Popular Music Infusion Ideas

• Emily Langerholc
• Posted 11/16/20
• 0 comments

Do you want to incorporate more popular music into your music curriculum, but you are not sure how? Here are some helpful ideas to get you started. 

Movement 

Large-group movement activities are one of the simplest ways to incorporate popular music into your classroom. Additionally, these activities work well when social distancing. 

Steady beat games, exploring different locomotor movements, and simple line dance choreography become even more engaging activities when paired with popular music. Two popular songs that are a great starting point for movement are: 

• “Try Everything” by Shakira 
• “Can’t Stop the Feeling” by Justin Timberlake  

Emily Kinnunen, who teaches at Vista Pointe Elementary School in Orlando, has some great choreography ideas for these and many other songs. You can find some of those on her Instagram — @missksmusicroom — her YouTube channel or personal website.  

Slowing it Down 

Sometimes, when exploring locomotor movement, slow, intense music can help students control their actions.   

I recommend Janelle Monáe’s “Say You’ll Go.” This deep cut from Monáe’s first full-length album is lyrically appropriate for children, featuring spiritual terminology such as the Buddhist idea of nirvana. The song transitions into Debussy’s “Clair de Lune” in its last two minutes.  

If you want your students to experience this effect, I recommend starting three minutes into this six-minute song. Other ideas for using this piece of music include: 

• A background track for a breathing exercise. 
• Mindful movement 
• Mirroring or Partner work 

Additionally, the connection between this popular song and “Clair de Lune” might serve as a jumping off point to further exploration of Debussy and other classical piano music styles.  

“Sampling” of Jazz & Classical Music 

Many popular artists use recognizable classical or jazz melodies in their compositions, referred to as “sampling.”  Exploring these songs can provide a gateway to meld classical and popular music in the classroom. The Monáe song mentioned above is just one example.   

• Nas’ “I Can,” makes prominent use of Beethoven’s “Fur Elise.” Lyrically, Nas’ song discusses the challenges faced by young people and ways to overcome them. (Note: Some of the song’s lyrics use adult themes and language and may not be appropriate in an elementary setting but may work with older students in junior high or high school general music.) 

• “Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)” by Us3 is based almost entirely on a sample from Herbie Hancock’s 1964 recording “Cantaloupe Island.”  The lyrics are appropriate for elementary students bringing a hearty helping of old school hip-hop. This is one of 5th grade student’s favorites!  

If you are unsure where to start, here are some terrific online tools.  Both of these sites identify popular songs that use classical and jazz “samples.” 

• WhoSampled.com, a comprehensive, searchable database for musical samples of every era 
• HipHopMusicEd.com, founded & co-maintained by Jarritt Sheel, an Assistant Professor at Berklee College of Music 

What Do Students Want to Hear? 

Ask them. Darlene Machacon (on Instagram @thedarlingmusicteacher) is a huge proponent of this idea. She has tons of ideas for surveying students.  

Older students are able to use Likert scales in Google Forms.  Easily determine kids’ familiarity with musicians of different eras and let Google Forms automatically generate a spreadsheet.  I also decided to nerd out & calculate which musicians were the most familiar to them! 

Take a sample survey here. 

Once students’ surveys are complete, make a list and expand on their preferences! Members of the Association for Popular Music Education created a Spotify playlist for you to access.  

Hint: I had 8th graders create a musical biography. They selected five songs and shared what these songs meant to them. Then the students created a shared playlist, using Spotify or YouTube.  

What about younger students? 

Doug Robertson (on Twitter @theweirdteacher) created a cute and easy game called the “Bop or Flop” game. Teachers start class by playing a popular song.  Students indicate their preference in class by voting on whether the song played is a “bop” or “flop.”  

The concept can be attributed to teacher Erin Quinn (Twitter: @luckybydesign) and the name “Bop or Flop” to Veronica Miller (Twitter: @veronica3of5).  

This game works in person and on Zoom!   

Darlene Machacon @thedarlingmusicteacher gives Zoom tips. 

Elements of Music the Popular Music Way 

Ask students to listen for and identify musical elements in popular music. If you are learning about meter, play popular songs in 4/4, 3/4, or 6/8 time.  

Here are some of my favorites: 

• 4/4 time: Feist’s – “1 2 3 4”  
• 3/4 time: Billy Joel’s – “Piano Man”  
• 6/8 time: Alicia Keys’ – “Fallin”
  • R.E.M.’s – “Everybody Hurts,”  
  • A Great Big World’s – “Say Something,”  
  • Kelly Clarkson’s – “Break Away.”  
• Challenge Round – 7/4 time!
  • Broken Social Scene- “Shoreline” 
  • Peter Gabriel – “Solsbury Hill”  

Homework or Asynchronous Lesson Ideas: 

• Ask students to find songs in specific time signatures.  

I like to ask my older students to give me examples of songs they heard in various time signatures. Assuming the lyrics are appropriate, I share these songs with the class and the students analyze them.  

Seeing students excited about applying what we’ve learned in class to the music they hear every day is very rewarding.  

Musician of the Month  

Time to update your bulletin board the popular music way! Consider using Google Slides or class web pages to feature a Musician of the Month. Even better – let your students create slides featuring popular musicians. This idea works for online students too! 

Incorporating a musician of the month broadens student knowledge about a variety of different musical artists. Use this opportunity to shape student’s perception of music history and consider featuring underrepresented composers. 

Here are some of my favorite Instagram inspirations to get you started. 

• Erin Cushing and Mandy Ferwerda (Erin’s Twitter: @ecushing527) at Oak Hall School in Gainesville, FL, give a great example here. Photo by Erin Cushing. 

• Michelle Rose (Instagram: @The_Musical_Rose) discusses the first recording of “Hound Dog” with her students, which was first performed by Big Mama Thornton. She also recommends using discussion questions like this with timers to keep her online classes engaged and well-paced (Rose, 2020, 26).  

• Sister Rosetta Tharpe, recently inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, as an Early Influencer of Rock & Roll? (Wald, 2020) is a favorite of my students. They love watching her performances and are amazed by her mad guitar skills.  

Why Should I Bother? 

Using popular music helps us connect to our students and make visible connections to music beyond our classrooms.  

While many Orff-focused teachers use folk music in the classroom, education leaders increasingly draw our attention to the benefits of popular music. Dr. Martina Vasil believes that the Orff-Schulwerk approach readily expands to include popular music. She maintains that popular music is a part of children’s cultural heritage (Vasil, 2020, 26). For that reason and so many others, popular music belongs in our classrooms. 

Conclusion 

As education continues to be redefined it is essential to offer high-quality music instruction to our students and ensure our curriculum remains relevant. Including a well-planned infusion of popular music is one way to accomplish this goal. 

Note: While I have always believed in using popular music in the classroom, I am also inspired by other talented music teachers on Twitter & Instagram. I have included their information and hope you will consider letting them inspire you too – so please check them out and tell them I sent you!  

References 

Classroom board photo courtesy of Erin Cushing and Mandy Ferweda. 

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame & Wald, G. (2020, April 14). Sister Rosetta Tharpe. Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/sister-rosetta-tharpe 

Rose, M. (2020). Teaching Music Online: A Comprehensive Guide for K-12 Music Educators. F-Flat Books. https://fflat-books.com/product/teaching-music-online-a-comprehensive-guide-for-k-12-music-educators/ 

Vasil, M. (2020, Summer). The Role of Popular Music in the Schulwerk. The Orff Echo, 52(4), 24-29. https://zenodo.org/record/3831353/files/Vasil%202020%20Orff%20Echo%20Pop.pdf