Jazz's Beginnings

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...

Class members examine a series of primary and secondary source materials to try and ascertain the role films played in forming “a new generation of youth after World War I.” Individuals are assigned one of three documents to examine,...

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...

As Nick wanders the grounds of Gatsby's mansion, he observes the behaviors of the rowdy guests and listens to the music pouring over the lawn. Bring the music of the jazz age into the classroom with Louis Armstrong's "West End Blues,"...

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...

Young scholars explore development of jazz music in the 1930s by forming imaginary jazz bands which tour several cities in Depression-era America. Jazz band members create imaginary identities for themselves, develop publicity for their...

Students analyze the impact of jazz on the novel, "Invisible Man," by Ralph Ellison. They read and discuss excerpts of the novel, write an essay on the influence of jazz on Ralph Ellison as a writer, and view video excerpts on jazz...

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.

Connect the ideas of jazz improvisation and art to writing poetry. Learners collaborate and write different lines of poetry, imitating the jazz styles of improvisation and freewriting. Take a close look at the poems "Tenebrae" by Yusef...

Working in small teams, learners analyze a variety of primary source materials related to lynching (news articles, letters written to or written by prominent Americans, pamphlets, broadsides, etc.) in order to assess the effectiveness of...