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International Jazz Day
In this International Jazz Day worksheet, learners complete activities such as reading a passage, phrase matching, fill in the blanks, correct words, multiple choice, spelling, sequencing, scrambled sentences, writing questions, survey,...
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Duking It Out
Students read and discuss 'Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra: Mixing Treasures by Duke Ellington and Edvard Grieg,' exploring how jazz transformed European music and the influence jazz has had on modern music. They write musical reviews.
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Music To My Ears: The District of Columbia Quarter
Students practice identifying different genres of music by creating posters. In this music appreciation lesson, students research Duke Ellington and complete worksheets based on his style of music, Jazz. Students collaborate in small...
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Ray Charles
Learners read the book Ray Charles by Sharon Bell Mathis. For this biography instructional activity, students read about the life of Ray Charles. Learners answer pre-reading questions about senses, strengths, and weaknesses they have....
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Jazz: An Expression of Cooperation - Lesson 3
Students describe ways in which the principles of students or citizens working together are interrelated with those of musicians working together. They demonstrate their knowledge of the concept of "swing" in various jazz styles.
National First Ladies' Library
Ragtime: The First "American" Music?
Learners investigate the concept of ragtime music and the times associated with it in American history. They conduct research using a variety of resources and listen to a sample before writing down some of the results of the information...
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Say It Loud!: A Celebration Of Black Music In America - Lesson 1
High schoolers identify many careers within the music industry such as producer, A&R representative and recording studio engineer. They connect achievements of noted artists with their roles in the music industry.
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Say It Loud!: A Celebration Of Black Music In America - Gospel Beginnings
Students identify musical characteristics of gospel and sing a gospel selection. They practice the call and response technique. After going through individual parts, they sing the entire song with piano accompaniment.
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Careers in Music - Notetaking Worksheet
In this musical landscape worksheet, students follow the directions to answer 10 short answer questions after attending a musical performance, watching one on video, or listening to one on the radio.
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Lady Sings the Blues
Students explore women and music in the 20th century. In this music lesson, students study the relationship between literature and music through The Color Purple and music by Ethel Waters, MA Rainey, Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, Ella...
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Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story - The Birth of Soul
Young scholars analyze various kinds of music. In this music lesson plan, students listen to music clips to determine the kind of music each clip is then they participate in a class discussion about the music and prepare a presentation.
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Mariachi Mania
Ninth graders examine mariachi music and its different musical forms. In this music history lesson, 9th graders compare and contrast mariachi music from its beginnings to the present. Students research different aspects of the history...
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Epic Improvisation
Really? Rapping The Odyssey? Really. A discussion of the oral tradition of story telling and its links to Epic poetry sets the stage for a series of activities that encourage improvisation to integrate music into other classrooms....
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African American Music
Students investigate a variety of sites to gather relevant information for a
presentation about African American musical forms in this general Music lesson for middle school and high school. Resource links are provided to aid instruction.
San Francisco Symphony
Learning Adjectives through the Duke
Duke Ellington, jazz, and jive kick-off a fun and creative lesson on responding emotionally to music. The class will learn about jive talk used in the 1920s and the life and music of Duke Ellington. They'll listen to a selection of his...
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The Great Migration
Students explore how migration to Harlem created a new life for African Americans. In this cross curricular lesson, students illustrate maps showing the migration, paint murals representing African American life in the South and create a...
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Jews and Blues
Students examine how American Jews affect music and entertainment. They identify problems between immigrants and their children. They relate the Jewish American issue to those of African Americans.
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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.
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Ella Fitzgerald
Pupils examine the life and music of Ella Fitzgerald. They participate in a matching game, explore an Internet website, and write in response to Ella Fitzgerald's music.
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Jazz: An Expression of Democracy
Pupils watch a video segment about the distinguishing characteristics of jazz. They describe those characteristics and the relation between the culture of jazz and democracy. They improvise simple rhythms and melodies.
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Women in Jazz
Students watch a video: "VH1 Millennium Jazz Festival From The White House" to become familiar with prominent women in jazz. They discuss the vocally oriented nature of jazz and the contributions made by women on and off stage.
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Hearing the Poetry of Langston Hughes Through the Sounds of Jazz
Students have an appreciation of Langston Hughe's poetry and his use of jazz rhythms, have the ability to read poetry closely, and freewrite to gain a fresh perspective on music and literature.
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Blue Jazz Scale
Young scholars engage in a study of music that includes the Blue Jazz scale. They listen to pieces of music in the targeted style while becoming familiar with the scale. Students then describe how the scale is built and demonstrate by...
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Smithsonian Jazz Class: Benny Carter
Students play "Benny's Match Game" to learn about the life and career of Benny Carter. Students listen to samples of Benny Carter's music and create written responses that evaluate his music.