John F. Kennedy Center
Harriet Tubman: Secret Messages Through Song
A lesson all about Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad introduces scholars to African American spirituals. By way of reading, speaking, and listening, learners discover, analyze, and decode African American spirituals. They...
Curated OER
History: An African American Cultural Celebration
Students prepare and organize a cultural celebration of African migration and immigration. Working in groups or individually, they research topics and present the information, including dance demonstrations, instrumental or vocal...
Curated OER
Black American Musicans: Precursors of Jazz
Young scholars trace the course of Black music from the 1900's to the beginning of the jazz age. They realize that when education is defined as enlightened training for a place in society and for individual personal development, it was...
Curated OER
Crawford Grill: Opening the Doors of Opportunity
Analyze the role the Crawford Grill played in the history of Jazz music. Budding historians research interviews and video clips to learn about the Crawford Grill in Pennsylvania and black music history. The lesson culminates when...
Curated OER
The History of Rock and Roll: Parts 1, 6, 8, and 10 Roots of Rock & Roll
Students examine the musical influences on the emergence of Rock and Roll.
Curated OER
How Music Motivates
Students form conclusions regarding the motivational effects of music on the mind during the Civil Rights era. In this Civil Rights movement instructional activity, students describe how music motivates, describe the motivational role in...
Curated OER
Ella Fitzgerald: Something to Live For
Students examine the basic characteristics of jazz, and its relationship to African-American culture and history. They listen to examples of jazz, conduct research, and create a 20th century timeline of music and historical events.
Curated OER
“And Still I Rise” Proud Black Women
Students examine the experiences of African American women. In this poetry instructional activity, students use their literary analysis skills to compare the poetry of Maya Angelou to rap music performed by Queen Latifah and Lauryn Hill.
Curated OER
Sources of Generational Music
In this Louisiana music history worksheet, students select two online readings from the "Louisiana Living Traditions" website to read. Upon completion of the readings, students explore what they learned in the articles and from personal...
Curated OER
Gospel Music
In this music worksheet, students read about the origin of gospel music. Students answer ten essay questions related to their reading.
Curated OER
Gospel Music
In this gospel music worksheet, students read a brief introduction to gospel music and respond to 10 short answer questions regarding it.
Curated OER
Harlem Renaissance
Students investigate the African American culture in the 1920's and the Harlem Renaissance. They read and analyze poems written by poets of the Harlem Renaissance, listen to jazz music and identify the characteristics of the music, and...
Curated OER
Langston Hughes and the Blues
Learners explore the connections between Langson Hughes and blues music. In this African American culture instructional activity, students compare and contrast blues music with poetry and short stories by Langston Hughes.
Curated OER
VH1 100 Greatest Women of Rock & Roll Lesson 3
Students examine female artists who perform in the genres of rhythm & blues, jazz, soul, and hip-hop/rap. They compose lyrics and melody in one of these genres.
Curated OER
Habari Gani: What is the News?
Display creative works of art after learning about Kwanzaa. Kindergartners hear stories about the history of Kwanzaa and its celebrations. They then create artwork, practice African dances and listen to African music.
Curated OER
Buffalo Soldiers
Middle schoolers investigate the role of the buffalo soldiers. In this African American history lesson, students research the African American soldiers of the 19th and 20th centuries. Middle schoolers discuss their findings and compose...
Curated OER
Black History in Music
Learners relate musical styles with US historical context through research and presentation.
Smithsonian Institution
The Vocal Blues: Created in the Deep South of the U.S.
Bring the sounds of the deep South vocal blues to the classroom with a Smithsonian Folkways lesson. In preparation, scholars listen to and count the 12 bar blues patterns in several works and identify the I, II, IV, and V chords as well...
Curated OER
Gargoyles, Black Death, and Scary Music
Students research the Dark Ages using books, the Internet, and other media. In this Dark Ages lesson plan, students study poetry, music, art, and the architecture of the Dark Ages.
Curated OER
History, African Americans, The Blues
This lesson enables teachers to use blues music to explore the history of African Americans in the 20th century. By studying the content of blues songs, students can learn about the experiences and struggles of the working-class...
Annenberg Foundation
Postwar Tension and Triumph
Go get the American Dream lifestyle! The 19th lesson in a 22-part series exploring American history shows learners the post-WWII economic boom. Using primary sources, photographs, and cartoons, groups discuss their findings and present...
Curated OER
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.
Curated OER
Incorporate Black History into Math
February is Black History Month. So why not highlight lessons that connect mathematics to Africans and African Americans?
Curated OER
Using Cross-Genre Comparisons to Find the Message in Hip-Hop
Young scholars analyze two cross -genre songs written in the early 1980s for lyrical content and social commentary. They consider the artistic merit of hip hop music in today's culture.