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VH1 Driven: Kanye West
Students watch a video excerpt about the life of Kanye West. They draw connections between his life and their own and compose a rap song in the style of West, using his song, "Through the Wire" as an example.
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Gospel Beginnings - Lesson 1
Students identify genres of music that influenced musical style of Aretha Franklin. They identify musical characteristics of gospel and sing a gospel selection. They pay particular attention to the call and response style.
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Boosting Rap's Rep
Students consider the negative image that some have of rap and hip-hop music through discussion and reading an opinion piece from The New York Times. They create CD cover artwork reflecting these messages.
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My Favorite Things
Fourth graders listen to the song "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music. In this singing lesson, 4th graders discuss the words of the song and also find where the note goes upward. Students write down what their favorite things are.
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VH1 200 Greatest Pop Culture Icons Lesson 2
Students examine the origins of ragtime music in American and analyze its musical form.
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Songs from Two Generations - Lesson 2
High schoolers identify popular songs from 1968 era and analyze some of the topical and musical elements. They focus on social protest songs and other songs of social conscious.
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Everybody's Boppin', Lambert, Hendricks and Ross
Learners probe the musical style of scat singing with imitation instruments. While listening to the musical pieces, they identify when one singer finishes and another begins. The singing groups' styles are contrasted in this activity.
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From Sacred to Secular: Exploration of Vocal Styles/Crossing between styles - Lesson 2
Students identify some of Aretha Franklin's vocal qualities and techniques. They have a discussion of styles of music they heard on the video, including gospel, jazz, pop, rhythm and blues, and opera.
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No Title
Third graders assess how to read and write rhythmic notation in music. They explore the concepts of whole, half, quarter, eighth, dotted lines, extended pentatonic, diatonic and major/minor modes. Symbols along with additional...
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Storytellers: Pearl Jam, New Twist on an Old Song
Pupils examine the use of music as a medium for social protest. They watch the video, "VH1 Storytellers: Pearl Jam," describe the historical significance of words/phrases in three versions of one song, and answer discussion questions.
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String Instruments and Pitch
Students make predictions and explore how pitch is altered in string instruments. In this acoustic science lesson, students learn the types and parts of string instruments and create their own. They listen to classical music and identify...
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Study Skills- Fact and Opinion
Young scholars engage in a variety of activities in order to achieve the objectives of a layered curriculum unit. They take notes on the differences between fact and opinion. Students also use a newspaper in order to recognize...
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Native American Flutes - Activity 1
Students discuss Native American culture and musical techniques after viewing a video of Charles Littleleaf, a member of the Warm Springs tribe and a creator of Native American wood flutes.
Peter Nagy
Virtuoso Piano Free 3
This may be as close to playing a piano as it is possible to get without actually having a physical instrument in the class. Learn the names and sounds of keys, play a solo or a duet, and practice scales or any song you'd like–all for free!
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Creating, Notating and Recording an Original Song
Students are provided with a set of parameters, including theme, time
signature, number of measures, and form. Working within these parameters, the class , step by step, goes through the process of
creating, notating, and recording a...
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Tony Bennett VH1 Storytellers for VH1 Save the Music
Students compare two recordings of Tony Bennett's music.
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VH1 Storytellers for Save the Music Starring Billy Joel
Students examine recordings of Billy Joel.
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Conjunto Music from South Texas
Pupils listen to conjunto music and identify the instrumentation. After discussing the the history of South Texas, they examine lyrics of several songs and interpret them. As extensions, students can learn to partner dance to the music...
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Music: Cut Time
Sixth graders examine the concept of cut time prior to a band performance. After observing a DVD of a snare drum performance, they determine if the piece is in 2, 3, or 4 time. Finally, they play solos that are recorded and analyzed.
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Save the Music Concert: Part 2 Composition
High schoolers examine why music is considered to be the "universal language" and study the expressive quality of a musical performance. They compose a melody using a computer and software which they perform on an instrument.
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THE TRAVELS OF BABAR: An Adventure in Scale :Interpreting the music of Raphael Mostel's Dance/Movement exercise
Students explore how dance/movement tell a story. They analyze the elements of dance through interpretation of the story. Students exercise how the feelings and moods of the music suggest certain body movements and actions.
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Write to Music
Students improve their creative writing skills. In this writing skills lesson, students learn about picture captions, story writing, critiques, poems, reports, letter writing, creative writing, and a rap poem.
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Introduction to Music of the Civil Rights Era
Learners summarize the major events of the Civil Rights Movement. They examine leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X and what they did for the movement. They also listen to music from the Civil Rights Era and their...
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Recording Artist and MP3 Players
Students explore the concept of being a recording artist. In this recording artist lesson plan, students determine the costs of producing various music products such as a demo tape, 8-track tape, and a record deal. Students discuss...