Curated OER
James Taylor: "You've Got a Friend"
Play James Taylor's song, "You've Got a Friend" to kickstart this lesson. After the initial play, encourage listeners to record the missing verbs in the lyrics provided. A word bank is included, but consider challenging your learners and...
Curated OER
Survivors
Seventh graders explain their understanding of their strength and how it is helpful in a group situation. They also complete graphic organizers by writing at least four of their own personal strengths. Students write about their...
Curated OER
Sheryl Crow and Willie Nelson - Lesson 3
students create song lyrics for two verses and one chorus. They compare their song writing process to the process described by ie Nelson and Sheryl Crow.
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Singing The Blues with Garage Band
Students demonstrate writing lyrics for a twelve-bar blues pattern by writing two verses of a blues song and then recording themselves singing over a stock blues pattern using Apple's Garage Band. Requires a networked keyboard lab.
Curated OER
DIGITAL WATERWORKS
Students add digitally-produced, water sound effects to a song, using electronic keyboards.
Curated OER
Trash or Treasure?
Learners explore their experiences and reflect on how one person can make a difference in our world. In this service learning lesson, students analyze themes in music related to encouragement. Learners perform a service learning project...
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Time to Rhyme
Students sing along to a hello song. They develop skills of phonemic awareness, literacy and social awareness. They think of words that rhyme with their names to add to the song.
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Poetry through Jazz, Rap, and Hip Hop
Students explore poetry through jazz, rap, and hip hop music. They discover the common threads that run through the poetry and music. Students design their own lyrics to a jazz, rap, or hip hop selection and share their songs with the...
Curated OER
Mixing it up with Romeo and Juliet
Students create a soundtrack for Romeo and Juliet choosing one song to represent each scene. They write a paragraph explaining their song choices.
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The Electric Hearth
Students examine popular media. In this media awareness instructional activity, students keep logs of their interactions with media and then write an essay regarding the data.
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"I" On Philanthropy
Students read children's literature and listen to song lyrics to identify acts of philanthropy. They discuss how one's identity can be shaped by helping others. They also focus on the non-profit sector.
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The Twelve Days of Christmas
Students explore the origins of a traditional Christmas song. They adapt historic lyrics to have meaning in their lives today and fabricate, write, and illustrate an accordion book or card. They compare this song to the words of other...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
Strange Fruit: Lynching in America
To continue their study of the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the beginning of the civil rights movement, class members watch the YouTube video of Billie Holiday singing "Strange Fruit" as an introduction to an examination of...
Curated OER
Slide-Tape Dramatization as a Way of Teaching Literature
Young scholars select one song and write the lyrics on the blackboard. They segment the lyrics into meaningful phrases or sentences and visualize each unit of meaning to convey the message of the song. They select a different song and ...
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Centennial: Utah We Love Thee
Fourth graders discuss how music can inspire emotion and are introduced to Utah's state song, "Utah, We Love Thee". They discuss the song and then compare and contrast other songs about Utah. They create original lyrics about Utah.
Curated OER
Romeo and Juliet Project: A Perfect Album Side
In this Romeo and Juliet worksheet, students combine music, lyrics, and drama to analyze Romeo and Juliet. Students select music to fit the theme, mood, and feeling of each act and research the lyrics. Students compose an essay about why...
Curated OER
Storytellers: Pearl Jam, Lesson 1
Students examine the meaning of genre, and specifically investigate the musical genre of grunge. They view and discuss photos, watch the video, "VH1 Storytellers: Pearl Jam," answer discussion questions, and paraphrase the lyrics to a...
Curated OER
Storytellers: Bruce Springsteen
Students use the correct music terminology to evaluate a performance, composition, and arrangement of the song "Blinded by the Light" by Bruce Springsteen and compare it to another version recorded by Manfred Man.
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Call and Response Singing
Learners investigate call and response singing. In this fine arts and U.S. history lesson, students listen to several call and response songs that were sung by African-American slaves during the period before the Civil War. ...
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Early Industrialization
Eighth graders analyze primary source documents emphasizing young people in factory labor (mill workers during 1840-1860). They study hours of labor, ages of laborers, reasons for working, and working conditions. They write a poem or song.
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Stand Up and Sing: Music and Our Reform History
Students examine events of historical significance in music. In groups, they are given pieces of sheet music and work together to try to determine the social and political conditions of the time based on the lyrics. They write their own...
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Working on the Railroad
Students plan a trip on the railroad. In this railroad creation and implementation lesson plan, students listen to the song "Working on the Railroad", make a map of where the track was laid and discuss the geographical...
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Science Hits Activity
Students listen to a song that teaches the elements of the periodic table and write their own song to be used as an aid in remembering scientific information.
Curated OER
America Poems
Students examine examples of how other Americans have expressed their feelings about America through songs and poetry, and write their own poems to express their relationship with America.