Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Meter Readers Turned Composers

For Teachers 8th - 10th
Students compose eight measures of music after they practice interpreting time/signature meter.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Meet the Instrument Families

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders listen to a recording of a string quartet and ask questions about what kinds of instrument they think they are listening to and describe what they think the instruments look like. Then they discuss musical ideas such as...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Boombox Classroom: Joe Trio

For Students 1st - 2nd
In this music worksheet, students listen to the Boombox Classroom radio broadcast. Students then answer a question about the piano trio.
Worksheet
Curated OER

A Step-to-Step Guide to Playing the 12 Bar-Blues

For Students 6th - 12th
In this playing the 12 bar blues music learning exercise, students follow 4 steps outlined to introduce the 12 bar blues to them and then respond to 3 short answer questions.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Form and Theme in the Traditional Mexican Corrido

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students examine the traditional Mexican musical form of corridos. In this cross curricular history and music lesson, students analyze the lyrics of popular corridos and the corridos' importance in Mexican culture. Students will...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Satchmo's Blues

For Teachers 4th - 11th
Learners work cooperatively to create a jazz composition using the computer program GarageBand and incorporating the musical stylings of musician Louis Armstrong. Internet access is required for this lesson.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Song Writing

For Students 6th - 10th
In this music worksheet, students identify specific tips for composing a song. They use strophic form where each verse has the same melody. Students also select a chord sequence and use cadences at the end of each phrase and modulations...
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

Guitar - 12 Bar Blues

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students explore the chord chart for 12-bar blues in C and then play the scales on the guitar. They play their scales at a moderate tempo and practice related arpeggios. After listening to "Band in the Box" music tracks, students...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Duke Ellington

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Learners discover a variety of Duke Ellington compositions and the elements that make his sound unique. In this jazz lesson plan, students participate in a Duke Ellington Matching Game and an activity based on his music.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Learn Under the Old Masters

For Teachers 2nd - 12th
Learners take a closer look at portraits. For this art appreciation lesson, students may visit the National Portrait Gallery, the Victoria Art Gallery, or the Scottish National Portrait Gallery online or in-person to discover works of art.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Acoustical Science

For Teachers K - 5th
Students explore musical instruments and the pitches and tones they make. In this acoustical science lesson, students create their own string instruments and explore how pitch is altered.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Singing "What's New With Me"

For Teachers K
Kindergarteners sing the song, "What's New With Me" adding rhythm with each go around. They clap, tap, and sing along with the teacher. Note: The song or song lyrics are not included.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Rock and Roll with Music and Movement

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders improvise music and dance to express their analysis of types of rocks. They discuss the three classes of rocks, list describing words, and create a short musical piece and dance to symbolize the rock they are dancing.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Bells 'n' Scales

For Teachers 2nd - 5th
Learners work together to arrange bells in order from low to high and play songs. They discuss differences in pitch and musical notation.
Worksheet
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Ballet and Dance Quiz

For Students 7th - 12th
Ballet is the main focus of this short answer quiz, but a few questions cover dance in cinema and Scottish folk dance names. Trivia for dancers!
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Dance Sequences and Phrases

For Teachers 8th - 12th
A series of lessons about dance would be a great addition to your physical education class. Straightforward as well as creative, it teaches the basic skills of dance movement. A rubric helps guide the dancers to let them know what steps...
Lesson Plan
Poetry Out Loud

The Tabloid Ballad

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
What do the theme song from Gilligan's Island, the nursery rhyme "The Owl and the Pussy-Cat," and the poem "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" all have in common? Why, they're ballads of course! Challenge your young balladeers to compose their...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Visual Aural Impressions

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students view a piece of impressionist art, listen to a piece of jazz music and then write a piece about the picture in the style of beat poets. They compare their writing and look for differences in their perceptions.
Unit Plan
San Francisco Symphony

Learning Adjectives through the Duke

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Duke Ellington, jazz, and jive kick-off a fun and creative lesson on responding emotionally to music. The class will learn about jive talk used in the 1920s and the life and music of Duke Ellington. They'll listen to a selection of his...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Requiem "The Song of the Murdered Jewish People"

For Students 9th - 12th
Music and poetry are vehicles that can tell many stories. Learners read the poem "The Song of the Murdered Jewish People" by Itzhak Katzenelson, then listen to the requiem it inspired; composed by Zlata Razdolina. Excellent...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Individuality vs. Conformity

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Have your middle schoolers participate in numerous activities designed to spark their awareness of literature. They express ideas and concerns clearly and respectfully in conversations and group discussions. Next, they view a music...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Multimedia Storytelling

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Experiment with multimedia storytelling. After watching a segment of American Family, first, middle and high schoolers tell a story about their families, clarifying the setting, characters, and script. They work on setting...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shakespeare Was A Black Woman

For Teachers 7th - 12th
"I all alone beweep my outcast state." After a discussion of the "Shakespeare in American Life" segment in which Maya Angelou's relates her reaction to Sonnet 29, class groups create and perform a scene about an outcast that includes the...