Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Songwriting Skill - Choosing a Tone: Jordan Pruitt - “One Love”
"Tone means attitude." Or so says this resource that uses Jordan Pruitt's "One Love" to model for songwriters how to develop an attitude in their lyrics. Class members engage in a number of exercises designed to give them direct and...
Curated OER
Ella y Él
Take a trip to Costa Rica with th popular song "Ella y Él" by Ricardo Arjona. After listening to the song (and possibly reading the lyrics) the class discusses the general message of the song, the political nature, and other US bands...
Curated OER
Summertime
Explore expressive reading through the read-aloud Summertime: From Porgy and Bess. Readers will make predictions about the text and listen to the song Summertime. They will also identify how the story relates to the song lyrics.
Curated OER
Color My World Grey and Blue
Can colors help to convey a mood in writing? Explore this question with your class using the songs "Grey Street" by the Dave Matthews Band and "Blu is a Mood" by Blu Cantrell. After analyzing the effect of the color words in these songs...
ESL Kid Stuff
Telling the Time
What time is it? Language learners are introduced to time vocabulary with a series of activities, songs, and games that let them practice formulating and answer questions about time.
National Park Service
The Poet's Toolbox
If you need a lesson for your poetry unit, use two poems by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ("Rain in Summer" and "The Slave in the Dismal Swamp") and a resource on Elements of Poetry. The lesson plan guides you through activities...
Curated OER
The Great Depression: A Study Guide Through Song
Students take a closer look at the political and social outlook during the Great Depression. For this Great Depression lesson, students analyze selected songs from the time period. Students use the provided lyric sheets and song...
Curated OER
MacBeth Activity Using Alanis Morissette's "Wake Up"
Students analyze Macbeth through the lens of a pop song. In this Macbeth lesson, students read Act I, Scene 7 of Macbeth and determine Lady Macbeth's viewpoint. Students read the lyrics to Alanis Morrissette's song 'Wake Up' and work in...
Curated OER
Conveying Message Through Musical Composition
Students listen to and discuss various protest songs from the 1960's, and write original lyrics for a song addressing global or societal issues. They write a paragraph evaluating the efficacy of the song to convey a message.
Curated OER
I See and I Think (It's A Wonderful World)
Learners analyze song lyrics (by listening to the song) to pick-out descriptive vocabulary. They use this descriptive vocabulary to create a drawing of the images they "see" in the song. They compare their drawings to find similarities...
Curated OER
Corn Husk Doll
Students practice melody and lyrics and the feelings they represent, in two languages, sing the melody of the Corn Husk Doll, lyrics Maria Hinton, melody by Patti Morin in Oneida, and discuss how the words to this song demonstrate...
Curated OER
Songs That Bring Us Together
Young scholars listen to the song, Get Together, and discuss the theme. They list topics that bring people together, write the lyrics to and sing a class song, and write a paragraph about message songs.
Curated OER
"Uncle Sam's Got Himself in a Terrible Jam": Protest Music and the Vietnam War
"And it's one, two, three...what are we fighting for?" Use music to assess the climate of protest during the Vietnam War, listening to and analyzing Country Joe MacDonald's "I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-To-Die Rag" (lyrics included)....
TCI
Celebrating Our Constitution
School House Rock's "Preamble" launches a study of the Preamble of the US Constitution and the relevance of this 200 year-old document today.
Curated OER
"Name Those Vowels"
Help your class recognize the capital and lower-case forms of the five vowels. They will learn how to make capital and lower-case forms of the vowels and all the rules surrounding vowels. Fun songs and activities are included. Links to...
Curated OER
Folk Music
Learners explore Folk Music in Iowa. For this folk music lesson, students discuss different types of folk music and how it relates to life in Iowa. They take the tune of a song and write their own lyrics to describe their life.
Curated OER
The Use of Substitution As a Creative Thinking Tool
Students practice using substitution as a creative way of thinking about writing and try to substitute song lyrics, food items, rhythm movements and more. In this substitution lesson plan, students create a new candy, and create...
Curated OER
Feminism Does Not Have to be an F-Word
Students analyze social activism messages in music. In this feminism lesson, students explore selected music that expresses sentiments voiced in the women liberation movement in the United States. Students compare the lyrics of the songs...
Curated OER
On The Banks
Fourth graders write and perform an original song about Indiana. After learning the lyrics of the song "On the Banks of the Wabash," students write lyrics to their own song about Indiana with assistance from the instructor. They...
Curated OER
Cole Porter: You're the Top
Students watch selected film clips about Cole Porter and discover his uniqueness. In groups, they research associates of the Porter's and present reports on them. Then, they write position papers on prominent people of the Jazz Age. ...
Curated OER
And You Don't Stop - 30 Years of Hip-Hop, Episode 2, Lesson 1
Students discuss Public Enemy's lyrics and compare and contrast them with songs popular during the Civil Rights Movement. They write their own rap song that expresses feelings of oppression or freedom from oppression.
Curated OER
Poetry for the Common Good
Students identify examples of philanthropy in poetry or song. In this philanthropy activity, students examine several poems such as Give by Carrie A. Thomas and identify concepts of philanthropy in the poem. Students construct their own...
Curated OER
A Song for Today - Lesson 3
Students analyze musical and topical elements in popular songs and compose song as a classroom effort. They write a short paragraph evaluating the effectiveness of the song in conveying the message of the lyrics.
Curated OER
Vocabulary Songs: Vocabulary Reinforcement Activity
Learners compose songs using vocabulary words. In this vocabulary activity, students are introduced to a new set of vocabulary words and their definitions. Learners collaborate in groups of three or four to write new lyrics to the tune...