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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"Jazz is About Collaboration": Jim Crow Laws And Segregation

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students explore development of jazz music in the 1930s by forming imaginary jazz bands which tour several cities in Depression-era America. Jazz band members create imaginary identities for themselves, develop publicity for their tour,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Ella Fitzgerald: Something to Live For

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students examine the basic characteristics of jazz, and its relationship to African-American culture and history. They listen to examples of jazz, conduct research, and create a 20th century timeline of music and historical events.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Act 3: New York Introduction 1924-1925, Louis Armstrong

For Teachers 4th - 11th
Students listen to and examine jazz recordings and listen for features (breaks and obbligato) that are typical of jazz music. In groups, they make up a short blues song of their own.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Learning Through the Duke

For Teachers 2nd - 8th
Students examine the contributions of Duke Ellington to the field of jazz. They create an original poem using popular vocabulary from the 1920s, listen to the book, "Duke Ellington," and paint a picture while listening to music by Duke...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Learning through The Duke

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Students study Duke Ellington's contributions to the field of jazz. They write poetry using language that was popular in the 1920's. They listen to a piece of Duke Ellington jazz and respond with at painting.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

VH1 100 Greatest Women of Rock & Roll Lesson 3

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students examine female artists who perform in the genres of rhythm & blues, jazz, soul, and hip-hop/rap. They compose lyrics and melody in one of these genres.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Improvising in the Birthplace of Jazz

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students recognize significant developments in New Orleans jazz music. They improvise blues licks using notes from a minor pentatonic scale.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Jazz Forms and Improvisation

For Teachers 10th - Higher Ed
Young scholars listen to an original recording of Louis Armstrong and discuss instrumentation. They identify an AABA song form as they listen. They list similarities between the following: traditional meets modern and small group vs. big...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Duking It Out

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Young scholars read and discuss 'Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra: Mixing Treasures by Duke Ellington and Edvard Grieg,' exploring how jazz transformed European music and the influence jazz has had on modern music. They write musical reviews.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Smithsonian Jazz Class: Ella Fitzgerald

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students play "Ella's Match Game" to learn an overview of Fitzgerald's life and career. In this Ella Fitzgerald lesson, students listen to excerpts of Fitzgerald's music and respond by creating writing prompts.
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Interactive
Curated OER

Bessie Smith

For Students 8th - 12th
In this jazz history worksheet, students respond to 7 essay and short answer questions about the life and accomplishments of Bessie Smith.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Ray Charles

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Learners read the book Ray Charles by Sharon Bell Mathis. For this biography lesson plan, students read about the life of Ray Charles. Learners answer pre-reading questions about senses, strengths, and weaknesses they have. The lesson...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Duke Ellington and the Rise of Jazz in New York

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students consider how Duke Ellington impacted the rise of jazz music. In this jazz music lesson, students listen to a lecture regarding the life and work of Ellington. Students also watch a video regarding Ellington and discuss music of...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Crawford Grill: Opening the Doors of Opportunity

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Analyze the role the Crawford Grill played in the history of Jazz music. Budding historians research interviews and video clips to learn about the Crawford Grill in Pennsylvania and black music history. The lesson culminates when...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Princess and the Frog

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students study the sounds of New Orleans jazz, its origins, and its influences. In this jazz music lesson, students listen to various jazz songs and discuss the songs. Students use the worksheet 'Jazz: the Universal Language' to study...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Duke Ellington

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students 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.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Louis Armstrong

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Learners discover the music of Louis Armstrong. For this jazz lesson, students are introduced to Armstrong's trumpet and vocal art in a matching game, then listen to a sampling of his music and respond in writing.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Migration of Music

For Students 2nd - 3rd
In this music worksheet, learners identify and define migration. They circle the different types of music created by the African-Americans who were brought to the New World. Students also explain why slavery is a bad thing.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Jazz: Boombox Classroom

For Students 1st - 2nd
In this music worksheet, learners read about improvisation. Students choose their favorite instrument, a saxophone or a bass, and draw a picture of it. Learners can then do a small maze.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Louis Armstrong

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
In this reading comprehension worksheet learners read a biography of jazz musician Louis Armstrong. Students answer 6 questions.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Jazz Word Search

For Students 6th - 8th
In this music instructional activity, students find the words that are associated with Jazz music and the answers are found by clicking the link at the bottom of the page.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Prairie Dog That Met the President

For Teachers K - 8th
Students study the history of jazz music. They listen to various examples of jazz music and complete a worksheet in which they must identify the individual instruments they hear and identify characteristics of the genre of jazz music.
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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.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Bearden Art-Making Workshop

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Learners are able to create their own collages using some of the same kinds of images and materials Bearden used. They put to use some of the Bearden techniques they observed in the reproduction/slide lecture and explore to...