American Music Styles: Blues - Lesson 2

The post-Revolutionary Period of 1781-1787, also known as the Critical Period, is the focus of a series of lessons that prompt class members to examine primary source documents that reveal the instability of the period of the Articles of...

Readers learn about sharecropping in the South in a unit about Ernest J. Gaines's A Lesson Before Dying. Focusing on the period after Civil War Reconstruction but before the Civil Rights Movement, a set of handouts help to establish the...

Designed as a teacher resource, a packet identifies resources and approaches instructors can use to incorporate jazz into their history classes. Materials are identified by historical era, from the roots of jazz prior to World War I to...

Upper graders listen to the blues. They discuss blues scale, read a description of the blues, and work together to write an original piece. A lesson like this ties into American history and African-American musical contributions very...

What can science and music possibly have in common? A lot more than you might think. Guide young scientists through an exploration of these two seemly different subjects with a physical science resource based on Bill Nye the Science...

Take a look into the many facets, purposes, and styles of Native American music. Each slide in this well-organized presentation provides clear introductory information on the forms and functions of American tribal music. Use it to...

Jazz, Blue Grass, Hip Hop, Swing. Gospel, R&B, Ragtime, Disco. So many music genres born in the USA. After reading an article about the fate of New Orlean's Jazz after Hurricane Katrina, class members investigate the life cycles of...

Young scholars describe some of the characteristics of country and blues music. They see how country music rose to a nationally known music style. They write a two-paragraph essay on what they think country music be like in the next 100...

Learners describe some of the distinguishing characteristics of rock, folk, blues, and country music. They identify two main musical roots of today's American popular music.

Young scholars are introduced to African-American music history through this lesson. They begin their study by taking a look at the slave work song and work their way through to modern rap and hip-hop. Students also take a closer look at...