Padlet: Pinterest for teachers. As
soon as this realization hit, I was hooked! My own Pinterest boards contain,
admittedly, desserts that will never be baked, crafts that will never be made,
and outfits that will never find a home in my closet. That is where Padlet has
Pinterest beat- its practical (as opposed to wishful) application.
My unit involved protest song
research and analysis. I chose this unit because I had observed a
Language Arts class that addressed this topic and wanted to understand the
process from the "inside out". I developed unit goals for my this unit
by broadening the goals of the lesson plan (i.e. a lesson goal was to identify contemporary
and historical protest songs; a unit goal was to analyze different literary techniques used in the songs). With my unit goals in mind, I formulated my open- ended essential
questions for the unit in such a way that they would generate discussion (i.e. requiring
the students to draw on personal experiences and observations).
Now, on to the Padlet itself! I
placed my unit goals, questions, and standards at the top of the Padlet as an
outline for the students. I included YouTube videos (with lyrics) of two well-
known protest songs as a way to engage students right off the bat. I also
included a "meme" that I thought would get a laugh out of them- and one
that is actually applicable to the lesson!
Padlets are wonderful, interactive teaching tool, and I
cannot wait to incorporate them into my lesson plans. Finally, my Pinterest skills will be put to good use!
http://padlet.com/lockwooda1/protestsongs
Hi Anne! I very much enjoyed your Padlet. I haven't figured out how to post my ideas on your actual Padlet, so I thought I'd comment from here for now until I can figure that out. I found two great books that I feel would really be great additions to your lesson.
ReplyDeleteThe first book is called "33 Revolutions per Minute: A History of Protest Songs, from Billie Holiday to Green Day" which I found on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/33-Revolutions-Minute-History-Protest/dp/0061670154
I felt this fit as an additional resource to your other materials and it has current rock bands like Green Day and very catchy title. As an ESL teacher, I would love to use this title to explain the double meaning behind “Revolution”.
The other is “Freedom Is Coming - Songs of Protest and Praise from South Africa (Collection)” which I found on ebay http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/Freedom-Is-Coming-Songs-of-Protest-and-Praise-from-South-Africa-Collection-sheet-music/3042301?d=sem_SFD&popup=false&mkwid=jreHWtEK&pcrid=47878898422&gclid=CjwKEAiA4rujBRDD7IG_wOPytXkSJACTMkga0Hl9EHY7GFAc_wUV9abGTTgvrNl46wOImDIS3l_uuxoCN8bw_wcB
I noticed that you have further reading of protests outside of the United States. This book contains the actual sheet music and lyrics in regards to South Africa.
This is such an interesting concept and I feel like it’s something that isn’t often talked about in language arts. It’s a great way of using something everybody can relate to, like music, and teach very valuable lessons. This reinforces identify various forms of expression – music is entertaining and you can use this entertainment to teach. My content of ESL is so different but I can find still find similar aspects in your lesson. One thing I haven’t really thought of was using music and focusing on lyrics. And also to use the word “revolution” as a teaching tool behind double meanings. My suggestions are just extra icing to an already awesome cake you put together.
Thanks so much for your feedback, Nick! Yes, for "further reading" I wanted to expand to music outside of the US, and the book you suggested about South Africa looks like it would be a great addition.
DeleteHi Anne,
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy about the prospect of teaching students about literary expression through protest songs. Some of the best music ever created was made in protest to something. Unfortunately - and this is just my opinion - it's a bit of a lost art. There are certainly protest songs being made (the entirety of the French metal band Gojira's discography revolves around environmental awareness) but I feel as though they aren't in as abundance as they once were. Your unit would give students the opportunity to listen to songs they might not have heard otherwise, and I think they will really enjoy learning what a powerful tool music used to be.
Music and art go hand in hand. By allowing students to bridge the gap between poetry, protest music, and visual art, no matter what their artistic inclination they should find an aspect they will enjoy. Hopefully by appealing to more students, the knowledge will be better absorbed.
Hi Bianca! Thanks so much for your comments- yes, I agree with you about bridging the gap between all artistic forms of protest. I included some protest poetry as part of the "further reading" but I think you're right that poetry should be included as part of the lesson itself. I didn't even think of including visual protest art, but that would be a great addition as well!
DeleteI think it’s a great idea to include songs in a lesson like this. It is so much easier to capture a student’s attention with some kind of media to draw them in. Music is commonly one of the most powerful influences on people’s thoughts, feelings, and actions. I think it’s interesting for the students to be able to compare the background and reasons for songs being written historically and currently. Some of the issues are similar, but there are many issues that are vastly different because of the changes in our societies. The first webpage I suggested shows how a current event such as the Michael Brown case can create an uprising within the music community for justice and action for equality. It identifies an issue and compares it to historical examples as stated in your goals. The second webpage removes the music aspect but focuses on poetry, which usually aims to accomplish similar goals. This collection of poetry helps meet nearly all goals of the lesson just like the first webpage. There is opportunity to identify literary means of expression, analyze writers’ literary techniques, identify historical issues, analyze styles and tones, and compare and contrast modern and historical songs or poems.
ReplyDeleteMatt, thank you so much for your comments! Yes, what I think is so interesting about a lesson like this is that it gives students the opportunity to understand the historical significance of songs that they may have heard a thousand times, but never really thought about what they mean before. On the flip side, it can also open up students' eyes (or ears in this case) to a whole other genre of music, and expression. Thank you for including the poetry page- I only included protest poetry as "further reading", but I think it would be a great addition to the lesson itself.
DeleteAnne, your Padlet seems like a very effective approach at introducing protest songs and the impact they have, and this is partly due to how you described the Padlet tool as a "practical application". The amount of information available as you scroll down literally defines generations and proves historically expansive and dense, sort of like gateways into what was going on politically through these eras which will most definitely prove to be effective springboards into research through whichever component of the Padlet immediately appeals to the student. As for additions, I focused on two different ways that would further expand the lesson outside of the United States. One is through an event that was relatively recent in the tribute of Nelson Mandela which resulted in a flash mob-esque singing of a song that was song in protest of Mandela's incarceration. It occurred in a South African owned supermarket, and it is bursting with cultural implications and research points. In regards to the Diaz novel, I found it as a recent (2007) version of what James Baldwin did in the 1960's with his literature--infusing it with blues music and the culture it envelopes that innately protests against the violent milieu that the works were written in. Diaz does it today through Dominican music, and overall culture, and arguing that the peaceful and beautiful nature of the music is what his culture should be recognized for, not the damaging machismo mentality that plagues the protagonist in that specific novel to death. This is incredibly personable, and shows protest songs in a different but equally effective form.
ReplyDelete