This kit of guided listening activities and streaming music offers an engaging way of introducing students to jazz. It traces Louis Armstrong's career as a musician, from influences in African rhythms and New Orleans marches through performances in the 1960's and 70's. It could also be used as an

Explore jazz through listening activities, interviews with musicians, and background information on SmithsonianJazz.org. Prominently featured on this site are two suites of learning activities: one focusing on Duke Ellington for elementary students and one focusing on Louis Armstrong for middle a

Children and adults can enjoy exploring the story behind one of America’s pioneers of jazz music, Duke Ellington, through children's literature, museum collections, and hands-on activities. Focused around Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra, a picture book biography of t

Use this guide to actively read Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra, a picture book biography of the Washington, DC native and jazz pioneer. Part of an OurStory module entitled Duke Ellington and Jazz, this activity includes discussion prompts, a glossary, and bac

In this activity, children will watch a short silent film recorded in 1930 and get a sense of a Harlem club during the Jazz Age. Part of an OurStory module entitled Duke Ellington and Jazz, this activity includes a link to a newsreel video from the Smithsonian Archives Center, discussion

Born in New Orleans in 1901, jazz musician Louis Armstrong (d. 1971)was known for his distinctive trumpet-playing and vocal style. He often improvised jazz riffs using his voice rather than his instrument, “scatting” notes and melodies rather than singing actual words. Armstrong transformed t

In this post, readers will discover the man and the reasoning behind what is now Black History Month, observed around the country every February.  Dr. Carter G. Woodson spent my of the early decades of the 20th century promoting the study and seriousness of African American histor

For a good part of the twentieth century, Harlem’s Apollo Theater was one of the most prestigious, important, and well-known venues for black entertainers. In this post, students will learn about the Schiffman family, who ran the Apollo from 1934 to 1976. In 1946, Frank Schiffman