This site is designed to provide you with engaging teaching aids that promote an understanding of music-- its historical origins and its extensive cross-curriculum relevance. We hope that you will use these learning activities in your home or classroom and that you will motivate your students/children to conduct independent research to deepen and enrich their appreciation of music.

Integrated Curriculum Based on the National Academic Standards

A. National Standards for Music Education (NCTM)

1. Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.

5. Reading and notating music.

6. Listening to, analyzing, and describing music.

7. Evaluating music and music performances.

(Students write review of broadcast.)

8. Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts.

9. Understanding music in relation to history and culture.

African American Music Touches All Parts of Life
Denyce Graves
In times of Suffering and Pain African American Spirituals Gave Strength and Hope
About Marian Anderson
About Josephine Baker
About Paul Robeson

B. English Language Arts Standards (NCTE and IRA)
    National Reading Standards

1. Students read a wide range of print and non-print texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world.

Denyce Graves
Meet Our Guest Artists

2. Students read a wide range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an understanding of the many dimensions (e.g., philosophical, ethical, aesthetic) of human experience.

African American Music Touches All Parts of Life

6. Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions, media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and non-print texts.

Music Communicates Ideas and Emotions

8. Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge.

(Web based Research in student books.)
WHYY TV 12 & 91FM
The Mann Center for the Performing Arts

    National Writing Standards

4. Write poems, plays and multi-paragraph stories.
-Include detailed descriptions of people, places and things.

5. . Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

Tone Poem
Music Communicates Ideas and Emotions
Take 6 Research Paper

    National Research Standard

7. Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions, and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate, and synthesize data from a variety of sources (e.g., print and non-print texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their purpose and audience.

(Web based Research in student books.)
Music Communicates Ideas and Emotions

C. National Science Standards (NAS)
    Physical Science CONTENT STANDARD B:

As a result of their activities in grades 5-8, all students should develop an understanding of the TRANSFER OF ENERGY. Energy is a property of many substances and is associated with heat, light, electricity, mechanical motion, sound, nuclei, and the nature of a chemical. Energy is transferred in many ways.

Music Communicates Ideas and Emotions
Ms. Patti LaBelle & Diabetes

    Life Science CONTENT STANDARD C:

As a result of their activities in grades 5-8, all students should develop understanding of "Regulation and behavior" and "Diversity and adaptations of organisms."

African American Music Touches All Parts of Life
Ms. Patti LaBelle & Diabetes

    Science and Technology CONTENT STANDARD E:

As a result of activities in grades 5-8, all students should develop "Abilities of technological design" and "Understandings about science and technology."

(Web based Research in student books.)

D. American History Standards (NCHS) 5-12

Standard 2C The student understands how new cultural movements at different social levels affected American life. Investigate new forms of popular culture and leisure activities at different levels of American society.

Standard 2D The student understands the rapid growth of "the peculiar institution" after 1800 and the varied experiences of African Americans under slavery. Identify the various ways in which African Americans resisted the conditions of their enslavement and analyze the consequences of violent uprisings.

Standard 3C The student understands how new cultural movements reflected and changed American society. Analyze how radio, movies, newspapers, and popular magazines created mass culture.

Standard 4B The student understands how Americans strived to reform society and create a distinct culture. Examine how literary and artistic movements fostered a distinct American identity among different groups and in different regions.

African American Music Touches All Parts of Life
(Students write a review of the broadcast noting historic musical content and styles and individual artistic presentation.)