Ray Charles used the pain and adversity from his life to influence an entire genre of American music. Learn about the musician's daily life, struggles and success, and powerful musical style with a thorough resource.

Students examine artwork by Thomas Hart Benton. In this interdisciplinary instructional activity, students analyze the painting The Sources of Country Music, listen to folk music, and examine how recording technology and the movies...

Take note. Soul music. Gospel music. Country music. Summer comes alive with the sounds of music as program participants learn about various genres of music, create instruments, and write and perform songs about the facts and traditions...

Jazz, Blue Grass, Hip Hop, Swing. Gospel, R&B, Ragtime, Disco. So many music genres born in the USA. After reading an article about the fate of New Orlean's Jazz after Hurricane Katrina, class members investigate the life cycles of...

Trey from Phish and Dave from the Dave Mathews Band took a trip to Africa to explore music, culture, and history. Your class watches this episode from VH1's Music Studio to understand how African culture and music have influenced modern...

An ambitious geography lesson is geared toward kindergartners. They discover what the differences are between states and countries. They look at maps of Arkansas, and learn what the shapes and lines mean. Additionally, they create a...

Two lessons focus on making a beat. Using popular African American music of its time, scholars listen and analyze the rhythm then recreate it with hands drums, and cups. 

Do a grapevine to the left, lift your hands in the air, and sing out, "Hey!" These are the steps second graders will do when they sing and dance the Israeli folk song, "Achshav.”  They will explore the concept of multicultural music...

Native American music is fun to listen to and great to play. Third graders get multiculturally inspired as they discuss musical sounds from around the globe, then play a few traditional Native American instruments. 

Music around the globe may sound different, but it always tends to function partly as a mode of communicating religion, rights of passage, and oral tradition. Delve into the world of Russian music. Folk, peasant, Cossack, and...

Support the growth of your emergent readers with this printable version of the classic fable "The City Mouse and the Country Mouse." Including supporting illustrations and simple dialogue, this story is perfect for developing the...

Music has often been called the international language that transcends cultures and regions. Scholars analyze the impact of Latin American music on New York City culture in the years following World War II. They research music, video,...

Students describe some of the characteristics of country and blues music. They see how country music rose to a nationally known music style. They write a two-paragraph essay on what they think country music be like in the next 100 years.

Learners describe some of the distinguishing characteristics of rock, folk, blues, and country music. They identify two main musical roots of today's American popular music.

"And it's one, two, three...what are we fighting for?" Use music to assess the climate of protest during the Vietnam War, listening to and analyzing Country Joe MacDonald's "I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-To-Die Rag" (lyrics included)....

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.

Bring some music to your language arts lesson with a reading comprehension activity. Learners read an informational passage about different musical instruments before answering a series of comprehension and vocabulary questions.

In this music worksheet, students read short excerpts about the instruments that accompany folk music songs. They write 5-10 paragraphs about the use of the banjo and mandolin in folk music and about their differences. They read...

How much of your daily life is influenced by Latin American music? Take a listen—the answer may surprise you! High schoolers keep a journal to note any instances they see Latino culture represented, including the media, their school, and...

Students explore the music from Burundi, Zimbabwe, and Pygmy cultures. They listen to and discuss music from the African cultures, analyze the musical elements, write a song, and perform music.

In this music instructional activity, students read about the origins of folk music by following a flow chart. They answer 10 short answer question and participate in an extension task that entails writing an article that discusses folk...

Students are able to demonstrate the ability to identify, contrast and compare the music of different places and regions, and the ability to recognize music as a resource for information about places and regions.

Students investigate the geography of Africa.  In this African culture instructional activity, students research the lifestyles of African residents and create a PowerPoint presentation based on a single African country....

Students watch a video that highlights the role of artists' images throughout the history of Black music in the United States and describe the influences of the civil rights movement on Black culture.