest the manager place in front of the store?". Students collect data by talking with 20 adults and create a bar graph on the computer to present the data.
Curated OER
Lesson: American Idyll
Using the painting, Childhood Idyll for inspiration, learners reflect on things that are idealized. They focus in on pop music and pop idols, write a song, and perform it in front of the class, American Idol style.
Curated OER
Compare Data Sets
In this comparing data sets practice worksheet, students sharpen their problem solving skills as they solve 6 story problems.
Curated OER
Literature Soundtracks
Mix music into your literature class! After reading a novel (either in class or as outside reading), your mix masters create a soundtrack of 10 songs to accompany their reading. What does each song add to the story? A fun activity for all!
Curated OER
Word Search: Elements of Music
In this music worksheet, students find the words that are related to the different elements of music and the answers are found by clicking the button at the bottom of the page.
Curated OER
Music Word Search
In this music worksheet, students find the words that are used in the classroom and the answers are found by clicking the link at the bottom of the page.
Curated OER
Music Word Search
In this music worksheet, students prepare extensively to acquire new vocabulary with this challenge. The answers are found at the bottom of the page.
Curated OER
Not Just the Facts
Encourage your learners to explore the differences between hard news and news analysis. They outline a complex news analysis about the upcoming presidential election, then endeavor to write an analysis of the same topic, using local...
BBC
The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky
Over the course of six lessons, scholars try their hand at composing and dancing after a thorough examination of the famous ballet, The Nutcracker, by Tchaikovsky. Participants watch and discuss the performance of two dances, create and...
Trinity University Digital Commons
Romanticism: Past and Present
With its focus on nature, individualism, imagination, and rejection of traditional authority, Romanticism has great appeal to young high schoolers. After examining classic paintings and poems as well as current works, class members...
Curated OER
Using Poetry As Inspiration for Composition
A reading of Robert Frost’s "The Road Not Taken" launches an interdisciplinary study of the connection between the meters of a poem and a melody. After identifying the number of beats in each line of the poem, young musicians use...
Curated OER
Lesson: Paul Chan: 1st Light and 5th Light
Paul Chan's latest exhibit includes seven manifestations of light. Today, kids analyze the pieces 1st Light and 5th Light. They consider the concept of opposed or dualistic realities found in literature, society, and Chan's work. They...
Curated OER
Lesson: A Garden Party of My Own
Kids look at a beautiful work of art to practice grammar, make connections from life to art, and sketching. They identify all the parts of grammar they see in the image, discuss what they see and do on a picnic, and then draw an imaged...
Curated OER
Sounds of the Season
During Christmas time, use common carols and Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker music as the basis for writing advertisements. Learners can work in teams or individually as they listen to songs via the links provided. A "Christmas Music Comparison...
Curated OER
Does Music Cam the Savage Beast?
Students collect, graph and analyze data. For this statistics lesson, students measure the heart beat of a person as they listen to music. They use the CBL and TI to create a graph, analyzing the outcome.
Curated OER
Interpreting Music Data Rubric
In this interpreting music data rubric worksheet, students use this rubric as an assessment tool. It is designed to evaluate the students' music presentation.
Curated OER
American Music Genres
Learners research and listen to a variety of American music genres and create a written comparison between three of the styles.
Curated OER
Civil War Music - Irish Folk Songs
Young scholars determine what it was like to serve as an Irish-American in the American Civil War. In this Irish folk song lesson plan, students use the provided worksheets to analyze selected Irish folk songs and make inferences about...
Curated OER
Screening Coleridge’s Fantasies: Using Popular Music as a Bridge to Literacy
Twelfth graders use music to aid them in interpreting poetry. In this poetry lesson, 12th graders analyze the lyrics, figurative language, and literary devices of selected music. Students compare the music to the poetry of Samuel...
Curated OER
Motion Picture Analysis Worksheet
In this motion picture analysis worksheet, students decipher what type of motion picture they viewed based on a complete list of criteria. Students then answer multiple questions based on their discoveries.