Published and Created by:
Cultures
+1 Age Levels Middle School (13 to 15 years old), Adults, High School (16 to 18 years old)
In this day and age, themed playlists are everywhere. Themed playlists are filled with songs that represent someone’s interpretation of the theme. This is similar to how historians choose the objects that fill the galleries within museum exhibits. The objects in the exhibit help support the historian’s interpretation of the exhibit’s topic.
In this Learning Lab, you will analyze primary sources by performing a close reading. Then, you will interpret the primary source by choosing a song (any song from any period, genre or artist) you believe connects it to the theme of the historical experience of African Americans and Juneteenth. This is a self-guided activity designed to engage historical thinking skills of analyzing and interpretation through music…
Press Play on History: Juneteenth
- Created by:
- National Museum of African American History and Culture
- Date Published
- June 14, 2021
- Last Modified
- November 05, 2021
- Description
-
In this day and age, themed playlists are everywhere. Themed playlists are filled with songs that represent someone’s interpretation of the theme. This is similar to how historians choose the objects that fill the galleries within museum exhibits. The objects in the exhibit help support the historian’s interpretation of the exhibit’s topic.
In this Learning Lab, you will analyze primary sources by performing a close reading. Then, you will interpret the primary source by choosing a song (any song from any period, genre or artist) you believe connects it to the theme of the historical experience of African Americans and Juneteenth. This is a self-guided activity designed to engage historical thinking skills of analyzing and interpretation through music.
Once complete, you will have the opportunity to submit your playlist to NMAAHC to possibly be featured on our website.
Keywords: NMAAHC, African American, press, historian, Juneteenth, Civil War, Jim Crow, segregation, military, soldiers, slavery, emancipation, freedom, Texas, celebration
- Notes to Other Users
-
For Students: You can complete this activity within a personal notebook.
For Educators/Parents/Guardians: This is an activity that students can complete with just their notebooks and writing utensil. After the activity is complete, you may wish to discuss with your student(s) their playlist selection and interpretation. You may want to play the songs and review the objects in the digital exhibit while completing this discussion. Students should be able to complete this activity in 2 to 3 hours. However, this activity can be shortened to an hour by choosing three or four objects to analyze and create a playlist.
This activity can also be used as a classroom warm-up exercise where all students analyze and interpret the same two objects. The students can compare and contrast their interpretations, and it can be emphasized how historians can have different interpretations and perspectives.
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