Curated OER
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...
Curated OER
Drafting a Recording Contract
Students study the issues involved in a recording artist's contract looking at the contract from both the artist's and record company's point of view. They write a contract based on what they discover.
Curated OER
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.
Curated OER
Native American
In this music worksheet, students identify and describe the Native Americans. They respond to several questions about the music of the Native Americans and their dancing. Students also identify and name various musical signs and symbols...
Curated OER
Bill Robinson: Mr. Bojangles
Mr. Bojangles was born just after slavery was abolished and became one of the most beloved entertainers of his time. Explore key vocabulary, the life of an African-American entertainer, and the impact of the Harlem Renaissance on...
Curated OER
Observational Drawing
Young scholars create drawings using oil pastels that convey cultural, social and historical meaning. Drawings are evaluated on use of color planning, contour drawing, color blending, line and pattern.
Curated OER
Renaissance Art: Flash Cards
Flash cards are a great way to study new concepts, especially those with specific dates and names. Hand out this stack of ten cards to your class and give them a chance to study Renaissance art. Van Dyke, Ruben, Dante, Durer, Velasquez,...
Curated OER
I Am Special and You Are Special Too #3
Students explore the meaning of unique and special. They study about why a birthday is significant. They investigate how families celebrate birthdays in different ways and they reflect on why growing up is a good thing.
Smithsonian Institution
The Sounds of an Island: Jamaican Music for the Classroom
Introduce young explorers to the music and history of Jamaican culture through game songs and dances. As a bonus, class members get to play simple songs transcribed for the recorder.
Annenberg Foundation
Native Voices
The Navajo people build their dwellings with the doors facing the rising sun in the east to welcome wealth and fortune. Pupils learn about the traditions of the Navajo people in the first part of a 16-part unit. They explore American...
American Museum of Natural History
Make Your Own Mythic Mask or Puppet
No need to wait until Halloween to create a mask. Young anthropologists get involved in the centuries-old tradition of mask and puppet making with the help of an engaging resource that shows them how to craft their own masks or puppets.
ESL Library
Beginner Level Thanksgiving ESL Lesson Plan
Thanksgiving is a cherished tradition in the United States and Canada. Introduce the beginnings of the Thanksgiving celebration with a resource that features reading comprehension activities, vocabulary exercises, and a short writing...
Curated OER
Interpreting Mythology Through Dance
Students use abstract movement to tell the story of Re's journey. In this ancient Egypt lesson, students choreograph locomotor and non-locomotor movements to describe ancient Egyptian journeys to the afterlife as described in Egyptian...
Curated OER
Dancing With Leprechauns Coloring Page
Young artists color in the picture of the little girl and the leprechaun for the holiday of St. Patrick's Day. This would be a handy instructional activity to have as the holiday approaches
Curated OER
Walk Like an Egyptian
The singing group The Bangles produced a music video for their song, "Walk Like an Egyptian" in 1985. Students watch the video, then work in groups in order to come up with the choreography for their own "Egyptian Dance." A fun lesson is...
Curated OER
Japanese Tea and Teacups
Upper graders use the potter's wheel to make Japanese style tea cups, which they will use in a Japanese style tea ceremony. They hone their sculpting techniques while exploring Japanese cultural and the history of tea. There are two...
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...
Curated OER
Chance Dance Compositions
Fourth graders create dances through a randomly generated process (such as throwing a dice) and perform their dances for the class. Class work is based on Merce Cunningham's "Chance Dance" and includes walking, skipping hopping, and...
Curated OER
Dance Transitions
Students create a small group dance that addresses free-flowing techniques and transitions for in-class performance. This activity meets state arts standards and includes rubric for assessment.
Curated OER
Masks
Young scholars create weather masks. In this social studies lesson, students discover the history behind the weather masks used by Native American cultures and then create their own.
Curated OER
Go Fly a Kite!
Students study kites. In this social studies activity, students discover the history of kites and what kites are made of. Students create their own kites to fly.
Curated OER
Medieval Word Search
In this social studies word search, students find the words that are associated with the medieval age and the answers are found at the bottom of the page,
Curated OER
India Word Search
In this social studies word search, students find the words that are related to the geography of India and the answers are found at the bottom of the page.
Smithsonian Institution
Braiding Rhythms: The Role of Bell Patterns in West African and Afro-Caribbean Music
Africans transported to the Caribbean as part of the transatlantic slave trade brought with them a rich tradition of music and dance. Four lessons teach young musicians the rumba clave rhythm, cascara rhythm, and the 6/8 bell patterns...