Jazz in America Lesson Plan 2

While music lyrics are often used to teach literary elements, the richness of this resource comes from the wealth of exercises, activities, and support materials provided in the packet.  Although designed for gifted learners, the...

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...

Show your school spirit! Class members use instruments or sing along and employ what they have learned in the two previous lessons to perform their school's songs.

Bass drum, snare drum, tom-toms, cymbals. Perched behind their drum sets, wielding their drum sticks and wire brushes, drummers lay the grove and are the heartbeat of a band's performance. A dynamic lesson introduces young musicians to...

A collection of videos directs viewers through a series of seven videos detailing all things jazz. Video topics include how to play, its forms, rhythm, syncopation, swing, improvisation, and explores the rhythm, horn, and wind sections.  

Students examine the impact of WWII on the development of jazz music and consider how jazz music helped to boost morale of both soldiers and those left at home. They identify the function of jazz as a cultural export and discuss its...

Ten informative videos make up a series hosted by Wynton Marsalis designed to share the musical triumphs of jazz musicians Scott Joplin, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and more! 

Learners participate in a class discussion about jazz music, compare improvisation with regular conversion, listen to various jazz musicians and compare and contrast their individual sounds.

How did jazz influence Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man? Class members read some of Ellison's non-fiction writings about blues and jazz, listen to records, watch videos, and engage in student-centered discussions. They then produce podcasts...

Learners 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 American...