Illinois Music Education Conference
Taking the “General” Out of Middle School General Music!
Middle schoolers will sing the praises of this music program. The resource, designed as an overview for music instructors, is loaded with ideas, activities, and links. Not a sour note in the packet.
Curated OER
Singing the Blues with Garageband
Music composition can be easy with a little software assistance. The class uses Garageband to listen to, write, sing, and record a blues song. They listen to the song provided through the software, write their own lyrics to the song,...
Curated OER
Using Garage Band to Enhance 2nd Grade Composition
Your second graders can become composers with a little help from the Garage Band software. You pre-select several drum, piano, and guitar loops for the groups to choose from, then they put them together following an ABA looping pattern....
Curated OER
Audio Aesop: Listen to the Lesson!
Aesop's Fables are the focus of this language arts lesson. Young philosophers study and discuss the morals found in the most famous of Aesop's Fables. They write an original fable that teaches a common moral. A "Fable Listening Library"...
Curated OER
Signin' the Blues with Rock, Rap 'n Roll
Sixth graders listen to recordings and study jazz and the blues music. They identify the instrumentation and explore the 12-bar blues progression. After experimenting with different sound, 6th graders create their own arrangement, with...
Curated OER
Satchmo's Blues
Young scholars work cooperatively to create a jazz composition using the computer program GarageBand and incorporating the musical stylings of musician Louis Armstrong. Internet access is required for this lesson plan.
Curated OER
Creating a Song
Students work cooperatively to compose a twenty measure song using the computer program GarageBand. Guidelines for the student compositions are available and include instrumentation and specific length.
Curated OER
Strega Nona Lesson Plan
Students explore story characters as well as cause and effect. In this Strega Nona lesson plan, students read a wide range of print and non-print texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United...
Curated OER
Alphabet Adventure Lesson Plan
Students explore the alphabet. In this Alphabet Adventure lesson plan, students work with their prior knowledge of the alphabet to discuss different print and non-print sources.
Curated OER
Springfield Digital Storytelling Project #6: Grapes Commercial
Here is a fabulous lesson that should have your class very excited! They utilize the GRAPES formula in order to produce a commercial like ones we see on TV. Working in pairs, they must come up with a script, take video, provide music,...
Curated OER
Composing To A Video Clip
Students assess pre-recorded music and sound effects to create an accompaniment to a video clip to express the mood and actions occurring in the video. They incorporate with today's lesson the program GarageBand to assist them with their...
Curated OER
iPod Audio Tours
Students cooperate in small groups to create an audio tour of a zoo exhibit during a field trip. They record personal reactions, zoo sounds and information learned about the exhibit. They then edit the audio recording and add music to...
Curated OER
Web Puts Undiscovered Musicians, Listeners In Tune
Learners read an article from USA Today about technology and the music business. In this news article lesson, students read an article about failed musicians and their new roles in music and technology. Learners discuss the article and...
Curated OER
Now, Unto Thy Bones, Goodnight.
Young scholars read Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing to learn about epitaphs. In this Shakespeare lesson, students read sections from the play and piece together Shakespeare's epitaph using index cards. Young scholars create a 4 line...
Curated OER
Learning Math with Music
Young scholars work in groups to create their own rhymes and songs for an entire family of math facts. They record their math facts creations using an iPod and a voice recorder for future use.
Curated OER
Digable Planets, K.B.'s Alley When Jazz Meets Hip-Hop
Students explore the musical style of jazz and identify its elements while listening to hip-hop recordings. They select two styles of music and fuse them together in this lesson.
Curated OER
Author! Author!
Beverly Cleary is the fabulous author focused on, in this author study. Students conduct Internet Research in order to find out as much as they can about Ms. Cleary. They then use their findings and the Garageband program to create a...
Curated OER
Poetry Pals
Students create the components for a slideshow featuring their own poetry, illustrations, and music. This activity uses auditory, visual and kinesthetic (signing and clapping) learning styles.
Curated OER
Enhancing Literacy with Podcasting
Students write stories, print hard copies, and use the GarageBand program to add music and record the narrations. A handout to download, of instructions is included in this early-elementary lesson.
Curated OER
Illumination of a Text
Students create a movie using pictures and words to illustrate the content of a sonnet. In this illumination of a text instructional activity, students choose six to twelve words in the sonnet that are vitally important. Students record...
Curated OER
Picturing Shakespeare: Creating Illuminated Texts
Students experiment with illuminating important text. For this fictional literature lesson, students research Shakespearean sonnets. Students identify key elements of the sonnets, and examine the relationship between illuminated text...