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A renaissance of jazz and poetry

The Harlem Renaissance was the birth of a creative plethora in all fields of art for African Americans. The poetry and jazz composed during or inspired by this era naturally complemented each other. Furthermore, many of the themes from the musical and literary worlds are universal and provide a great lesson on how two different works can have a parallel theme.

Format: lesson plan (grade 8–10 English Language Arts and Music Education)

By Janet Fore.

The second grade world of Louis Armstrong

Second grade students will explore the music of Louis Armstrong via booktalks, compact disc recordings, digital video disc recordings, and may pursue internet web-questing through Marco Polo (http://www.marcopolo-education.org) and http://www.redhotjazz.com as a bonus!

Format: lesson plan (grade 2 Music Education)

By Dirk Robertson.

Resources on the web

Drop Me Off in Harlem: Exploring the Intersections

Drop Me Off in Harlem: Exploring the Intersections explores the Harlem Renaissance from the ground up, allowing site visitors to take a virtual tour of the community and to become familiar with the people and artistic works that were central... (Learn more)

Format: website/lesson plan

Provided by: ArtsEdge

Jazz in America - The National Jazz Curriculum

Lesson plans, a comprehensive jazz resource library, a teacher’s manual, assessments and more can be found on this site that celebrates the rich heritage of jazz. (Learn more)

Format: website/lesson plan

Provided by: Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz

Musical Harlem

Students will learn to identify musical styles and musicians associated with Harlem, focusing on jazz. They will learn about the special role of music in Harlem as a unifier of a community and of a culture. Students can listen to audio samples and analyze... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade K–4 Music Education and Social Studies)

Provided by: ArtsEdge