Elementary schoolers are given an overview of the baroque, classical, romantic, and modern periods of music. They focus on the lives of Beethoven and Mozart; two of the greatest composers of all time. After listening to samples their...

One of the Common Core standards requires learners to make connections between literature or media of the past and the present. Provided here, are key elements found in medieval poetry and literature that are connected to several more...

Experience Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin in an innovative, musical way. A list of audio links leads class members to spirituals from the novel, such as "Die in the Field," "The Wings in the Morning," and "Blow Ye the...

A video leads off this activity on fables, introducing the class to this important form of traditional storytelling. The group defines fable and hears an explanation of the origin of this type of folk tale. They summarize the story they...

Way before the digital age radio was the medium of popular culture. After listening to excerpts from radio programs (easily available on the Internet), participants return to the radio age by creating a two-minute sketch based on a...

Compare new and old versions of the classic story Alice in Wonderland in this comprehensive instructional activity packet. Learners read an excerpt from the original, answering several analysis questions. They do the same for a...

Not only is Wassily Kandinsky fun to say, his art contains tons of angles. Learners discuss Kandinsky's music-inspired abstract art and four types of angles. They search one of his paintings for obtuse, right, straight, and acute angles,...

An ancient puzzle game meets a modern implementation. Challenge mathematicians of all ages with this mind-bending geometric puzzle game. 

Christmas trees can be as large and elaborate as the tree in Rockefeller Center, or as small and understated as Charlie Brown's tree in A Charlie Brown Christmas. But where did the tradition of Christmas trees come from? An engaging...

Cell phones are likely made of gold—at least part of them! An interesting lesson explains the conventional and not-so-conventional uses of the popular element gold. From the Inca empire to modern-day technology, learners discover gold...

Young scholars define the term "exoticism" and identify musical elements used by 19th and 20th century composers and modern pop icons to convey exoticism.

Middle schoolers study the life of Quincy Jones and research black music for selected decades of the 20th Century. They discuss the qualities that help one create and sustain a successful career. They design a timeline of what their...

Third graders identify and perform the five main dance movements of the "Chicken Dance" to accordion music.

Students examine the influence of music and film on contemporary fashion. For this popular culture lesson, students research select films featuring John Travolta. Students research selected time periods in American history as well....

Students examine the life and contributions of choreographer and director Bob Fosse. They analyze reviews, write a review after watching one of Bob Fosse's films, and view and compare Fosse dances to current music videos.

Pupils study the work of Rodgers and Hammerstein in an historical context of the development of American musical theatre as an art form. Students explore "roots" of the genre as it evolves in last half of the 19th and first two decades...

Students identify and describe the various roles that musicians fulfill. They recognize various genres of music. They identify and interview musicians in the community and invite them to come in and talk about their roles as musicians.

Students read, analyze and critique a newspaper article about ancient musical tunes that have been found in a church in Scotland. They assess key vocabulary terms found within the article and compose lyrics for a song after answering a...

Students prepare a presentation examining anti-establishment activity by groups in society today. They prepare a presentation, on poster board or presentation software, about one contemporary protest group.

In this music history instructional activity, students discover the musical "West Side Story" by first reading a summary of the plot. Kids answer 5 questions about the story line. Students then read and analyze the lyrics to "America"...

Pupils create a graffiti wall using their own name or personal symbol. They examine their own understanding of the film as a source of inspiration and listen to the music from the soundtrack as an effective motivation. They make...

Who is Isadore Duncan? If you're a teacher of dance, you might be interested in this informative presentation. Biographical, philosophical, and personal information on the life and contributions of this famed dancer are given in an easy...

The 41 slides in a professional development seminar model how to use close reading techniques to examine the many layers of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. In addition to passages from the novel, slides provide biographical...