Title:
My Blues
Materials:
CD and/or tape player, slide projector, blues selection (teacher’s choice: see discography), slides of the art work of Romare Bearden and William Johnson, readings from “Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin, a monologue from “A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry and samples of the poetry of Langston Hughes (see the bibliography for all literature), clay, paint, crayons, markers, pencils, glue sticks, white lined and colored paper of various sizes, scraps of material and magazines.
Steps:
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1. Teacher leads discussion about less frequently considered expressions of the Blues using the slides and literature mentioned above.
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2. Teacher places “express yourself materials” on work space.
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3. Using a blues musical selection for inspiration students are encouraged to express the feeling or the mood using some other medium, eg. a monologue, a painting, some movement, a collage, etc.
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4. If music evokes memory of a personal experience, students may express that.
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5. Play musical selection several times through if necessary.
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6. If time permits, students are encouraged to begin sharing and discussing results. If not, begin during next class.
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7. Share with another class!