Curated OER
A Stomping Good Time: Using Found Instruments and Invented Rhythms to Make Beautiful Music
Students work in small groups to use everyday objects to create performances inspired by the work of STOMP. They create a system of notation to document the music and movement of a 2-minute performance.
Curated OER
Rhythmic Movement
Explore how waves move in the ocean with your young learners. Fill a two-liter bottle half full with colored water, and have the youngsters move the bottle to make waves inside of it. Then have them listen to the song "Wipe Out"....
Curated OER
Jazz Music and the Crisis Over School Desegregation
High schoolers will learn to appreciate the civil rights movement with a focus on Little Rock, Arkansas. They will also acknowledge Louis Armstrong's unparalleled contributions to American music.
Curated OER
Lesson: Paul Chan: "Score for the 7th Light"
Music, art, and poetry coalesce in a single exhibition, and in a single lesson. Critical thinkers analyze the Fluxus art movement as it's seen in the work of Paul Chan's 7 Lights. They consider the use of poetry and music in his work,...
Curated OER
Same and Different Through Music and Art
This instructional activity is intended for a music class but would be a great way to teach compare and contrast to any class. Kindergarteners dance the Hokey Pokey to four different styles of music and examine two paintings of Humpty...
Curated OER
Lesson: Urs Fischer: Reviving the Past Art Movements
Seven major abstract art movements are analyzed by learners in groups. Each group analyzes various works by determining which work belongs to which movement. They then read Flatland, engage in an art and literary analysis discussion,...
Jolly Learning Ltd
Jolly Music Posters
Perfect for music class or a dance lesson, these Jolly Music posters are charming for young learners of any age. They each feature a children's song with applicable illustrations and motion, prompting your young musicians to move to the...
Curated OER
Teaching Fundamental Movement
Students perform fundamental movement activities for flexibility and motor skills. In this movement lesson plan, students perform physical activity for all grade levels.
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian In Your Classroom: The Music in Poetry
Take poetry off the page and put it into terms of movement, physical space and, finally, music with this series of three lessons from the Smithsonian Institution. This resource introduces students to two poetic forms that originated as...
Curated OER
"Musical Food
Young scholars review the idea of healthy foods and examples of these foods. They play the game "Musical Food" performing a designated locomotor movement around the playing area until the music stops.
Curated OER
"Humor" Afro-American Symphony (Third Movement)
A fun way for young learners to explore music and their personal reaction to it, this worksheet includes a short reading passage about musician William Grant Still, a word scramble, a matching activity and two short writing prompts. Some...
Curated OER
Using Harmonic Vision’s Music Ace Software to Reinforce Basic Music Skills
If you have access to Harmonic Vision’s Music Ace Software, then this lesson could work for you. Kindergarteners use the video music software to place, identify, and read musical notes. They listen in and identify both high and low...
Curated OER
Dance Showing Science Contexts of Movement: States of Matter
Fifth graders dance in different ways to show movement of states of matter. In this matter lesson plan, 5th graders make connected shapes with a partner, make flowing movements, travel rapidly, and more.
Curated OER
1920s Variety Show
To better understand the cultural achievements of the Harlem Renaissance and become familiar with its major figures, class members examine a painting by Aaron Douglas and a poem by Langston Hughes and compare how the artists develop...
Curated OER
The blues highway: An integration of music with geography
Students analyze the movement of the blues from rural Mississippi to urban Chicago and how place and the environment affected the development of the blues. They define the blues, where it originated and how and why it moved to Chicago....
Curated OER
Jazz in America Lesson Plan 5
Young scholars survey Bebop and identify the basic terms associated with jazz.They experience the music of Charlie Parker and Billie Holiday and participate in a class discussion regarding jazz's contribution to and reflection of...
Curated OER
Lesson: An Exploration of Places and Spaces Part I
The concept behind this lesson is fantastic. Learners explore how different locations and situations affect them as individuals, focusing heavily on the impact of the urban environment. They question how location can make them change...
Curated OER
Protest Music of the 60's
Students demonstrate their knowlege about protest music of the late sixties by creating miniature protest signs.
Curated OER
Slices of American Pie: The 1960s Through Music
Eleventh graders examine political, cultural, and social movements through music. In this 1960s American history lesson, 11th graders explore the music of the decade in order to better understand the complexity of the time period....
Curated OER
Adapting a Musical
High schoolers transform literature into musical productions. For this integrated arts lesson, students discuss how musicals are written and produced. High schoolers then select literature they are familiar with to adapt into musical...
Washington University in St. Louis
Teaching Jazz as American Culture
Jazz and the City, Jazz and the Civil Rights Movement, Jazz and Gender, Jazz and Literature, Jazz and the Arts, Jazz and Film. Here's a packet of unit plans organized around themes that reflect American culture. Each unit examines how...
Smithsonian Institution
The Music of the Mardi Gras Indians
The traditions, costumes, and the music of the Mardi Gras Indians, African-Americans and those with African American or Native American Heritage are the focus of a unit that introduces class members to a little-known group that plays a...
Curated OER
Telling Stories Through Dance
Examine the movement of characters in the story, Caps for Sale. Using the text, pupils invent gestures and movements for some of the actions and major events. They practice retelling a story by using the movements they developed. They...
Curated OER
Keep on Pushing: Popular Music and the Civil Rights Movement
High schoolers explore music that exemplified the Civil Rights Movement. In this music and history lesson plan, students research 1960's protest songs, Motown recorded music, and rap of the 1990's to consider the power of music and its...