TeachRock

Motivational Activity:

1. Ask students:
   • Have you ever heard the word “punk”? What comes to mind when you hear the word “punk?”
   • What do you think a typical Punk musician looks like? What do you think Punk music sounds like?
2. Play Clip 1, Three Musical Examples of Punk Rock, and ask students to take notes on what stands out to them for each of the three examples.
3. Divide students into groups of 2-3, and distribute Handout – Punk Word Map to each group. If requested, play Clip 1 again for the class to further group discussion.
4. While groups complete the handout, create on the board a similar word map to the one in the handout. Have each group share some or all of the word map they created with the classroom and copy their responses on the board to create a class-wide Punk word map.

Procedure:

1. Instruct students that in class they will be exploring the bands featured in the clip they watched: Death, Bad Brains, and X-Ray Spex. Then, they will be writing their own Punk lyrics based on the inspiration set by these bands.
2. Inform students that before they explore these artists, it is important to recognize some of the pioneers of Rock and Roll who helped set the groundwork for later pioneers.
3. Play Clip 2, “Hound Dog” by Big Mama Thornton with Buddy Guy. Then ask students: 
   • Have you ever heard this song before? If so, where? Was it Big Mama Thornton’s version, or another version?
4. Explain that while Elvis might still be best associated with the song, Big Mama Thornton performed it before Elvis. Thornton was someone who was loud and proud, and often played around with androgynous fashion.
5. Play Clip 3, “Tutti Frutti” by Little Richard. Ask students:
   • Have you ever heard this song before? If so, where?
6. Inform students that Little Richard considered himself the “architect of rock and roll.” A successful crossover artist of the genre, he bridged the gap between Black and white audiences with his unique showmanship and playing.
7. Ask students:
   • Using the word map the class created, what might make Big Mama Thornton “Punk”?
   • What might make Little Richard “Punk”?
8. Inform students they will now be exploring the artists they saw and heard at the beginning of the class. Split the class into groups, and have each group visit one of the following three stations below (if time, allow students to visit multiple stations). Inform students that they will be investigating a variety of materials for each artist, and they should be prepared to present what they discovered with the rest of the class. Teachers may distribute Handout – Station Activity Guide if desired.
   • Station 1: Death
     • Materials Packet
     • Video
   • Station 2: X-Ray Spex
     • Materials Packet
     • Video
   • Station 3: Bad Brains
     • Materials Packet
     • Video
9. After students complete the station activity, ask each group to share one or two things they learned about the band, or read aloud their completed Handout – Station Activity Guide.
10. Ask students to return to their groups and look again at the last section of their handout. Ask students to discuss with their groups what they know about the cities the musicians grew up in and to consider what challenges the musicians faced in their towns and cities.
11. After the group discussion, ask students:
    • What city did you discuss with your group? What did your group members know about it?
    • What were some of the challenges the Punk musicians faced in these cities? Can you relate to these challenges? Why or why not?

Summary Activity:

1. Return to the word map on the board. As a class, edit, amend, or add to the word map based on what they learned about Death, Bad Brains, and X-Ray Spex.
2. Ask students to identify one or two terms on the word map, and use those terms as inspiration to write their own Punk lyrics. Remind students to think about the challenges faced by the Punk bands X-Ray Spex, Bad Brains, and Death while writing their lyrics. Also remind them to consider their own challenges when writing the lyrics.
3. Once students have completed their Punk lyrics, ask for volunteers to share what they wrote. Then, have the class try and guess which terms from the word map inspired the lyrics. 

Extension Activities:

1. Explore the work of one of the below contemporary Black Punk Bands. Then create an infographic or write a one page paper comparing the band to one of the predecessors discussed in the class.
   • The 1865
   • MAAFA
   • Proper.
   • Rebelmatic
   • Pleasure Venom
   • Blk Vapor
   • Oceanator 
   • The Muslims 
   • This Is Your God (TIYG)

Handout – Punk Word Map Handout – Station Activity Guide Station 1: Death Station 2: X-Ray Spex Station 3: Bad Brains

Common Core State Standards

College and Career Readiness Reading Anchor Standards for English Language Arts

• Reading 1: Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
• Craft and Structure 4: Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.
• Integration of Knowledge and Ideas 7: Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media and formats, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.
• Integration of Knowledge and Ideas 9: Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Writing

• Text Types and Purposes 3: Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well-chosen details and well-structured event sequences.

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Speaking and Listening

• Comprehension & Collaboration 1: Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
• Comprehension & Collaboration 2: Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Language

• Language 1: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
• Vocabulary Acquisition and Use 4: Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases by using context clues, analyzing meaningful word parts, and consulting general and specialized reference materials, as appropriate.

National Curriculum Standards for Social Studies – National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS)

• Theme 1: Culture
• Theme 3: People, Place, and Environments
• Theme 4: Individual Development and Identity

National Standards for Music Education

Core Music Standard: Responding

• Interpret: Support interpretations of musical works that reflect creators’ and/or performers’ expressive intent.
• Evaluate: Support evaluations of musical works and performances based on analysis, interpretation, and established criteria.

Core Music Standard: Connecting

• Connecting 11: Relate musical ideas and works to varied contexts and daily life to deepen understanding.

National Core Arts Standards

Responding

• Anchor Standard 7: Perceive and analyze artistic work.
• Anchor Standard 8: Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work.
• Anchor Standard 9: Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work.

Connecting

• Anchor Standard 10: Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art.
• Anchor Standards 11: Relate artistic ideas and work with societal, cultural and historical context to deepen understanding.