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Follow the Drinking Gourd
Students create an art project based on "Follow the Drinking Gourd," a song used to guide slaves to freedom during the Civil War. They read a picture book to learn the story of how Harriet Tubman and Peg Leg Joe led slaves to freedom.
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The Collaborative Works of Rodgers and Hammerstein: Show Business
Students study the work of Rodgers and Hammerstein in an historical context of the development of American musical theatre as an art form. Students explore "roots" of the genre as it evolves in last half of the 19th and first two decades...
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200 Greatest Pop Culture Icons
Upper graders explore pop culture and pop music as a forum for female role models. They explore women who have currently contributed to our pop world and why they could be considered role models. They each interview a woman in their...
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The Role of the Opera Orchestra
Students listen to and examine a recording of the opera Don Pasquale and study the various musical instruments in an orchestra. They discuss the difference between a symphony orchestra and an opera orchestra. Finally they play the music...
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Sounds of the Season
During Christmas time, use common carols and Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker music as the basis for writing advertisements. Learners can work in teams or individually as they listen to songs via the links provided. A "Christmas Music Comparison...
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Listen Up: Antigone Rising
Upper graders listen to and watch a documentary about an all female group Antigone Rising. They discuss how females are portrayed in the rock world, the type of music they play, their song lyrics, and what they note in the documentary....
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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.
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Tango Bingo
Learners research tango music and dancing and research where it comes from. In this tango lesson plan, students research Argentina and South America while learning about the tango and making posters of it.
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Escolas de Carnaval
Students create a carnival display displaying the different themes they have studied. In this carnival lesson plan, students display the work they have studied through the samba schools in Brazil. Students also incorporate music in their...
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'Cross the Wide Missouri
Students perform a song, identify melodies, and discuss the history of folk songs.
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Guided Reading with Jazz Baby
Jazz music and musicians are the focus of this language arts lesson. Young readers independently read the book Jazz Baby. To build fluency and independence they read silently, but are guided by directive comments from the teacher. They...
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Focus on Phrasing
The band practices The Star Spangled Banner, while focusing on phrasing. They discuss musical phrasing then practice incorporating it in their performance. Cross curricular extension activities are included.
Teach With Movies
The Glenn Miller Story (Film) - Teacher's Guide
Anthony Mann's 1953 film biography, The Glenn Miller Story, is the focus of a series of activities that introduce class members to Miller's life and music. Of particular interest to music students will be the cameos by many famous...
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iPoetry: Modern Interpretation of Classic Poetry
Students interpret a piece of poetry with images and music in a movie project.
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So Foul and Fair a Play
Students watch various interpretations of Shakespeare's Macbeth in film. In groups, they examine the setting, characters, music and sequence. They compare and contrast the various films and discuss the differences. They write an essay on...
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Background for The Outsiders: the 1960s
As background for a reading of S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders, groups rotate through four stations (video, music, website, information) to gather information on the 1960s. In addition, they interview family members about the 1960s and...
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Poe's Poetry and Prosody
Motivate your class with this lesson plan! Learners use passages from Edgar Allan Poe's poetry to practice reading fluency. They read "The Raven" as a rap song to better understand the rhyming patterns and pauses.
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Puerto Rico: The 51st State?
Young scholars explore Puerto Rico. In this Puerto Rico current events lesson plan, students conduct a Webquest to answer questions about Puerto Rico's culture. Young scholars discuss whether Puerto Rico is a country or a state, and...
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Using Songs in the Foreign Language Classroom
Students focus on their required lessons in Spanish by integrating music and songs as they complete their assignments. They assess the vocabulary, grammar patterns and culture associated with music and various different songs. Each...
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How to Sing and Play Happy Birthday
Here is a clever, and simple, instructional activity on how play the guitar while singing the Happy Birthday Song. There is media content embedded in the plan that allows learners to see a video of it being played, and to print out...
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High and Low Tones
Young scholars perform movements to trigger high and low tones in music produced by percussionists.
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The Cinder-Eyed Cats - Storybook Theater
The students listen to the story "The Cinder-Eyed Cats." The students then chose individual parts to play in a theater like production. The students move like their character, be it a fish, an octopus, a lobster, a cat, etc. Water music...
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I am Special and You are Special Too - Project Children L.E.A.D.
Eighth graders recognize what makes them special through class participation and discussion of rap music, writing a poem about themselves, and designing their own special hat while working in groups.
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Allegro Band Warm-Up & Joyance rehearsal
In need of a high school band lesson? This resource includes a warm up, objectives for learners to focus on, and notes for each part of the song being played. These notes are specific to the learners it is written for, but may give you...