St. Joseph Community Consolidated School District #169
Nutcracker
'Tis the holiday season and the Clara, the Sugar Plum Fairy, and the Nutcracker Prince come alive with a teaching and study guide for Tchaikovsky's famous ballet. Background information, activities, games and puzzles are all included in...
National Park Service
Nutcracker Fantasy
The Clark's nutcracker bird hides seeds in 25,000 different sites every year to save for winter. Lesson demonstrates how difficult it would be to find these seeds months later when they need them for food. In the first of five lesson,...
Curated OER
Tchaikovsky and the Nutcracker
Students study Peter Tchaikovsky, the author of the Nutcracker Suite. They listen to the associated music and view images of the author. They write a journal entry about their favorite part of the Nutcracker Suite.
Curated OER
"The Nutcracker" From the Royal Ballet
Students explore "The Nutcracker" ballet. They conduct Internet research, watch "The Nutcracker" performed by the Royal Ballet, tell the story to a younger child, and write a letter to the person who first reviewed "The Nutcracker" in 1892.
BBC
The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky
Over the course of six lessons, scholars try their hand at composing and dancing after a thorough examination of the famous ballet, The Nutcracker, by Tchaikovsky. Participants watch and discuss the performance of two dances, create and...
Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre
The Nutcracker Teacher Resource Guide
Clara becomes Marie, The Mouse King becomes a rat, and the Shadyside section of Pittsburgh becomes the setting for a modern interpretation of Tchaikovsky's famous ballet. Intended as a resource guide for a 2012 performance, the...
Curated OER
The Nutcracker
First graders define a ballet as a story told through dance. They listen to melodies and demonstrate beat and accent through body movement. They watch the ballet.
Curated OER
Exploring Force: The Nutcracker
Students explore basic dance element of force, compare and contrast the use of force as it distinguishes the expressive qualities of a given dance, and explore the use of force in several of its many expressions.
Curated OER
Sharp and Smooth Movements: The Nutcracker
Students explore sharp and smooth movements. In two groups, students perform dances using sharp and smooth movements. They are asked to discuss the differences between the movements and how they felt when you watched or performed.
Curated OER
"Nutcracker"
Students recognize the timbre of a celesta by listening to music that contains the celesta. They listen to music from Tchaikovsky's "Danse de la Fee-Dragee" (Dance of the Sugar-Plum Fairies), track #14 and describe how the music...
Curated OER
The Dancing Flute
Young scholars use a cardboard tubes as props as they create their own dance steps to express the emotions invoked in a portion of The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky.
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
Christmas Celebrations
Second graders view a video of the Nutcracker ballet and then compare and contrast holiday celebrations in Germany and the United States. They use the computer to write a paragraph exploring their observations.
Curated OER
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...
Curated OER
Retell A Story Through Dance
Students tell stories through dance. In this ballet lesson, students learn pantomime dance skills and examine "The Nutcracker" ballet performances as they examine ballet as storytelling.
Curated OER
Duke Ellington and His Orchestra, Dance of the Floreadores, Waltz of the Flowers in the Meter of Duke
Students contrast the meter and style of two different versions of the musical piece, "Waltz of the Flowers." Duke Ellington's meter in the "Dance of the Floreadores" is compared to Tchaikovsky's version in the "Nutcracker."
Curated OER
Simple Machines
First graders study and describe simple machines such as the hammer, screwdriver, nutcracker, bottle opener and scissors and select the appropriate tool for a particular type of work.
Curated OER
Simple Machines in the Home
Students explore simple machines used in the home. In this simple machines lesson, students discover that many household items are constructed from simple machines. Students interact with nutcrackers, peelers, egg slicers, and egg beaters.
Smithsonian Institution
Our Story: Duke Ellington and Jazz
Get parents or guardians into the swing of things with a jazzy homework assignment. A detailed six-page guide provides before, during, and after reading suggestions for Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra, Andrea Davis...
Curated OER
Tools: Science Stations
Students explore technology by completing engineering activities in class. In this simple tools lesson, students utilize three science stations to perform tasks using a nutcracker, bottle openers, hammers and other tools. Students review...
Curated OER
Hot, Hot, Hot, Cold
Learners dance the image of falling snow. They move, swing, fall, and rise to music working to depict snow falling, the sun, and high/low movements. This is a well-thought out lesson that aids them in seeing movement as a form of...
Curated OER
Symphonic Poetry
Young scholars interpret the themes in Tchaikovsky's Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture, create a 6-line poem based on the themes in the Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture, and define musical terms related to the study of programmatic...
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
Color Moods
Can art be a mode of communication? You bet it can! Learners explore how colors are used to convey mood in art. First, the class listens to three very unique musical selections that convey three different moods. Then, they compare and...
United K12
Jan Brett Author Study
Expose young children to the wonderful works of author and illustrator Jan Brett using a few of her stories such as Armadillo Rodeo, The Mitten, or Daisy Comes Home through a unit study.