MISSION
We empower teachers and engage students by using popular music to create interdisciplinary, culturally responsive education materials for all 21st century classrooms.
Launched by Little Steven Van Zandt and the Founders Board of Bono, Jackson Browne, Martin Scorsese, and Bruce Springsteen, the Rock and Roll Forever Foundation’s TeachRock curriculum helps more than 40,000 teachers of all subjects keep the arts in the DNA of every school system while engaging students and improving academic outcomes.
TeachRock is providing essential support to educators, students, and families during Covid–a record number of new and returning users have downloaded nearly 500,000 TeachRock resources in 2020.
“Music connects us, even when we must be apart. TeachRock curriculum has always used music to foster connections between students and teachers, and we’re going to use that power now to help keep them engaged, emotionally healthy, and learning.”
– TeachRock Founder, Little Stevie Van Zandt
Lesson Plan Collections
Use the search tools at the Lesson Collection page to quickly find material that is perfect for your classroom!
Featured Lessons
- How does John Legend and Common’s “Glory” signal Civil Rights movements of the past and the present?What is Afrofuturism and what are some of the cultural traditions and historical events that inspired and reinforced it?
“Alright” and the History of Black Protest Songs
Featured Artists: Kendrick Lamar,Billie Holiday,Nina Simone,Aretha Franklin,James Brown,Marvin Gaye,Public Enemy,N.W.A.How have black artists throughout the 20th century used music to speak about racial injustice in America?DAMN.: The Art and Importance of Storytelling
Featured Artists: Kendrick LamarHow do Kendrick Lamar’s album DAMN. and the work of photojournalist Gordon Parks tell stories that bring attention to social issues? - How has the image and history of the American cowboy been reclaimed in the 21st Century?
Blues, Poetry, and the Harlem Renaissance
Featured Artists: Langston Hughes,Robert JohnsonHow does Langston Hughes’ Blues-inspired poetry exemplify the ideals of the Harlem Renaissance?The Science and Civics of the Flint Water Crisis (Elementary/Middle School School Version)
Featured Artists: Vic MensaWhat is the Flint water crisis, and why did it occur?The Banjo, Slavery, and the Abolition Debate
Featured Artists: Dink RobertsWhat is the relationship between the banjo and slavery, and how did music making by enslaved people influence the abolition debate during the 18th and early 19th century?
- Featured Artists: Dink RobertsHow does John Legend and Common’s “Glory” signal Civil Rights movements of the past and the present?
- Featured Artists: Dink RobertsWhat is Afrofuturism and what are some of the cultural traditions and historical events that inspired and reinforced it?
- Featured Artists: Dink RobertsHow have black artists throughout the 20th century used music to speak about racial injustice in America?
- Featured Artists: Dink RobertsHow do Kendrick Lamar’s album DAMN. and the work of photojournalist Gordon Parks tell stories that bring attention to social issues?
- Featured Artists: Dink RobertsHow has the image and history of the American cowboy been reclaimed in the 21st Century?
- Featured Artists: Dink RobertsHow does Langston Hughes’ Blues-inspired poetry exemplify the ideals of the Harlem Renaissance?
- Featured Artists: Dink RobertsWhat is the Flint water crisis, and why did it occur?
- Featured Artists: Dink RobertsWhat is the relationship between the banjo and slavery, and how did music making by enslaved people influence the abolition debate during the 18th and early 19th century?
New Releases
- How did Westward Expansion and the idea of Manifest Destiny inform the image of the cowboy in American culture?
Dolores Huerta and The United Farm Workers Movement
Featured Artists: Alice BagWho is Dolores Huerta, what role did she play in the United Farm Workers movement, and how is she recognized today?The United Farm Workers Movement through Music and Poetry
Featured Artists: Alice BagWho is Dolores Huerta, what role did she play in the United Farm Workers movement, and how is she recognized today?A Veteran’s Soundtrack to the Vietnam War
Featured Artists: Sgt. Barry Sadler,Nancy Sinatra,Frank Sinatra,The Animals,Eric Burdon,Bruce SpringsteenHow did popular music amplify the voices and experiences of Americans serving in the United States Armed Forces during the Vietnam War? Toby Keith & The Chicks: Songs and Words During the War on Terror
Featured Artists: Toby Keith,The ChicksWhat were the different reactions to songs and comments by Country musicians about the September 11th terrorist attacks versus the Iraq War?What is Afrofuturism and what are some of the cultural traditions and historical events that inspired and reinforced it?Business with the Grateful Dead
Featured Artists: Grateful DeadHow did the Grateful Dead’s business practices create a dedicated fan culture and ensure the financial success of the group?The Birth of Hippie Culture in the 1960s
Featured Artists: Grateful DeadHow did the Grateful Dead reflect new ideas about life and society in the 1960’s?Supporting Sobriety in a Musical Community
Featured Artists: Grateful DeadWho are the Wharf Rats, and how do they exemplify the practices of sobriety, peer support, and community building within a musical fan culture?Math With The Grateful Dead
Featured Artists: Grateful DeadHow can math be used to better understand the Grateful Dead’s success?How has the image and history of the American cowboy been reclaimed in the 21st Century?Math with The Beatles
Featured Artists: The BeatlesHow can the Beatles’ growth in popularity be demonstrated with math?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesHow did Westward Expansion and the idea of Manifest Destiny inform the image of the cowboy in American culture?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesWho is Dolores Huerta, what role did she play in the United Farm Workers movement, and how is she recognized today?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesWho is Dolores Huerta, what role did she play in the United Farm Workers movement, and how is she recognized today?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesHow did popular music amplify the voices and experiences of Americans serving in the United States Armed Forces during the Vietnam War?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesWhat were the different reactions to songs and comments by Country musicians about the September 11th terrorist attacks versus the Iraq War?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesWhat is Afrofuturism and what are some of the cultural traditions and historical events that inspired and reinforced it?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesHow did the Grateful Dead’s business practices create a dedicated fan culture and ensure the financial success of the group?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesHow did the Grateful Dead reflect new ideas about life and society in the 1960’s?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesWho are the Wharf Rats, and how do they exemplify the practices of sobriety, peer support, and community building within a musical fan culture?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesHow can math be used to better understand the Grateful Dead’s success?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesHow has the image and history of the American cowboy been reclaimed in the 21st Century?
- Featured Artists: The BeatlesHow can the Beatles’ growth in popularity be demonstrated with math?