Curated OER
Famous Americans
Students investigate famous Americans. In this American history and research lesson, students choose a famous American to research, collect information from a variety of sources, and create a related PowerPoint presentation.
Black History Month Report
Black History Month Report
As part of Black History Month, class members investigate in depth the life and work of an African American musician.
Curated OER
1920s Variety Show
To better understand the cultural achievements of the Harlem Renaissance and become familiar with its major figures, class members examine a painting by Aaron Douglas and a poem by Langston Hughes and compare how the artists develop...
Curated OER
Pioneer America: Legendary Westerners - Can One Person Really Make a Difference?
Fourth graders research famous Americans from the Westward Movement and complete an interview. In this Westward Movement lesson plan, 4th graders work in pairs to research someone who was important during this time period. They prepare...
Curated OER
Model a Famous Painting in Friendly Plastic
Friendly Plastic is a fun art medium created by Amaco Clay Company. It is versatile and results in a beautiful end product. With this resource, young artists can recreate a famous painting using Friendly Plastic. What a fun way to study...
Project Articulate
Textured Landscapes with Grant Wood
Explore the world of textured landscapes through the eyes of the famous artist, Grant Wood. Here is an elementary art lesson in which scholars learn about Grant Wood's life, view his work, draw their own textured landscape, and then...
Curated OER
Pop Culture and Art
Learn about American pop culture, art, and the social voice that art can convey. The class discusses the life and art of Barton Benes, views his piece Reliquarium, then discusses what they see and feel when they view his work. Make sure...
PBS
Hidden Messages in Spirituals
Slaves laboring in the cotton fields of the old South singing joyously may have convinced overseers that their workforce was happy and content, but in truth, these spirituals contained secret codes. After viewing a short video about...
Queen's Printer for Ontario
Composers in Music History
What do Johann Sebastian Bach and Miles Davis have in common? Much more than class members might imagine. The comparison of these two famous composers is just one lesson in a unit that investigates many facets of the music industry...
Digital Public Library of America
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
A set of 14 primary sources provides background for a study of Lorraine Hansberry's drama, A Raisin in the Sun. Featured are images from stage productions of the play, white supremacy protests, a clip from a television interview, and...
Curated OER
Studying African American Artists
Third graders use the internet to search for a teacher assigned African American artist. They create a PowerPoint slide displaying a sample of the artists work with brief bits of information about their artist. Students write a short...
Curated OER
Official Statements
Students research the viewpoints of famous Americans, and then write commencement speeches reflecting these viewpoints to be delivered to high school graduates of today.
John F. Kennedy Center
Musical Harlem: How Is Jazz Music Reflective of the Harlem Renaissance?
Bring jazz music and the Harlem Renaissance to light with a lesson that challenges scholars to research and create. Pupils delve deep into information materials to identify jazz terminology, compare types of jazz and jazz musicians,...
Curated OER
Powerful Portraits
Students research and study the career and work of famous American portraitist John Singer Sargent. They collect images of people wearing clothing suitable for their career or hobby and identify postures and gestures connected to them....
Ballet Austin
The History of Modern Dance
The evolution of modern dance, and the dance history of many of the key figures in the development of this uniquely American form, are the focus of a 13-page packet that includes photos of revolutionaries.
Curated OER
Cut and Paste Biographies
Young scholars explore the influence of African-American artists, writers, and musicians on American culture. After researching different figures in these areas, they create collages representing each person's life and legacy.
Curated OER
Jazz Talk
Middle schoolers 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,...
Curated OER
America's Favorite Landmarks
Students research using Google Earth a variety of websites to explore America's most prominent and famous buildings. They then compare and contrast architectural styles and write a position paper defending or arguing against their chosen...
Thirteen Ed Online
What is Conceptual Art?
Research, art history, and web page creation! Sounds too good to be true. With tons of links and resources, the lesson plan provides you with everything needed to engage the class in an amazing art and research activity. They create...
Japan Society
Popular Culture and Japan’s Gross National Cool
From Manga to Godzilla and Pokemon, Japanese pop culture has been taking the globe by storm. This phenomenon is called "soft power." Learners will examine the differences between hard and soft power, as well as learn the historical...
Curated OER
World War II: Internment in Hawaii
Students examine world history by writing an essay in class. In this World War II lesson, students identify the attack on Pearl Harbor, the response from the U.S and the effect it had on Japanese-Americans. Students define Japanese...
Global Oneness Project
Clowning Around
Being a clown is hard work — no joke! Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee's Laugh Clown Laugh, a short film about German clown Reinhard "Filou" Harstkotte, asks viewers to consider the various roles played by clowns and to consider the...
Curated OER
A Likely and Unlikely Match: Frida and Diego
Delve into the fascinating relationship between Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera using this resource. Learners discuss the lives of these famous artists, and talk about the ways Frida Kahlo incorporated elements of this tumultuous...
AMCO
Whimsical Figures
Clay is a wonderful and expressive medium for learners of any age. Kids get creative as they make whimsical figures out of clay. A hyperlinked materials list, images of each step in the process, and helpful tips makes this a great art...