Make a homemade rain stick. Colorado Americorp agents in Araphahoe, Denver, Garfield, Larimer, and Weld Counties. Work supported by the Corporation for National and Community Service under Americorps grant number 18AFHCO0010008. Opinions or points of view expressed in this lesson are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of or a position that is endorsed by the Corporation or the Americorps program. This resource is also available in Spanish in the linked file.

Percussionist Steven Angel has developed an innovative program that uses rhythm to help struggling students improve their reading fluency and comprehension. Deceptively simple -- a facilitator taps out a basic rhythm while students read aloud -- the method relaxes students, helps them focus, and is effective in after-school intervention programs as well as traditional classrooms.

In this video segment from Between the Lions, Sloppy Pop's song Read the Signs spotlights the letters and words we see on signs every day, encouraging children to be aware of print in their environment.

This Teacher's Guide provides compelling questions to frame a unit of study and inquiry projects on the Reconstruction Era, includes NEH sponsored multimedia resources, activity ideas that include use of newspapers from the time and interdisciplinary approaches to bring social studies, ELA, and music education together, and resources for a DBQ and seminar.

James Reese Europe was an "accomplished orchestra conductor, bandleader, and composer of popular songs, marches and dance music during the early twentieth century...Europe was an effective champion of African-American musical performers and composers and helped to gain acceptance for them in the United States and abroad." Born in Mobile, Alabama, Europe accomplished much in his brief lifetime and deserves a place in every study of World War I. Students will annotate a biography of James Reese Europe and analyze two photographs of the orchestra Reese led across France. Students will view a documentary film of Europe and his "Hellfighter" orchestra as they fought, performed, and received medals for their efforts during the war. As a culminating activity on the second day, students will write a eulogy for Europe detailing his role as a leader in Jazz and as an African American officer. This lesson was created in partnership with the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

Welcome to Resonances: Engaging Music in Its Cultural Context! Although this book is intended primarily for use in the college music appreciation classroom, it was designed with consideration for independent learners, advanced high school students, and experienced musicians. That is to say, it includes enough detail that expert guidance is not required and is written using broadly-accessible language. At the same time, it addresses advanced topics and positions music as a serious object of study.

Since the invention of the phonograph in 1877, the recording and playback of sound has been a key element of life in the western world. This unit traces the technology and characters of the sound recording industry as it advances from Edison's original phonograph to the formats we know today.

Video by Art21. A pioneer of large-format color photography, Richard Misrach has photographed the American desert for decades, examining the impact of human activity on the natural landscape. From his Berkeley studio, the artist recounts his early work, "Telegraph 3 AM," in which he depicted the homeless population of 1970s Berkeley. Disillusioned with the commercial success of his photographs that he hoped would instigate social change, Misrach turned to the deserts of southern California, Nevada, and Arizona. Creating otherworldly images of cacti and rock formations and unsettling pictures of military bombing ranges, nuclear test sites, and man-made fires, for his ongoing "Desert Cantos" series, Misrach explains how “our culture stands out in very clear relief in the desert.” The artist recounts the origins of his "Border Cantos" series, which focuses on the U.S.-Mexico border wall and the artifacts left behind by migrant crossings. This segment follows the artist as he travels to remote parts of the desert, photographing the visual contradiction of the ominous wall against beautiful landscapes and collaborating with the composer Guillermo Galindo to create installations and musical performances that utilize the items found in the desert. Collectively, Misrach’s work chronicles the places where nature and culture collide, highlighting where beauty and ugliness exist side-by-side. Learn more about the artist at: https://art21.org/artist/richard-misrach/

Rockin Russian is designed to give students exposure to the Russian language and culture through the medium of Russian music videos. Students are able to perfect their grammar while rocking out to music videos from Russia's pop stars. Based on Russian music videos from MTV Russia, Rockin' Russian is supplemented with exercise materials focusing on pronunciation, vocabulary development, grammar and cultural features. Parts of the videos are embedded into exercises in each category that students can revisit, strengthening their language skills.

This collection uses primary sources to explore the early history of Rock and Roll music. Digital Public Library of America Primary Source Sets are designed to help students develop their critical thinking skills and draw diverse material from libraries, archives, and museums across the United States. Each set includes an overview, ten to fifteen primary sources, links to related resources, and a teaching guide. These sets were created and reviewed by the teachers on the DPLA's Education Advisory Committee.

Students identify phrases in a known song and create new patterns of music.

Learn how classroom teachers, artists and arts organizations are using the arts to teach social and emotional learning (SEL). Social and emotional learning gives students strategies on how to manage their emotions and how to collaborate and empathize with others. These are important skills that help students succeed at school, work, and life. SEL can be incorporated into any subject matter and any grade level, but incorporating the arts can be an especially effective way to learn and practice SEL.

The basic idea of this task is for students to demonstrate that they know what it means for two variables to be associated.

Students work as if they are electrical engineers to program a keyboard to play different audible tones depending on where a sensor is pressed. They construct the keyboard from a soft potentiometer, an Arduino capable board, and a small speaker. The soft potentiometer “keyboard” responds to the pressure of touch on its eight “keys” (C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C) and feeds an input signal to the Arduino-capable board. Each group programs a board to take the input and send an output signal to the speaker to produce a tone that is dependent on the input signal—that is, which “key” is pressed. After the keyboard is working, students play "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" and (if time allows) modify the code so that different keys or a different number of notes can be played.

Teachers, tune in to this special, 50th episode of STEM in 30 to learn all about STEM in real life.

This Western Mining History database uses Mineral Resources Data System to list known Colorado historical mines by county. Each county site has links to the known mines within its borders. Some are known and named, others are unnamed. Mines should be assumed to be on private property unless other research is conducted. Data provided for each mine site include: Name, State, County, Elevation, Primary Mineral Mined, Latitude and Longitude and a link to Google Maps. Photos are provided where available. Additional information for some Mines are satellite photos, and ownership, business and historical records. Mining History is an historical site that provides information on mining, mining towns, the gold and silver rush, and Photos and maps of the western United States. This is a great database for student historical research or data and statistics classes. Consider becoming a member or making a donation to help further the work of the site.

Elementary student scavenger hunt for use on a field trip to the Museum of the West exhibits

This site invites children of all ages to explore the science of music through movies, questions, and online exhibits. Compose, mix, and play with music in ways you probably haven't before. Find out what makes sad music sad, why some songs get stuck in your head, and how opera singers are able to sing notes that seem to last forever.

Students will explore the various types of loops available in Scratch, by creating musical programs.
The instructor presents a Scratch project with examples of short music loop scripts. Students examine the different types of loops used, and then build their own songs using the same kinds of loops and sounds.
Students reflect on why programmers use loops and the benefits they offer.
Loops— particularly nested loops—will be important in their final coding project at the end of the unit.