Africa & Its Influences, Jazz & America, and Considering the Postmodern

2000
University of Maryland, College Park

Welcome to Crossing Borders/Breaking Boundaries, a multimedia, online archive of interdisciplinary lesson plans, student work, and curriculum ideas created by and for secondary school educators in dance, music, theater and the visual arts.

The lesson plans in this archive were written by interdisciplinary teams of teachers who participated in a year-long institute (2000 to 2001) at the University of Maryland. Participants explored three rich and resonant topic areas--Africa & Its Influence, Jazz & America, and Considering the Postmodern--as they created art and curricula that would inspire and teach their own students to make connections between all of the arts disciplines.

The lessons can be viewed by Arts Discipline, Grade Level, Topic, or Team, and they include indicators of the Maryland Essential Learner Outcomes that they seek to fulfill. The archive also provides a list of Resources for arts educators who want to deepen their study of one or more of these topic areas. It includes, as well, detailed information about the institute schedule, faculty biographies, and workshop abstracts.

We encourage you to explore and enjoy this teaching resource, to visit often, and to write to us with questions or feedback.