EJD Music Students Learn About Spirituals, Create Own Verses

EJD Middle School students read clues to help their classmates navigate to different locations in the building during a music lesson about spiritual songs. Photo provided by CiTi.

PHOENIX, NY – After learning and singing spirituals, fifth-graders in Carrie Wilson’s music class recently put a creative spin on their lesson and created some spiritual verses of their own.

The Emerson J. Dillon Middle School students took their knowledge of spiritual songs to create a verbal map with clues for their classmates.

“The lyrics to ‘Follow the Drinking Gourd’ were a map song leading to freedom,” Wilson said. “Students worked in groups to write their own ‘map lyrics’ with secret starting and ending locations around the school.”

Using the lyrics from each group, the students navigated to different locations throughout the school. They relied on subtle hints to determine the correct destination.

“This was a great way to combine music with history and it provided our students with a fun opportunity to work together,” Wilson said.

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