Launched by Stevie Van Zandt and a Founding Board of Bono, Jackson Browne, Bruce Springsteen, and Martin Scorsese, TeachRock integrates the arts into K-12 curricula of all subject areas, bringing classrooms to life and improving student outcomes.
TeachRock is a nonprofit open educational resource. All TeachRock materials are free to use and are created thanks to your donations.
TeachRock curricula has been online and free since 2013 and was an essential resource for educators during pandemic school closures.
The first TeachRock Partner School launched in Fall 2019. There are now more than 100 Partner Schools in 5 states, providing arts integration curriculum, teacher training, and curriculum mapping services.
TeachRock:
- Is used in over 7,500 school districts & Over 22,000 schools across the country
- Has nearly 60,000 registered users at TeachRock.org
- Offers nearly 300 free lesson and unit plans (Elementary-AP/High School) in over 10 subject areas
Your donation helps educators use music to engage students in math, science, social studies, and more--you're making that "cool class" that gets kids excited, and involved, a reality.
Videos
Stevie Van Zandt on Why TeachRock Matters
A message from our Founder.
Orangethorpe
Watch Spectrum News coverage of TeachRock in action at Orangethorpe Elementary in Fullerton, CA, a TeachRock Partner School.
Engaging Students
Watch Ben Wides and his East Side Community High students use a TeachRock CNN Soundtracks lesson plan to trace the music of Kendrick Lamar back through several generations of Black music that engages issues of social justice.
Denver
See TeachRock founder Stevie Van Zandt explain Teachrock.org's history and mission to an audience of 350 teachers at Denver's Gothic Theater, on November 2018
Featured Lessons
lesson:
Chicana Punk and the Chicano Movement
What is Chicana Punk, how does it relate to the Chicano Movement, and how did it transform the Punk music scene?
lesson:
Brazilian Music and Culture in the United States
What is the influence of Brazilian music and culture in the United States?
lesson:
Contemporary Latin Artists and Activism
How are contemporary Latin artists pursuing activism and promoting positive change in their communities?
lesson:
Latin Music and Puerto Rican Migration to New York City
What is the history behind Puerto Rican migration to New York City in the 1940s and 1950s, and how did Puerto Rican migration affect American Popular Music?
lesson:
Mi Gente: Fania Records & New York Salsa Music
What is Fania Records, and how does it reflect the history of Spanish-speaking Caribbean communities in New York City?
lesson:
Westward Expansion and Country Music’s Hispanic Influence
What was Westward Expansion, and what effect did it have on American Popular music?
lesson:
Lydia Mendoza: Tejano Life and Music on the Mexico/Texas Border
How does Lydia Mendoza’s Tejano music connect to the history of Texas and the influence Mexico has had on that state?
lesson:
Colombian Cumbia: African, Indigenous, and Spanish Roots of Rhythm
What is Cumbia, and how do you play its traditional rhythms?
lesson:
Joropo: Music Inspired by Nature from the High Plains of Venezuela
What is Joropo, and how is it inspired by nature?
lesson:
Quitiplás: Deep Listening and Rhythm Building with Afro-Venezuelan Bamboo Drums From Barlovento
What is Quitiplás, how does it incorporate the natural world, and how is it an example of polyrhythm?
lesson:
ChocQuibTown: Embracing Cultural Identity through Colombian Rap
How can the music of ChocQuibTown, from the Pacific Coast of Colombia, help students express and celebrate their cultural identity through Rap?
lesson:
Ciranda: The Brazilian Music and Dance that Creates Community
What is Ciranda, and how can group singing and dancing help us feel like a part of a community?
New Releases
lesson:
Trade-offs of Urban Sprawl
How does the Pretenders song “My City Was Gone” illustrate the trade-offs households and communities make when rural land succumbs to urban sprawl?
lesson:
From Edison to Eilish: Vinyl Records, Disc Players, & Environmental Sustainability
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:
The Atomic Bombing of Japan during World War II featuring Krzysztof Penderecki
How has music and art represented the history and consequences of the U.S. atomic bombing of Japan during World War II?
lesson:
Who Owns a Movement? Political Protest Songs and Copyright
What does the legal dispute over the song “We Shall Overcome” reveal about the complexity of copyright law?
lesson:
You Gotta Fight for Your (Copy)right!: Understanding Copyright and Fair Use
What is a copyright and why is it important to the music industry?
lesson:
Living Here in Allentown: The Effects of Deindustrialization
What is deindustrialization, what are its effects, and how is that process illuminated in the Billy Joel song “Allentown”?
lesson:
Japanese Internment featuring Kishi Bashi
How did Japanese American veterans experience Japanese internment during World War 2, and how did music grant them resilience during this historic injustice?
lesson:
The War Effort featuring Frank Sinatra
How did U.S. industry mobilize to support for the nation's war effort during World War II, and what role did the music and entertainment industry play in this mobilization?
lesson:
The Holocaust featuring Anita Lasker-Wallfisch and the Women’s Orchestra of Auschwitz
What was the role of the women's orchestra in Nazi Germany’s Auschwitz camp during the Holocaust?
lesson:
World War II and Pearl Harbor featuring the song “Remember Pearl Harbor”
Why did the United States officially stay out of the beginning of World War II and how did the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor change that?
lesson:
Jimi Hendrix: Rock’s Trailblazing Innovator and Influential Guitarist
Who was Jimi Hendrix and how did he create his own innovative style in Rock music through the merger of different musical genres?
lesson:
The New Deal Featuring Blues, Country, and Folk Songs
What impact did the New Deal have on the United States during the Great Depression, what is the legacy of the New Deal, and how did songs reflect different feelings Americans had about the New Deal?