Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
Color Moods
Can art be a mode of communication? You bet it can! Learners explore how colors are used to convey mood in art. First, the class listens to three very unique musical selections that convey three different moods. Then, they compare...
Orlando Shakes
Les Misérables: Study Guide
A writer has the responsibility to defend the less fortunate members of society. At least that was the view of Victor Hugo, author of Les Miserables. The novel is the subject of a study guide from Orlando Shakespeare Theater....
Orlando Shakes
In the Heights: Study Guide
Before Hamilton, Lin Manuel-Miranda gained fame with In the Heights. A study guide prepares theater goers for a performance of the musical about a group of friends living in the New York City neighborhood of Washington Heights....
Berklee College of Music
Create Your Own Afro-Latin Groove
The backbone of Latin American music is the beat! Young musicians work on blending Afro-Latin rhythms and beat patterns before incorporating the major pentatonic, minor pentatonic, and blues scales in their own compositions.
Classics for Kids
Composers Timeline
Take a quick tour through the last 350 years of music composition with an interactive timeline tool. As learners scroll through the years, they see which composers were born and working during the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Modern...
Curated OER
Teaching Improvisation to Young Students in a Music Technology Lab Using a Sequencer
You'll need to be a little tech savvy to teach this music lesson. Pupils will attempt to play along with an accompaniment piece you've created using music software. They will be assessed on their performance and ability to identify and...
PBS
Broadway and The American Dream
Considering a unit study of American Musical Theatre? What better way to start than at the very beginning. Eight pairs of cards provide class members with background information about the genre from 1893 through 2004. The cards are...
Quaver
World Percussion — Latin America Project Book
What's the most popular music style in Brazil? What about Cuba? Or the Dominican Republic? An immersive project teaches young learners about the salsa, the samba, and the merengue with research assignments and dance performances.
Curated OER
Making Music
Budding musicians engage in an exciting instructional activity which has them make musical instruments out of ordinary household items. By using paper plates, plastic cups, rubber bands, storage containers, and wooden spoons they make a...
Washington University in St. Louis
Teaching Jazz as American Culture
Jazz and the City, Jazz and the Civil Rights Movement, Jazz and Gender, Jazz and Literature, Jazz and the Arts, Jazz and Film. Here's a packet of unit plans organized around themes that reflect American culture. Each unit examines how...
Smithsonian Institution
Singing for Justice: Following the Musical Journey of “This Little Light of Mine”
Scholars go on a musical journey to discover the origin, importance, and evolution of the song, "This Little Light of Mine". Class members boost their voice talents and clap to the beat while learning the lyrics in both English and Zulu....
Louisiana Department of Education
The Metamorphosis
How can something be true even if it didn't happen? Invite your classes to investigate the truths found in the world of magical realism as they analyze short stories, poems, informational texts, video, and art from this genre.
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
ABA Form in Music
Patterns happen everywhere, in music, math, and language! Fourth graders listen to the "William Tell Overture" visualizing the patterns that they hear. They then discuss and write an ABA poem that matches the ABA form found in the music...
Curated OER
Three Arts in Retrograde
Middle schoolers make connections between music, the other arts, and other curricular areas. They compare characteristics of two or more arts within a particular historical period or style and cite examples from various cultures.
Curated OER
Thomas Hart Benton: The Sources of Country Music
Students examine artwork by Thomas Hart Benton. In this interdisciplinary instructional activity, students analyze the painting The Sources of Country Music, listen to folk music, and examine how recording technology and the movies...
Curated OER
Write Your Own Rap
Third graders create a rap using basic AB form composition. Evaluation of performances are based on rubric formed during the first lesson by all students. This three to four day lesson culminates in student performances and evaluation.
Curated OER
Composing Music
Young scholars explore music appreciation by reading sheet music. In this musical score analysis lesson, students utilize their individual instruments to play the song "Peter and the Wolf." Young scholars listen to an online version of...
Curated OER
Composing Music
Students explore music appreciation by creating their own music pieces in class. In this music composition lesson, students collaborate in small groups with their instruments and compose a short song which they will play for class....
Curated OER
Comparing Native American and American Folk Music
Learners examine how aspects of Native American and American folk music are alike and different. They contrast both forms of music and engage in many activities to identify or explain how music fulfills a variety of purposes.
Curated OER
Art Tape Amusement Parks
In need of a quick way to get rid of extra art tape? This simple idea describes how learners can use it to create mini amusement parks. They'll form the tape into roller coasters, cars, and people with a little imagination and creative...
Smithsonian Institution
Songs, Sounds and Stories from the Georgia Sea Islands
American music is the result of the influence of many cultures, including the traditions brought by the African slaves. Young scholars study the polyrhythms, the call-and-response format, and the vocal improvisations of the Gullah...
Curated OER
Epic Improvisation
Really? Rapping The Odyssey? Really. A discussion of the oral tradition of story telling and its links to Epic poetry sets the stage for a series of activities that encourage improvisation to integrate music into other classrooms....
Curated OER
The Magic Opera
Introduce your young learners to opera by dressing up as Mozart and recounting some of the fascinating details of his life and music. After exploring the Metropolitan Opera's site for kids, the class listens to a reading of Kyra...
Museum of Tolerance
Music Evokes Memories and Emotions
Dim the lights, take a deep breath, and press play to explore the emotions and memories that music elicits. Class members begin using relaxation techniques designed to create a positive listening experience. As music plays, learners...