Shakespearean Sonnets

This lesson is intended for students who are new to Shakespeare and his writing. In the lesson, students will read about sonnets, read and respond to specific Shakespearean sonnets, and explore the poetic elements - specifically meter and rhyme - of Shakespearean sonnets. This lesson was created by Tyler Barna as part of the 2020 NDE OER Workshop and was conceived from Maxx Stewart's lesson posted to OER Commons. It is designed for beginning Shakespeare students, typically in English Language Arts grades 8-10. It is expected that this lesson will take students 90 minutes to complete. All materials are linked digitally within the lesson. This lesson is written for students; "Student View" is the recommended output for this lesson. 

Material Type: Homework/Assignment, Lesson, Reading

Author: Tyler Barna

Visual Art During the Harlem Renaissance

This collection uses primary sources to explore visual art during the Harlem Renaissance. 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.

Material Type: Primary Source

Authors: Kerry Dunne, Lakisha Odlum

Tutorial Videos: Class Piano 2

Iowa State University's Class Piano & Piano Pedagogy teaching professor Dr. Janci Bronson has created a YouTube education channel, Dr. Janci Bronson on YouTube, designed to support student virtual learning within group piano and/or private lessons. Sponsored by the Miller Open Education Mini-Grant Program at Iowa State University, the channel covers the following key topics: beginning keyboard technique, sight-reading, transposition, scales, arpeggios, chords, harmonization, and improvisation. Note: each video comes with closed captions, brief descriptions, suggestions to related videos, and chapters (“show more” under the video description). We hope you may find these supplemental videos helpful to share with your group piano students. We welcome your feedback and suggestions to continue improving the videos.

Material Type: Lesson, Module

Authors: Iowa State University, Janci Bronson

Deepfakes: Exploring Media Manipulation

Students examine what deepfakes are and consider the deeper civic and ethical implications of deepfake technology. In an age of easy image manipulation, this lesson fosters critical thinking skills that empower students to question how we can mitigate the impact of doctored media content. This lesson plan includes a slide deck and brainstorm sheet for classroom use.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson, Lesson Plan

Author: Amit

Bomba: Género de música

Students will investigate musical genres in Spanish Speaking countries in order to better understand the history and influences that created the music, as well as the cultural connections/impact of the music today. Begin studying Bomba as a class and work through the investigation process together; then students can select a different genre of music to research and explore before creating a visual essay about their topic.The complete lesson plan included is the 4th class period of a 8-10 period unit of study; the complete unit slides are included in the resource folder with all readings, videos, etc. Lessons are in Spanish, but could be adapted for an English class with Spanish translanguaging as many of the videos are included with closed captions. 

Material Type: Lesson, Lesson Plan, Unit of Study

Authors: Kellie Rosenberger, Oregon Open Learning

Theme Analysis in Poetry

In this lesson students will learn about Louise Erdrich and then read her poem “Advice to Myself #2: Resistance.” As students read they will analyze how the writer uses words, phrases, and details to communicate a theme. Students will discuss the message of the poem in both small and large groups and discuss how the author’s literary choices help communicate this message. Students will then write about a message in the poem and explain what lines most strongly communicate that message as evidence to support their thinking.

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Authors: Deanna Delgado, Oregon Open Learning

Color Science

Overview of this lesson.

Material Type: Lesson

Authors: Disney Pixar, Khan Academy

Improvisation Recipe Book

The following recipes, or games, are intended to be used as reference and study for the college course: Improvisation. This format has been set up to help with ease of quick learning and immediate application. Bon Appétit! Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to: Identify Improvisational genres. Perform numerous and varying Improv games. Plan and Execute an Improv show. Evaluate performance. Examine and analyze aspects of the human experience and quickly construct an expression of that experience.

Material Type: Textbook

Author: Dan Stone

Actors and the Art of Performance

Performance Philosophy is an emerging interdisciplinary field of thought, creative practice and scholarship. The Performance Philosophy book series comprises monographs and essay collections addressing the relationship between performance and philosophy within a broad range of philosophical traditions and performance practices, including drama, theatre, performance arts, dance, art and music. The series also includes studies of the performative aspects of life and, indeed, philosophy itself. As such, the series addresses the philosophy of performance as well as performance-as-philosophy and philosophy-as-performance.

Material Type: Textbook

Author: Susanne Valerie Granzer

Topics in Performance Studies: Comedy Across Media

This multidisciplinary lecture / workshop engages students in a variety of approaches to the study and practice of performance as an area of aesthetic and social interaction. Special attention is paid to the use of diverse media in performance. Interdisciplinary approaches to study encourage students to seek out material histories of performance and practice.

Material Type: Full Course

Author: Stanley, James

Chicana Dance Crew Blends Tap and Mexican Footwork | If Cities Could Dance

La Mezcla is an all-female San Francisco dance company rooted in Latinx traditions, Chicano culture and social justice. Founder Vanessa Sanchez and the other dancers blend tap dance and zapateado or traditional footwork from Veracruz, Mexico, to create a style they call “zapatap.” Watch as they perform dynamic choreography in front of iconic Mission District murals and landmarks, then bring us back to the 1940s West Coast Zoot Suit era (popularized by Bay Area playwright Luis Valdez) when young Mexican-Americans or “pachucas” proudly repped Chicana identity and resistance, while defying cultural and style taboos. Rocking big hair and flashy zoot suits, the women of La Mezcla reclaim this early history, combining tap with son Jarocho Zapateado. If Cities Could Dance is a Webby Award-winning video series featuring dancers from cities across the United States. Step into the shoes of dancers from across the country who dare to imagine what it would look like if their city could dance.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Author: PBS Learning Media

Puerto Rico's Bomba, A Dance of The African Diaspora | If Cities Could Dance

Witness the unstoppable joy of dancing bomba, Puerto Rico’s Afro-Puerto Rican dance of resistance. Meet sisters Mar and María Cruz who are dedicated to the dance and its legacy of survival, and trace some of the communities where bomba is at its most vibrant, from the Santurce area of San Juan, to Loíza, the bastion of Afro-Puerto Rican culture across the Rio Grande.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Author: PBS Learning Media

Black Roller Skaters Are Carrying Forward LA's Iconic Scene | If Cities Could Dance

In Los Angeles, jam skaters draw from a community and culture built over generations at Venice Beach and at rinks across the city. Over the past year, roller skating hit the mainstream as a safe and relatively accessible pandemic-era pastime, its international popularity bolstered by people recording their shaky progress on social media. Skates were sold out for months, and skaters have become major influencers on Instagram and TikTok. But longtime skaters are quick to remind everyone: This isn’t a fad.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Author: PBS Learning Media

Theater Lighting Design | Drama Arts Toolkit

Take a behind-the-scenes tour of the Southeastern Theatre Conference (SETC) Design Competition and learn about the skills required for a career in lighting design.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Theater Projection Design | Drama Arts Toolkit

Take a behind-the-scenes tour of the Southeastern Theatre Conference (SETC) Design Competition and learn about the skills required for a career in projection design.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Author: PBS Learning Media

The Masks We Wear | Social & Emotional Learning: The Arts for Every Classroom

This activity from the Commonwealth Theatre Center in Louisville, Kentucky uses drama to explore what emotions we like to share with the world and what emotions we tend to keep to ourselves, and why. Students explore the six core emotions and learn that they are all valid but we can work on how we deal with them.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Boal | Drama Arts Toolkit

Boal is a play written and performed by high school students from the Central Academy of Technology and Arts in Monroe, North Carolina. Boal brings a variety of social issues to the stage, focusing on racism and Islamophobia. The play was inspired by Augusto Boal, a Brazilian theater director, writer, and politician. Boal was the founder of the Theatre of the Oppressed, a theatrical group dedicated to creating political change. The performance was taped as part of the High School Theatre Festival during the Southeastern Theatre Conference. Sensitive: This resource contains material that may be sensitive for some students. Teachers should exercise discretion in evaluating whether this resource is suitable for their class.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

No Hablo Español | Drama Arts Toolkit

Carmen must give a presentation in her Spanish 3 class for Hispanic Heritage Month, but she doesn’t speak Spanish. Is she less of a Latina, as some girls think? “No Hablo Español,” written by Rosa Estevez of Fairdale High School in Louisville, explores how language and cultural perceptions affect one’s sense of identity. It was among the seven short plays produced by the 2017 New Voices Young Playwrights Festival at Actors Theatre of Louisville.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Friday | Drama Arts Toolkit

Prom night brings an intense moment of connection for two teens, unleashing a flood of texts and social media posts. Things start to move rapidly. How much does this relationship really mean? “Friday,” written by Hannah Schmidt of Fern Creek High School in Louisville, considers the role of electronic communication in the confusion of teen romance. It was among the seven short plays produced by the 2017 New Voices Young Playwrights Festival at Actors Theatre of Louisville. Sensitive: This resource contains material that may be sensitive for some students. Teachers should exercise discretion in evaluating whether this resource is suitable for their class.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Ralph Ellison and the Black Arts Movement

In this video from the American Masters film Ralph Ellison: An American Journey, scholars discuss conflicts between Ralph Ellison and the leaders of the Black Arts Movement. Ellison was often criticized for prioritizing aesthetics over politics, putting him at odds with a younger generation of Black artists who had lost faith in the integrationist ideals of an earlier era. Sensitive: This resource contains material that may be sensitive for some students. Teachers should exercise discretion in evaluating whether this resource is suitable for their class.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Author: PBS Learning Media