Classroom Music Lesson

Title of Lesson: Social Change Through Music

Teacher’s Name: Michael McCormick Grade Level: 12

Learning Goals

What Learners will…

Behavioral: ​By the end of the unit, the 12th grade students will be able to list the
musicians that have influenced social change in the 20th century with a success rate of 80%.

Cognitive: ​Students in the 12th grade music class will be able to interpret songs by 20th
century musicians and explain how they influenced social change.

Experiential: ​Students will compose a song that promotes positive social change, or
make their own arrangement (with new/original text) of a song from the 20th century, and
perform it for the class.

Constructivist: ​Students will realize the positive impact that popular music can have on
a society in regards to social justice.

Focusing Question

In what ways ​can music serve as a tool to create a more socially just community and society?

Materials

● Recordings of songs chosen by students

● SMART Board
● Sound system
● Computers and Sibelius or Finale

Assessment

Formative: ​Teacher monitors the quality of discussion and observes the process of
students creating their own arrangements of songs.
 Summative: ​The teacher uses a rubric to assess the final performances of the
arrangements that the students created.

Integrative: ​The teacher records his reflections and student thoughts during the learning
process and adjusts the plan when appropriate.

Process
Partner: ​Students bring in a song by a popular artist that they believe promotes social
justice. Teacher focuses the students by encouraging the students to pick out 1-3 examples in the
song that promote social justice/change. After the song plays, students will have a discussion
(led by teacher) regarding the points of social justice within the song with one another.

Present: ​After hearing multiple songs that students brought in, the teacher will ask what
common/different themes are between songs. This will lead into another discussion about what
social injustices are observed within our own society today. The students will then decide what
they could do within their own arrangements and compositions to encourage positive growth of
social justice.

Personalize: ​Using the computer lab, students will create their own
compositions/arrangements in groups or individually. The text must be centered around
promoting social justice and the texture, structure, and style of the piece should correspond with
the text. Then, students will perform their works for the class. The grading rubric will be used
to assess the students’ achievements.

Performance: ​Students present their own compositions/arrangements and reflect upon

one another through discussion after each performance.