Summary
In this lesson, students will grasp the variety of pop music and its definitions. They will discover the history of pop music through some of its most iconic songs and explore the number one songs of different times and compare them to modern pop music.
⏰ Time: 50 min
🎓 Grades: 5-12
🎯 Objective(s): As a result of this lesson students will be able to...
- Understand that pop music comprises different musical styles;
- Describe the characteristics of pop music;
- Compare pop songs of different times.
💡 Required Prior Knowledge and Skills:
- Musical styles.
💻 Materials:
- Solfeg.io app best used with Chrome browser
- Projector or computer and access to Wi-Fi
Visual presentation
Inspiration
🕐 10 min - Defining pop music
- Ask students what their favorite pop musicians are.
- Students have a very important task today - they will have a go at creating the definition of pop music. Explain to them that even musicologists and music historians are struggling with defining what pop music is.
- Pop music is not a separate genre but a collection of the most popular and commercial music.
- Different genres and styles merge in pop music.
- Pop music is often defined in negative terms - it is what's left when all the other music forms are stripped away. For example, it's distinguished from classical or art music and from folk music.
- Find out students' opinions:
- In your opinion, what is pop?
- In your opinion, what isn't pop?
- Do you like pop music? Why/why not?
- Divide students in groups and invite each group to pick two words from the presentation that, in their opinion, characterize pop music. Attention: there are some words that are not usually tied to pop music! They don't exclusively define pop music either.
- Is the meaning of all the words clear? If not, answer students' questions or ask them to do research.
- Invite each group to shortly present the characteristics they have chosen.
- How is the word characteristic of pop music?
- Can you give any examples from popular songs?
Practice
🕐 5 min - Exercise 1 - After 2000s
- Explore the category After 2000's in the song library. Ask the class:
- Which song (-s) would you choose as characteristic of the decades after 2000? Why?
- Are these songs different from the historical pop songs you heard earlier? How?
🕐 10 min - Exercise 2 - Pop music family tree
- Invite students to explore the charts and find which song was the number one the year and the date they were born.
- You can use such websites as:
- Which songs were popular on the birthdays of their parents, grandparents and siblings?
- Students can draw a pop music family tree where these songs are mentioned.
- Find the songs online and listen to some excerpts.
- Do you like the song?
- Is it different from modern pop music? What are the differences?
- Students could finish this exercise after the lesson and present their 'pop tree' in the next lesson.
Reflection
🕐 5 min - Discussion
- What have you learned in the lesson?
- Regarding pop music, which period of time is your favorite?
Beyond the Lesson
Challenge students to go beyond the lesson by...
- Exploring the category 'Pop' in the sound library;
- Learning to sing a song of choice and/or play parts of its instrumental accompaniment;
- Finishing the 'pop music family tree'.
Summary
In this lesson, students will grasp the variety of pop music and its definitions. They will discover the history of pop music through some of its most iconic songs and explore the number one songs of different times and compare them to modern pop music.
⏰ Time: 50 min
🎓 Grades: 5-12
🎯 Objective(s): As a result of this lesson students will be able to...
- Understand that pop music comprises different musical styles;
- Describe the characteristics of pop music;
- Compare pop songs of different times.
💡 Required Prior Knowledge and Skills:
- Musical styles.
💻 Materials:
- Solfeg.io app best used with Chrome browser
- Projector or computer and access to Wi-Fi
Visual presentation
Inspiration
🕐 10 min - Defining pop music
- Ask students what their favorite pop musicians are.
- Students have a very important task today - they will have a go at creating the definition of pop music. Explain to them that even musicologists and music historians are struggling with defining what pop music is.
- Pop music is not a separate genre but a collection of the most popular and commercial music.
- Different genres and styles merge in pop music.
- Pop music is often defined in negative terms - it is what's left when all the other music forms are stripped away. For example, it's distinguished from classical or art music and from folk music.
- Find out students' opinions:
- In your opinion, what is pop?
- In your opinion, what isn't pop?
- Do you like pop music? Why/why not?
- Divide students in groups and invite each group to pick two words from the presentation that, in their opinion, characterize pop music. Attention: there are some words that are not usually tied to pop music! They don't exclusively define pop music either.
- Is the meaning of all the words clear? If not, answer students' questions or ask them to do research.
- Invite each group to shortly present the characteristics they have chosen.
- How is the word characteristic of pop music?
- Can you give any examples from popular songs?
Practice
🕐 5 min - Exercise 1 - After 2000s
- Explore the category After 2000's in the song library. Ask the class:
- Which song (-s) would you choose as characteristic of the decades after 2000? Why?
- Are these songs different from the historical pop songs you heard earlier? How?
🕐 10 min - Exercise 2 - Pop music family tree
- Invite students to explore the charts and find which song was the number one the year and the date they were born.
- You can use such websites as:
- Which songs were popular on the birthdays of their parents, grandparents and siblings?
- Students can draw a pop music family tree where these songs are mentioned.
- Find the songs online and listen to some excerpts.
- Do you like the song?
- Is it different from modern pop music? What are the differences?
- Students could finish this exercise after the lesson and present their 'pop tree' in the next lesson.
Reflection
🕐 5 min - Discussion
- What have you learned in the lesson?
- Regarding pop music, which period of time is your favorite?
Beyond the Lesson
Challenge students to go beyond the lesson by...
- Exploring the category 'Pop' in the sound library;
- Learning to sing a song of choice and/or play parts of its instrumental accompaniment;
- Finishing the 'pop music family tree'.
Summary
In this lesson, students will grasp the variety of pop music and its definitions. They will discover the history of pop music through some of its most iconic songs and explore the number one songs of different times and compare them to modern pop music.
⏰ Time: 50 min
🎓 Grades: 5-12
🎯 Objective(s): As a result of this lesson students will be able to...
- Understand that pop music comprises different musical styles;
- Describe the characteristics of pop music;
- Compare pop songs of different times.
💡 Required Prior Knowledge and Skills:
- Musical styles.
💻 Materials:
- Solfeg.io app best used with Chrome browser
- Projector or computer and access to Wi-Fi
Visual presentation
Inspiration
🕐 10 min - Defining pop music
- Ask students what their favorite pop musicians are.
- Students have a very important task today - they will have a go at creating the definition of pop music. Explain to them that even musicologists and music historians are struggling with defining what pop music is.
- Pop music is not a separate genre but a collection of the most popular and commercial music.
- Different genres and styles merge in pop music.
- Pop music is often defined in negative terms - it is what's left when all the other music forms are stripped away. For example, it's distinguished from classical or art music and from folk music.
- Find out students' opinions:
- In your opinion, what is pop?
- In your opinion, what isn't pop?
- Do you like pop music? Why/why not?
- Divide students in groups and invite each group to pick two words from the presentation that, in their opinion, characterize pop music. Attention: there are some words that are not usually tied to pop music! They don't exclusively define pop music either.
- Is the meaning of all the words clear? If not, answer students' questions or ask them to do research.
- Invite each group to shortly present the characteristics they have chosen.
- How is the word characteristic of pop music?
- Can you give any examples from popular songs?
Practice
🕐 5 min - Exercise 1 - After 2000s
- Explore the category After 2000's in the song library. Ask the class:
- Which song (-s) would you choose as characteristic of the decades after 2000? Why?
- Are these songs different from the historical pop songs you heard earlier? How?
🕐 10 min - Exercise 2 - Pop music family tree
- Invite students to explore the charts and find which song was the number one the year and the date they were born.
- You can use such websites as:
- Which songs were popular on the birthdays of their parents, grandparents and siblings?
- Students can draw a pop music family tree where these songs are mentioned.
- Find the songs online and listen to some excerpts.
- Do you like the song?
- Is it different from modern pop music? What are the differences?
- Students could finish this exercise after the lesson and present their 'pop tree' in the next lesson.
Reflection
🕐 5 min - Discussion
- What have you learned in the lesson?
- Regarding pop music, which period of time is your favorite?
Beyond the Lesson
Challenge students to go beyond the lesson by...
- Exploring the category 'Pop' in the sound library;
- Learning to sing a song of choice and/or play parts of its instrumental accompaniment;
- Finishing the 'pop music family tree'.
Summary
In this lesson, students will grasp the variety of pop music and its definitions. They will discover the history of pop music through some of its most iconic songs and explore the number one songs of different times and compare them to modern pop music.
⏰ Time: 50 min
🎓 Grades: 5-12
🎯 Objective(s): As a result of this lesson students will be able to...
- Understand that pop music comprises different musical styles;
- Describe the characteristics of pop music;
- Compare pop songs of different times.
💡 Required Prior Knowledge and Skills:
- Musical styles.
💻 Materials:
- Solfeg.io app best used with Chrome browser
- Projector or computer and access to Wi-Fi
Visual presentation
Inspiration
🕐 10 min - Defining pop music
- Ask students what their favorite pop musicians are.
- Students have a very important task today - they will have a go at creating the definition of pop music. Explain to them that even musicologists and music historians are struggling with defining what pop music is.
- Pop music is not a separate genre but a collection of the most popular and commercial music.
- Different genres and styles merge in pop music.
- Pop music is often defined in negative terms - it is what's left when all the other music forms are stripped away. For example, it's distinguished from classical or art music and from folk music.
- Find out students' opinions:
- In your opinion, what is pop?
- In your opinion, what isn't pop?
- Do you like pop music? Why/why not?
- Divide students in groups and invite each group to pick two words from the presentation that, in their opinion, characterize pop music. Attention: there are some words that are not usually tied to pop music! They don't exclusively define pop music either.
- Is the meaning of all the words clear? If not, answer students' questions or ask them to do research.
- Invite each group to shortly present the characteristics they have chosen.
- How is the word characteristic of pop music?
- Can you give any examples from popular songs?
Practice
🕐 5 min - Exercise 1 - After 2000s
- Explore the category After 2000's in the song library. Ask the class:
- Which song (-s) would you choose as characteristic of the decades after 2000? Why?
- Are these songs different from the historical pop songs you heard earlier? How?
🕐 10 min - Exercise 2 - Pop music family tree
- Invite students to explore the charts and find which song was the number one the year and the date they were born.
- You can use such websites as:
- Which songs were popular on the birthdays of their parents, grandparents and siblings?
- Students can draw a pop music family tree where these songs are mentioned.
- Find the songs online and listen to some excerpts.
- Do you like the song?
- Is it different from modern pop music? What are the differences?
- Students could finish this exercise after the lesson and present their 'pop tree' in the next lesson.
Reflection
🕐 5 min - Discussion
- What have you learned in the lesson?
- Regarding pop music, which period of time is your favorite?
Beyond the Lesson
Challenge students to go beyond the lesson by...
- Exploring the category 'Pop' in the sound library;
- Learning to sing a song of choice and/or play parts of its instrumental accompaniment;
- Finishing the 'pop music family tree'.
