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Grade Band:
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Arts Subject:
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Other Subject:
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| A Simple Melody
Students will learn the notes of the treble clef staff, play simple melodies, and complete a short melodic composition.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Acoustical Science
This unit explores the connection between size and materials used to create a musical instrument, and the pitches and tones the instrument makes.
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Music |
Language Arts, Science |
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| Acting Up, A Melodrama
In this lesson, students practice melodramatic movement.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Aida and Its Relevance to the World Today
This lesson uses the opera Aida and the history of the Middle East and Africa to open discussions about the current crisis in the Middle East.
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Music |
Social Studies |
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| All Around the Baseball Field
Explore baseball by constructing a mock baseball field using an assortment of materials including pattern blocks, tiles and a variety of geometric shapes.
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Music |
Language Arts, Math, Physical Education |
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| America, A Home for Every Culture
Students will explore how various cultures have contributed to making the United States a unique and diverse country.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Animal Habitats
Early primary students will learn about animal habitats through song, movement, and creative dramatization.
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Music |
Language Arts, Math, Science |
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| Arts of the Gilded Age
Students will explore the varied art forms of the Gilded Age, then develop a creative piece to perform, present, and/or exhibit as a studio project.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Ballet and Classical Music
Students are introduced to the conceptual and practical elements of classical ballet as they learn ballet history, vocabulary, and steps.
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Music |
Foreign Language |
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| Bibbidi Bobbidi Tunes
The elements of Baroque music are introduced as students compare "Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo" to a Bach-inspired version of the song.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Brass Instruments and Pitch
Students will create their own "brass" instruments, and make predictions about how pitch changes based on the distance air travels in the instrument.
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Music |
Language Arts, Science |
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| Chinese Instruments
Students identify and classify Western and traditional Chinese instruments, then create an instrument from recycled materials.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Civil War Music
Students compare and contrast Civil War songs of the North and the South.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Color Me Dark
Inspired by the Scholastic book Color Me Dark and the Kennedy Center production of the same title, this five-lesson curriculum unit will provide learning activities to help students understand the experiences of these African-American people and their families during The Great Migration—as well as help them learn the history of this period and relate it to their present-day lives.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Composing for The Nightingale
Students explore David Maddox's music from The Nightingale and create an original composition personifying the nightingale.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Corridos About the Mexican Revolution
Students will be introduced to causes of the Mexican Revolution and key revolutionary figures through the study of a particular Mexican song form, the corrido.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Creating an Original Opera
In this lesson, students will learn about opera’s dramatic and musical elements, and discover the similarities and differences between opera stories and students' own lives.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Creative Voices of Harlem
In this lesson, students learn about the artists of the Harlem Renaissance.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Dvorak in America
Students study Antonin Dvorak and his extended stay in America.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Fairy Tale Tunes
Students create music for a mini-musical of their stories from the book they created in the Fairy Tale Variations lesson.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| First Rhythmic Composition
This lesson introduces rhythm concepts, including the names and symbols associated with music notation.
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Music |
Math |
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| Folk Art as Communication
Students choose a type of folk art to represent a method of communication, and present a research paper on it.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Form and Theme in the Traditional Mexican Corrido
Students will analyze the themes and literary devices used in the traditional Mexican musical form of corridos.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| From the New World
Join Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Antonin Dvorak as they journey to America and discover a new world of music.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Graham's Appalachian Spring: A Study
Students will study Martha Graham's seminal work, Appalachian Spring,analyze the historical themes, and explore the relationship of the music and the set design to the structure of the choreography and narrative.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Grand Canyon: Stories Told and Untold
Students learn about various historical, social, environmental, and geological elements of the Grand Canyon through art.
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Music |
Science, Social Studies |
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| Graphs of the Heart
Students will examine four of Martha Graham's key dance-dramas, and learn about the symbolic and mythological sources, and the relationship of set design and collaboration to the choreography and narrative of Graham's work.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Guantanamera: A Poem and a Song
In this lesson, students analyze the Cuban folk song "Guantanamera."
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Harlem
This unit introduces students to Harlem, starting with black migration from Africa and from the American South to the North, to the Harlem Renaissance (including jazz musicians, visual artists, writers, and poets), and on to aspects of daily Harlem life.
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Music |
Language Arts, Physical Education, Social Studies |
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| Harmonic Composition, An Essay
This lesson introduces students to jazz or the blues by reading and writing about a jazz or blues musician.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Harriet Tubman Integrated Unit
Students use a variety of sources to research Harriet Tubman's life and accomplishments, then use this information to create a collage and choreograph a movement piece.
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Music |
Social Studies |
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| Harriet Tubman Integrated Unit: Lesson 3
In this lesson, students are introduced to the spiritual, an African American musical form that originated during the time of slavery.
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Music |
Social Studies |
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| Harriet Tubman Integrated Unit: Lesson 4
Students use movement to express the words and music of a song about Harriet Tubman.
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Music |
Physical Education, Social Studies |
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| Haunting Music
Explore the "dark side" of classical music through famous works by Berlioz and Saint-Saëns.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Heroes
Students recognize the positive character traits of heroes depicted in various art forms.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| How Romantic! Parallels in Music and History
Students will explore the ways music reflects contemporary society by focusing on popular music of the 19th and early 20th centuries—orchestral music of the Romantic era. After students conduct research online about musical instruments, they will create an advertisement about a musical instrument and its connection to history.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Into the Woods, Jr.
This unit uses the Grimm Brothers' Book of Tales and Stephen Sondheims musical Into the Woods to help students create their own musical versions of Grimm's tales.
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Music |
Language Arts, Math, Physical Education, Science, Social Studies |
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| Jazz Dance and Music
Students will learn about jazz music and jazz dance, explore basic movements of jazz dance, and then create a poem inspired by jazz music.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Landscapes of the Mind
Students will explore four of Martha Graham's choreographies inspired by women, and analyze the expression of emotion and structure of narrative through written and verbal assessment.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Learning from Lyrics
Students research contemporary songs to study current social issues.
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Music |
Social Studies |
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| Lift Every Voice and Sing
This lesson explores the origins of the poem and song "Lift Every Voice and Sing."
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Listen to The Nightingale
Students learn music vocabulary and use it to assess music from The Nightingale.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Little Women Unit
Students will recreate the melodrama used in Louisa May Alcott's Little Women, explore costuming, and create a model stage design.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Melodies & Math: Telephone Improvisations
In this lesson students will use the keypad of an online telephone to improvise melodies using 4/4 and 2/4 time, create instruments to accompany their numeric melody, and stage a collaborative class performance using each group’s composition.
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Music |
Language Arts, Math |
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| Monsters
Through Beowulf students investigate views about "monsters" in society, then design and present their own conceptions of monsters.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Music as a Storyteller
Students learn about music's ability to convey elements of storytelling, such as plot, tone, and characterization, in the Kennedy Center's production of The Nightingale.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Musical Harlem
Students learn about the musicians of the Harlem Renaissance.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Nightingale Sounds
This integrated unit correlates with the John F. Kennedy Center’s adaptation of a dance-theatre production of Hans Christian Anderson's The Nightingale.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Nureyev: After Petipa
Students study how Nureyev's life and work were affected by social, cultural and political forces in Russia.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Nureyev: Bringer of Light
This lesson focuses on Nureyev’s artistic endeavors and achievements in the dance world of the West.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Nureyev: The Unconquerable Will
This lesson focuses on how creative expression developed in the West, particularly in dance.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| One Story, Many Tales
ESL students practice their reading, writing, oral and technology skills as they learn about folktales.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Patterns of a Lighthouse
Students work in teams to design the Fenwick Island Lighthouse using visual, sound, and light patterns.
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Music |
Science, Social Studies |
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| Percussion Instruments and Pitch
Students will make predictions and explore how pitch changes based on the materials used in instrument construction
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Music |
Language Arts, Science |
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| Playing in the Orchestral Team
Students will learn about musical instruments in an orchestra by exploring the Perfect Pitch interactive. Students will compare and contrast aspects of baseball and orchestras. They will write a creative story from the perspective of a musical instrument that would convince a composer to choose the instrument for the "orchestral team."
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Poets Got Them Blues
Through the analysis of blues lyrics, students will identify poetic elements in blues songs and draw connections between the two artistic mediums.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Prairie Magic and Territory Folks
Students closely examine several aspects of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Oklahoma!.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Reviewing Good Playing Habits
In this lesson, orchestra students contrast good playing position with poor habits that they may have developed over summer.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Rhythm & Improv, Jazz & Poetry
Students will listen to and analyze jazz music, and then identify jazz characteristics in poems by Yusef Komunyakaa, Sonia Sanchez, and Langston Hughes. Students will also incorporate these elements in their own original poetry.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Rhythm and Art
This curriculum unit presents an introduction to the concept of visual rhythm, and explores the intersection of visual and auditory rhythm.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Rhythm and Art: Connections
Students use postcards to match geographic locations to music and works of art.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Rhythm and Art: Gesture Drawing
This lesson explore the connection between visual music and art.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Rhythm and Art: Individual Report
In this lesson, students conduct Internet research to help build an appreciation for rhythm in visual arts and music.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Rhythm and Art: Rhythm Collage
Students will produce collages of paper cut-outs, reflecting elements of rhythm in music.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Rhythm, Math, Rhythm
This lesson explores the relationship between rhythm and math.
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Music |
Math |
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| Searching for Cinderella
Students identify a story line, event, or characteristic and use it create a madrigal about the "Cinderella" tale.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Set a Poem to Music
Students will set a favorite poem to a rhythmic meter, and assign an original melody to the rhythm.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Sing Me a Song About the USA
Students compose a song related to a specific geographic area of the United States.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Sondheim's Into the Woods
After studying Sondheim's works, students will create a libretto and script for an original musical based on The Grimm Brothers' fairy tale, The Frog Prince.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Songs from the Past
In this lesson, students explore historical songs and analyze lyrics in order to learn about historical times and happenings.
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Music |
Math, Social Studies |
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| South Pacific—War Stories
The music and story of South Pacific takes students back to the days of World War II, as they explore connections between the work of author James Michener and the music of Rodgers and Hammerstein.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Steps of a Giant: Martha Graham
This unit is dedicated to exploring the work of Martha Graham, one of the most innovative and celebrated dance artists of the twentieth century.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| String Instruments and Pitch
Students will create their own string instruments, and explore how pitch is altered.
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Music |
Language Arts, Science |
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| Studying J.S. Bach
Students write an essay comparing Bach’s struggle to achieve musical independence and growth with their own experiences.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Syncopated Duet
Students will compose a duet that contains syncopated rhythm sequences.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Tchaikovsky in America
Students learn about the Russian composer Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky and his visit to the United States.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| The Election Process and the Campaign Trail
Students will learn about the electoral process, plan a campaign tour for a fictional presidential candidate, and compose a campaign song.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| The Gilded Age
This unit explores the history, architecture, arts and culture of American high society from the 1890s-1920s, during the Gilded Age.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| The Innovative Voice
Students will learn about the structures and themes of seminal Martha Graham works, create movement combinations using elements from Graham choreographies, and synthesize their exploration in written journals and assessments.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| The King and I and the Source of Emotions
Students explore the use of music to produce emotions in an audience or to demonstrate characters' emotions.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| The Music & Meaning of Mexican Corridos
In this unit, students will examine the historical and cultural significance of corridos and will compose original corrido lyrics.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| The Poetics of Hip Hop
Students will analyze form in Shakespearean sonnets, works of American poets, then analyze hip hop music to determine common characteristics. Students will also write their own poetry.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| The U.S. Presidential Election Process
In this unit, students explore the electoral process in U.S. presidential elections, then create a campaign tour with posters and a song, and learn about political cartoons.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Tuneful Bugs and Birds
ESOL students read and write poetry and listen to music about bugs and birds.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Twain: Steamboat's a-Comin'
This lesson examines the mystique of rivers as inspiration for creative expression. It also provides students with a glimpse of the powerful influence the Mississippi River and its environs had on Mark Twain’s writings.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| Twelve-Bar Blues
Students will compose a melody using a 12-bar blues progression.
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Music |
Social Studies |
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| Uppity Farm Animals
Students will analyze problems and create solutions by dramatizing the story, Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type and the poem, "Farmer Brown Has a Problem."
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Music |
Language Arts, Science |
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| Vivaldi, The Composer
Students use the Internet to learn about Antonio Vivaldi, and use Venn diagrams to compare his life to Franz Josef Haydn's.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Vivaldi, The Music
In this lesson students hear string instruments and learn terms for musical dynamics.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| What Does this Song Really Say?
Students listen to, sing, and read the lyrics to various African-American spirituals.
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Music |
Language Arts, Social Studies |
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| What is a Surrey?
This lesson explores the magic of the vocabulary used by Oscar Hammerstein in his lyrics.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| Woodwind Instruments and Pitch
Students will make predictions and explore how pitch changes based on the length of the air pipe.
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Music |
Language Arts, Science |
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| Yo-Yo Ma, Master Cellist
Students learn the parts, history, and construction of the cello, and listen and respond to music by Yo-Yo Ma.
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Music |
Language Arts |
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| You Keep Making Stuff Up!
In this lesson, student will explore the basics of improvisation, listening to jazz and other genre excerpts and identifying elements of improvisation in these genres.
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Music |
Technology |
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