Curated OER
American Rhythms
Students combine elements of music with poetry. In this creative writing instructional activity, students examine poems from a variety of authors with varying writing styles. Students explore the different elements of poetry, including...
Curated OER
Strike Up the Band
Students create song lyrics celebrating the history of labor unions serving the entertainment industry, then create posters illustrating the importance of each union to the industry they represent.
Curated OER
Sense of Place: No River Too Wide-Bridges
Fifth graders discover the history of their hometown Des Moines River. In this U.S. Geography instructional activity students speak with Iowans that tell stories of the settlers and early villages near the Des Moines River. Students...
Curated OER
Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story - The Birth of Soul
Young scholars analyze various kinds of music. In this music lesson, students listen to music clips to determine the kind of music each clip is then they participate in a class discussion about the music and prepare a presentation.
Curated OER
Look, Listen and Learn
Students brainstorm what they know about the performing arts and research an artist or song and its related genre. Students work in groups to create an online banner to attract peers to their performing arts genre.
Curated OER
Teaching Intonation in a SoundTree Lab with Auralia
Young scholars respond to exercises using ear-training software as they decide whether notes are sharp or flat. They create their own examples using the tuning function on a synthesizer.
Curated OER
The Element of Color
Eighth graders study and analyze the elements of color by creating an personalized color wheel. Emphasis is placed on constructive criticism of student work by others for assessment. Students create short poems for their color wheel...
Curated OER
Bringing Stories to Life
Students perform short stories with sound effects and music they've created. For this stories lesson, create effects of record from a file to complete a presented story.
Curated OER
The Beautiful People of Africa
Young scholars discover the people of Africa by creating a PowerPoint presentation. In this African culture lesson, students utilize the Internet to investigate a specific African tribe and their specific location, culture, and way of...
Curated OER
Oceans: A Sensory Haiku
Students create an ocean haiku. In this haiku lesson, students use their five senses to write a haiku. Students watch videos about the ocean, make a sensory portrait, and create a class haiku.
Curated OER
Jazz and Math: Rhythmic Innovations
High schoolers compare and contrast the rhythms of marches and jazz. They watch an excerpt about Buddy Bolden from the PBS Ken Burns Jazz documentary, compare/contrast march and jazz rhythms, complete a worksheet, and notate and perform...
Curated OER
Mammal's Around the World
Fifth graders, exploring all the ins and outs of using a computer, publish their own mammal papers with the use of word searches, thesaurus and spell checks. While in the computer lab, they research their mammal and country on the...
Curated OER
Going Up and Down
Second graders listen to and compare music to gain understanding of melodic direction in song, discuss types of movement in song, sing song while moving to it, and create movements that show pitches of melody moving upward, downward, or...
Curated OER
Shaker Band
Students shake up some lively music. In this early childhood music and art lesson, students use a variety of materials to make shakers that will acquaint them with different rhythms and enhance their sensory awareness.
Curated OER
Lift Every Voice and Sing
Students analyze sculpture, poetry, and music to gain an understanding of historical events. In this critical thinking skills lesson, students take a closer look at African-American history as they examine "Lift Every Voice and Sing'"...
Curated OER
America, A Home for Every Culture
Students investigate the many cultures that are represented in America. In this American culture activity, students look at the food, languages, music, and traditions that immigrants have contributed to the face of America. They complete...
Curated OER
Strong Verb Image Makers
Students use description language to clarify ideas and create vivid images in an essay focusing of strong verbs. They discuss weak verbs and explore that the better image the words create, the better the reader understands the text.
Curated OER
Teaching Intonation in a SoundTree Lab with Auralia
Students demonstrate intonation and their ability to discriminate between sharp and flat by responding to exercises within Auralia, and by creating their own examples for the class using the Tuning Function on the synthesizer. Requires a...
Curated OER
Mitten Lesson Plan
Students compare The Mitten by Jan Brett to other versions of the same story, then create their own version. In this early childhood lesson plan, students create their own version of The Mitten, then use software to record a podcast. ...
Curated OER
Comparing Cultural Holidays
Third graders explore art that reflects their cultural background. For this writing and research lesson students compare and contrast the Halloween with El Dia de los Muertos. Students study the visual art of these holidays. Then...
Curated OER
Analyzing Two Dances and Making a Dance Map: The Nutcracker
Students discuss dance elements and create a dance map. They choose a dance theme and incorporate movement into their dance maps and choreography. They also experiment with different types of music.
Curated OER
Passing Down Family History Through Oral Tradition: Corridos
Young scholars create and perform Corridos which are oral tradition ballads. For this Passing Down Family History Through Oral Tradition lesson, students interview family members using a predetermined list of questions. In addition,...
Curated OER
Activity Plan Mixed Ages: Do the Animal Dance!
Students create a dance based on animal movements. In this kinesthetic lesson plan, the students will read and imitate animals in a creative way and share their dances with the group. The lesson includes a take-home activity and a math...