Materials: Handout (click to download), Map of New Orleans (optional)

1. Begin by asking students if they have ever heard of jazz? Do they know what jazz is? Can they name any jazz musicians? Have they ever been to a jazz concert? Give the definition of jazz, emphasizing that the music was born in New Orleans.
2. Have students read aloud or silently the opening paragraph of the accompanying handout (click above to download). Explain that New Orleans was home to many different types of people, each with their own culture and style of music and out of this mixing together of different cultures came jazz.
3. Introduce Charles “Buddy” Bolden as the historical figure for the lesson. Have a student or students read the biography from the handout aloud to the class.
4. It is now time for the group activity. The types of music touched on in the reading are listed in the activity column and correspond to specific examples listed below. Put the students in groups, either randomly or in groups with students of similar ability. As a class, come up with the definitions of the following words: melody, harmony and rhythm. If your students are not advanced enough for this, you can simply give them the definitions or have them read them aloud from the glossary.
5. Using the definitions as guidelines, have the students come up with a musical “profile” of each genre of music. You will play each example and allow students to discuss the characteristics of each genre, using the definitions as guideposts for their discussions.   They can keep track of their group’s thoughts by writing them in the workbook.

After you have finished, have a group discussion as to why each group profiled each type of music the way they did. Come up with a class “profile” for each musical genre.