Pete Seeger: One Man's Journey Through the Decades

Popular name: Pete Seeger, Music
Grade Level of Lesson: 7-12
Discipline: The Arts: Music

Standards and Performance Indicators Context

MUSIC

Standard #4: Understand the Cultural Dimensions and Contributions of the Arts

Performance Indicator: Students will develop an understanding of the personal and cultural forces that shape artistic communication and how the arts in turn shape the diverse cultures of past and present society.

Learning Objectives (which will become the dimensions/elements of the rubric)

Using the Pete Seeger website, students will prepare an oral presentaton about how song is used as a powerful tool in protest movements.
Students will pick a decade of the 20th Century and research it.
Students will find a song which was used in a protest movement of that decade.
In their presentation, students will explain what the song says about that decade.
In their presentation, students will describe the result or impact of the song on its times.
Students will read, sing, or otherwise perform their song for the class.

EXPLORATORY PHASE

Music Exploratory

Step One: Choose three very different songs. (e.g. "Come As You Are" by Nirvana; "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" by Charlie Daniels; and "Where Have All the Flowers Gone" by Pete Seeger)

Step Two: Have the students write down (in their journals or on a sheet of paper) a short list of words to describe how each song makes them feel.

Step Three: Distribute lyrics to the three songs and have students highlight and analyze the lyrics of the parts of the songs that make them feel the way they do with a partner.

Step Four: Ask students to discuss first with their partner, and then with a second set of partners the meaning of the Pete Seeger song.

Step Five: Explain the use of the song to the class and relate the lyrics to its purpose.

DISCOVERY PHASE

1. Introduce students to the "Pete Seeger: One Man's Journey Through the Decades" website.

2. Give them time to navigate the website.

3. Ask students to pick a decade of the 20th Century represented on the website, and then to find a protest song from that decade.

4. Students will prepare a presentation either individually or with a partner in which they:

perform the song in some manner
interpret the meaning of the song
relate the song to its decade/era
explain the events that inspired the song
describe the social impact of the song

Task Specifications for Developing the Student-Generated Product/Process:

Must perform the song by reading, singing, and/or some other way.
Must demonstrate a thorough understanding of the meaning and symbols of the song.
Must describe the conflict it reflects and the era in which it is set.
Must describe the events that inspired the song.
Must demonstrate understanding of the idea that music is shaped by culture, which in turn shapes culture.