Overview

Crossroads is a groundbreaking interdisciplinary initiative that helps high school students make powerful connections between economics, U.S. history, and American music. Through lessons built on compelling Library of Congress primary sources—including historic photographs, recordings, and lyrics—students explore topics like unemployment, property rights, urban growth, and economic inequality with fresh eyes and ears.
Developed by the Georgia Council on Economic Education (GCEE) in collaboration with TeachRock, this collection offers classroom-ready materials that turn protest anthems, folk ballads, labor songs, and hip-hop verses into rich opportunities for critical thinking and inquiry. The project also includes in-person and virtual workshops for teachers across the country, with featured TeachRock presenters at select locations modeling engaging, arts-based strategies to bring these lessons to life.
Whether you’re teaching the Great Depression, the Civil Rights Movement, or the rise of consumer culture, Crossroads equips educators to help students see—and hear—the economic forces that have shaped the American experience.

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Lessons

lesson:
Living Here in Allentown: The Effects of Deindustrialization

Grades: High
Subjects: Economics

What is deindustrialization, what are its effects, and how is that process illuminated in the Billy Joel song “Allentown”?

lesson:
You Gotta Fight for Your (Copy)right!: Understanding Copyright and Fair Use

Grades: High
Subjects: Civics, Economics

What is a copyright and why is it important to the music industry?

lesson:
Who Owns a Movement? Political Protest Songs and Copyright

Grades: High
Subjects: Civics, Economics, Social Studies/History

What does the legal dispute over the song “We Shall Overcome” reveal about the complexity of copyright law?

lesson:
From Edison to Eilish: Vinyl Records, Disc Players, & Environmental Sustainability

Grades: High
Subjects: Economics

How can the conflict between consumer demand for music and environmental sustainability be seen in Thomas Edison’s production of Diamond Disc Players in the 1910s, and in Billie Eilish’s eco-friendly approach to vinyl records in the 2020s?

lesson:
Trade-offs of Urban Sprawl

Grades: High, Middle
Subjects: Economics, Geography

How does the Pretenders song “My City Was Gone” illustrate the trade-offs households and communities make when rural land succumbs to urban sprawl?