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Website
Washington State University

Washington State University: Ask Dr. Universe: Why Do Musicians Use Both Sides of Their Brains?

For Students K - 1st
Website using a question-answer format in which Dr. Universe attempts to answer a curious question a student has about why musicians use both sides of their brains.
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Handout
New Advent

Catholic Encyclopedia: Alessandro Scarlatti (1660 1725)

For Students 9th - 10th
Catholic Encyclopedia biography on Alessandro Scarlatti, the Baroque musician. Please note that "The Catholic Encyclopedia" is a historic reference source and should be viewed in the context of resource material dated 1912.
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Website
Smithsonian Institution

National Portrait Gallery: Black List Project: Charley Pride

For Students 9th - 10th
A biography of famed country music singer Charley Pride, one of few African Americans in the industry to both perform at and be inducted to the Grand Ole Opry.
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Handout
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Comission

Explore Pa History: Billy Eckstine

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn of the historical contributions of jazz musician, band leader, and Pennsylvania native, Billy Eckstine in this succinct biography.
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Website
Other

Virtual Medieval Church: Troubadours and Courtly Love

For Students 9th - 10th
Troubadours were medieval traveling poet-musicians who primarily wrote on courtly love. Many of these poets focused on sexual love, such as Moniot d'Arras, while others wrote of a religious love. Understand the purpose of these writing...
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Website
Curated OER

National Park Service: New Orleans Jazz Nat'l Historical Park: Louis Armstrong

For Students 9th - 10th
A major figure in jazz, Louis Armstrong is considered the father of jazz. Learn about his early days in New Orleans and how he developed into one of the greatest jazz musicians of all time.
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Handout
Dallas Symphony Orchestra

Dallas Symphony Orchestra Kids: Paul Dukas

For Students 3rd - 8th
What did composer Paul Dukas (1865-1935 CE) have to do with Disney movies? Find out by reading more about his work and life at this site. Listen to some of his most famous music using Real Audio or Windows Media Player.
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Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs: Jazz Music and the Crisis Over School Desegregation

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Working in cooperative groups, your students will learn how jazz musicians expressed the Civil Rights era in their music. This lesson focuses on the Civil Rights movement in Little Rock, Arkansas. Also, they will learn to about the...
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Activity
Science Buddies

Science Buddies: How to Make a Guitar Sing

For Students 9th - 10th
This is a great project for musicians interested in the physics of stringed instruments. If you have ever played an acoustic guitar, you may have noticed that picking a single string can make one or more of the other (unpicked) strings...
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Article
PBS

Pbs: Black and Blue: Jazz in Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Ralph Ellison was a musician who later became a writer. His book Invisible Man is written like a jazz composition. In this lesson, students will interpret key themes and concepts in Invisible Man that are also found in jazz music.
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Lesson Plan
John F. Kennedy Center

The Kennedy Center: Musical Harlem

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
The Kennedy Center's ArtsEdge offers a great unit for introducing jazz to students. Its use of Harlem as the "glue" which binds together elements such as jazz history and jazz terminology, makes it particularly effective for the...
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Handout
Classical Net

Classical Net: Jan Dismas Zelenka

For Students 9th - 10th
Excellent site with a wealth of info on who influenced Zelenka as well as who Zelenka influenced. Very comprehensive.
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Handout
National Women’s History Museum

National Women's History Museum: Gertrude "Ma" Rainey

For Students 9th - 10th
Often called the "Mother of the Blues," Ma Rainey was known for her deep-throated voice and mesmerizing stage presence that drew packed audiences and sold hit records in the early twentieth century.
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Website
PBS

Pbs: American Experience: The Works Progress Administration (Wpa)

For Students 9th - 10th
A great summary of the Works Progress Administration, its goals, and the support it gave ordinary workers as well as artists, writers, and musicians.
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Unit Plan
Vocabulary.com

Merle Haggard (1937 2016) Tribute List

For Students 9th - 10th
This site contains a list of 12 words from the songs of country musician, Merle Haggard (1937-2016). Teachers can digitally assign this list to their students to reinforce the spellings, pronunciations, and meanings of these words.
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Article
Other

Making Music: Yo Yo Ma

For Students 9th - 10th
This biography of cellist Yo-Yo Ma includes information on his albums and links to related topics. At the bottom of the webpage, there is a list of facts about the famous musician.
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Primary
Blackdog Media

Classic Reader: "Bank Holiday" by Katherine Mansfield

For Students 9th - 10th
This is the full text of the short story "Bank Holiday" by Katherine Mansfield. The streets are bustling with people-musicians, children, psychics, and salesmen-because a bank holiday means that everyone is out of the house, enjoying the...
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Handout
Other

Michael Snow Biography

For Students 9th - 10th
Featured is Michael Snow's own autobiography. A Toronto born painter and sculptor, he is also an award winning musician, filmmaker, and photographer.
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Article
Other

Article: Learning Tunes Efficiently: Part One: Song Form

For Students 9th - 10th
This article deals with skills needed by musicians, that is, being able to learn tunes efficiently by using the form of the song.
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Lesson Plan
Alabama Learning Exchange

Alex: Poetry and Music Fun With Chris Daughtry

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This language arts lesson grabs students' attention by incorporating a popular musician. The lyrics to "Over You" include vivid language that makes identifying figures of speech intriguing. The students will identify similes, metaphors,...
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Website
PBS

Pbs: American Masters: Cole Porter

For Students 9th - 10th
Cole Porter is discussed in this brief biography. It touches on the highlights of his life and career.
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Handout
Wesleyan University

Wesleyan University: Music in the Afghan North, Women's Music

For Students 9th - 10th
From Wesleyan University this is an investigation into the music by women in the Afghan North.
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Handout
Songwriters Hall of Fame

Songwriters Hall of Fame: w.c. Handy

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource provides information about W.C. Handy.
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Website
Other

Canadian Content: Famous Canadian Actors

For Students 9th - 10th
Presents a list of famous actors and actress from Canada. By clicking on each name, you can gather some brief biographical information. Some well known names include Alex Trebek, Art Linkletter, Dan Akroyd, Jim Carrey, and Michael J. Fox.

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