More PBS Resources for Black History Month

Celebrate Black History Month in your classroom this February by highlighting the African American artists, educators, icons  and influential leaders who have impacted our nation’s history and culture. Use PBS LearningMedia to enhance your lessons with interviews, historic images and videos.  If you’ve yet to do so, remember to register online for free, full access to the library.

Duke  Grades 1-4 | Animated Storybook | Icons in Music:  Introduce young students to the toe-tapping genres of ragtime and jazz through the story of iconic musician, Duke Ellington.

Rosa Parks  Grades 3-12 | Interview | Civil Rights Icons:  Enhance classroom discussion around the Civil Rights Movement with this interview of Rosa Parks, and ask students to examine her role in the struggle for racial equality.

Picturing America – Jacob Lawrence and Martin Puryear  Grades 6-12 | Video | Icons in Art:  Invite students to uncover the driving themes behind the paintings in Jacob Lawrence’s “Migration Series” and the elements influencing Martin Puryear’s sculpture work.

Remembering Civil Rights Leader Dorothy Height  Grades 6-13+ | Video | Civil Rights Icons:  Meet the woman President Obama hailed as the “Godmother of the Civil Rights Movement.” Ask students to consider her impact on the rights of African Americans and women.

Deconstructing the Documentary  Grades 9-12 | Collection:  Invite your class to experience Bordentown, the remarkable all-black boarding school described as a “unique educational utopia.”

Lucy Laney  Grades 9-12 | Video | Icons in Education:  Laney, an influential Jim Crow-era educator, believed it essential to cultivate the minds of her students in order to develop future intellectual leaders. Invite your students to consider her philosophy of education.

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Mr. Steve to Perform at the Springfield Museums

Fans of Mr. Steve, the PBS KIDS personality and musician, will be able to sing and dance along with him when he visits the area on Saturday, February 23. Mr. Steve, a guitarist, travels to western Massachusetts as part of WGBY’s sponsorship of The Springfield Museums’ exhibit called GUITAR: The Instrument that Rocked the World.

When asked about his two upcoming concerts, Steve Songs, as he’s also known among the younger set, said, “I’m so excited for our shows in Springfield. It’ll be like a greatest hits event: We’ll be playing songs from my PBS interstitials, some of our older most requested band tunes, plus a bunch of fun new songs from our brand new CD, Orangutan Van!”

As a partner in a youth fitness campaign called  “Recess Rocks,” Mr. Steve promotes healthy living habits through his music. WGBY welcomes families to learn some dance moves ahead of time and post their own “Recess Rocks” videos on Facebook before or after the concerts.

Mr. Steve will perform live at the Springfield Museums in concerts at 11:00AM and 1:00PM. A “meet and greet” will follow each concert. Family activities at the Museums are planned throughout the day. More information is available at the WGBY website.

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Calling All Choirs for Season 3 of WGBY’s Together In Song

WGBY is pleased to announce a third season of Together In Song and share details on how you and your choral group might be able to be a part of the excitement and fun.

Musical Groups dedicated to the enjoyment of choral music, and who are based in Western New England (the WGBY service area of Western MA, Northern Connecticut, Southern Vermont and New Hampshire) are eligible for consideration.   Applicants should upload a 2-4 minute video clip of their ensemble to YouTube, MySpace, or Facebook.   Submissions on DVD will also be accepted.   The deadline for submission is November 21, 2012.   Choirs that participated in previous seasons may submit entries for Season III.

Choirs selected for participation in Together In Song will be brought into the WGBY Studios to have a performance taped to air on television.  For additional details, check out the Together In Song Call for Entries.  We’re looking forward to your submissions!!

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High School Never Sounded so Good!

In a part of America that rarely makes headlines, there is a small town with a group of teenagers who will captivate your ears and warm your heart. Mariachi High (I.D. 2314) is a DVD that presents a year in the life of the champion mariachi ensemble at Zapata High School on the Rio Grande in South Texas. Their playing will inspire, surprise and bring you to your feet! Borrow this video for a month by clicking here.

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Music Resources for Learning

Music filling the classroom can be a great way to capture students’ interest and, when integrated into the curriculum, enhance their learning. At PBS LearningMedia, you’ll find scores of music resources for all grades such as:

Music and Multiple Intelligences  (Grades PreK-13+) This resource includes a definition of multiple intelligences and two videos providing examples of using students’ musical intelligence for learning.  By addressing multiple intelligences in lesson plans, teachers are able motivate all students to learn.

We Are the Music (Grades 3-4) Explore music and dance sequences of 11 cultural groups who have settled in Santa Fe, New Mexico over the past 700 years in diverse communities such as the Native Americans, Spanish, Crypto-Jewish, Celtic, German, Greek, Japanese, Tibetan, the Central Americans. All performers and narrators in these segments are of school-age.

Point of View – Sharing a Perspective on  Music (Grades 6-12)  In this lesson plan and video, students share opinions on music and write two critiques of a band playing the “St. Louis Blues,” one from their own point of view and one from that of a music critic, reflecting upon how their point of view influenced their opinion.

We also want preschool educators and parents to know about PBS Kids Rocks!, PBS Kids’ first music album, available on iTunes and Amazon.  Each song is designed to help kids learn about a variety of topics to bolster their reading and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) skills.

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Video Lending Library Feature: VIOLIN MASTERS: Two Gentlemen of Cremona

During the late 17th and early 18th century, two violin makers from the same small town were making the most sought-after instruments ever created. This riveting documentary, narrated by Alfred Molina, tells the story of Stradivari and Guarneri in a production as beautiful to listen to as it is to watch. Borrow Violin Masters – Two Gentlemen of Cremona, I.D. 2273, from the WGBY Video Lending Library by clicking here.

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Lesson Plan: “Chuck Vanderchuck’s Something Something Explosion” teaches musical concepts

Dust off your claves and join Chuck Vanderchuck’s band to play some caliente salsa music. Chuck Vanderchuck’s “Something Something” Explosion is a new PBS web-only program accompanied by games and lesson plans that teach basic musical concepts, music composition, and performance skills. Along with Chuck and his friend Ramona, explore new musical styles from around the world, including salsa, reggae, jazz, rock, and country. Students will learn about different instruments used for each musical style and the history and geography of that style, and play games where you identify instruments, write lyrics, compose melodies, create costumes, and play in a virtual concert with Chuck and Ramona.

The Chuck Vanderchuck’s “Something Something” Explosion has complementary lesson plans on ear training, music composition, lyric writing and more.

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