Unit Plan
John F. Kennedy Center

The Kennedy Center: The Poetics of Hip Hop

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
Students will analyze form in Shakespearean sonnets and hip-hop music. Concepts viewed in-depth include rhythm, form, diction, and sound. [Requires QuickTime 7].
Handout
Black Past

Black Past: Rap/hip Hop

For Students 9th - 10th
This encyclopedia entry gives a brief history of rap and hip hop and the influences of the music on modern culture.
Website
Other

Davey D's Hip Hop Corner: What Is Hip Hop?

For Students 9th - 10th
This site from Davey D's Hip Hop Corner contains a brief explanation of hip hop.
Handout
Black Past

Black Past: Queen Latifah

For Students 9th - 10th
This encyclopedia entry extols Queen Latifah as the most influential female rap singer. You can read about her evolution as a rap singer and actress.
Handout
Encyclopedia Britannica

Encyclopedia Britannica: Run d.m.c.

For Students 9th - 10th
Biographical details on Run-D.M.C., the American rap group that brought hip-hop into the musical and cultural mainstream, introducing what became known as "new-school" rap.
Handout
Encyclopedia Britannica

Encyclopedia Britannica: Will Smith

For Students 9th - 10th
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Will Smith, an American actor and musician whose charisma, clean-cut good looks, and quick wit helped him transition from rap music to a successful career in acting.
Handout
Encyclopedia Britannica

Encyclopedia Britannica: Out Kast

For Students 9th - 10th
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features OutKast, an American rap duo, formed in 1992, that put Atlanta, Ga., on the hip-hop map in the 1990s and redefined the G-Funk (a variation of gangsta rap) and Dirty South (often profane...
Handout
Encyclopedia Britannica

Encyclopedia Britannica: Prince

For Students 9th - 10th
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Prince, a singer, guitarist, songwriter, producer, dancer, and performer on keyboards, drums, and bass who was among the most talented American musicians of his generation. Like Stevie...
Handout
Encyclopedia Britannica

Encyclopedia Britannica: Missy Elliott

For Students 9th - 10th
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Missy Elliott, an American rapper and music producer who made a mark on the male-dominated hip-hop world with her talents for writing, rapping, singing, and music production.
Handout
Encyclopedia Britannica

Encyclopedia Britannica: De La Soul

For Students 9th - 10th
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features De La Soul, an American rap group whose debut album, 3 Feet High and Rising (1989), was one of the most influential albums in hip-hop history.
Handout
Encyclopedia Britannica

Encyclopedia Britannica: Ludacris

For Students 9th - 10th
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Ludacris, an American rapper who exemplified the Dirty South school of hip-hop, an exuberant, profanity-laden musical style popularized by artists in the southern United States. Ludacris's...

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