Using Your Ears

The introduction to Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake and the finale of his Symphony No. 4 provide young musicians with an opportunity to investigate the music elements composers employ to develop the themes they want to create. They compare the...

Musical theater is a trifecta, requiring cast members to be actors, singers, and dancers. Help theater arts students develop these skills with a unit designed to prepare them for a staging of a musical.

That old fashioned rock and roll comes alive as theatre arts students prepare to attend a live performance of the musical School of Rock. Packed with both pre- and post-production materials, the guide has it all. Rock on!

Music is beneficial for all learners. Help your learners with special needs learn about different styles of music, as well as the ways that music is represented on paper, with 30 different worksheets. 

Turn your classroom into a music studio as groups work together to determine why music sounds different when performed live versus a recording. After listening to some different music, each group picks a poem, creates a recording, and...

Gather the entire family (or class members) for a fun Harmony Break! A volunteer thinks of a color from their Mood Meter that they will express by singing, playing an instrument, or performing a dance. After the performance, the audience...

Music aficionados classify pop music into by musical genres or styles. They evaluate the positive and negatives of collaborative performances, view segments of VH1's "Save the Music" concert, and discuss the difficulties of...

Your class can build strong, well-represented opinions about the music they hear. They listen to, and share thoughts about, a piece of classical music. Then they write a piece of music or a poem, and analyze their peers' work and their...

Budding musicians determine the differences in style between the various periods in choral music. They engage in a class discussion, read one of the suggested materials, then perform a choral piece from a specific time in history.

Upper graders explore the similarities, differences, and depth of pop music from the Romantic era and the 20th century. They listen to selections that exemplify the Baroque, Romantic, and 20th century periods, then create presentations...