Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Blues Improvisation

For Teachers 6th - 11th
Learners practice playing and improvising while playing the 12 bar blues. They practice compositional skills, evaluate and perform musical pieces focused on the blues.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

I See The Rhythm : The Study of Blues and Jazz

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students gain an appreciation for various types of music. Using the music of the past, they compare it with the music of today. In groups, they research periods in which blues and jazz were most popular and write their own piece of music...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Rainbow Joe and Me

For Teachers K - 3rd
Students complete pre reading, writing, during reading, and interdisciplinary activities for the book Rainbow Joe and Me. In this reading lesson plan, students complete journal entries, answer short answer questions, have discussions,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Romare Bearden

For Teachers K - 12th
Students examine and discuss a collage by the artist Romare Bearden. They analyze the impact of jazz on art, listen to jazz, and create an original collage.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Modern Dance and the Harlem Renaissance

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers create an artistic rendering based on what they have learned from the film and the lesson.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs American Masters: Scientific American: Following Muddy's Trail

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This site has a lesson plan on Muddy Waters focused on the American Masters documentary about him. Parallels the Great Migration with the growth of the blues music movement in America. Click on Muddy's name to access a detailed biography...
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs: American Roots Music: Lesson Three: Gospel Music Meets a Wide Audience

For Teachers 9th - 10th
The third lesson plan deals with the emergence of gospel as a form of popular music among a general public. Gospel is a musical genre with roots in the African American church, particularly in the South. Between the 1940s and the 1960s,...
Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of American History: Smithsonian Jazz: Duke Ellington

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
This site provides audio clips, photos, and biographical information of this legendary composer and performer. A match game teaches and tests your knowledge of Ellington.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs: The Blues Classroom

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Access the educational resources developed by a Seattle-based museum to supplement the PBS documentary series "The Blues." Includes background essays on the blues; biographies, video clips, and sound clips from the series; a blues...
Lesson Plan
ReadWriteThink

Read Write Think: A Harlem Renaissance Retrospective

For Teachers 9th - 10th
In this lesson, students work in collaborative groups to conduct Internet research and create a museum exhibit that highlights the work of selected artists, musicians, and poets of the Harlem Renaissance.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs: Crossroads Blues

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Your student will discover more about the life and work of Robert Johnson with this informative lesson plan. This resource features lesson plans, web resources, and more.