It Was All A Dream

Timothy Jones

level: Intermediate

57 minutes

The American Dream

Message from the creator Begin lesson

Lesson Tool Kit

MATERIALS NEEDED

song "American Heartbreak" by Black Thought feat. Ledisi

PDF of song lyrics

flip chart paper or white board to capture student idead (can also be done virtually via, for example, Jamboard)

pens or markers

blank 1.5 x 11 paper

PREWORK

watch/listen to "American Heartbreak" and read the lyrics

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

How do societal factors that are beyond a young person’s control impact their reality, views on life, and their dreams?

What happens to a person and or community when the dreams of striving become merely dreams of surviving?

OBJECTIVES

Students will analyze and evaluate text (lyrics) based on selected themes.

Students will express themselves in writing.

SOCIO-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

It is important as you go through the activities in this lesson that you do your part to ensure that no students use the information in this lesson to begin to doubt themselves, their abilities, and or their dreams. “Where obstacles present themselves, there is an opportunity for one’s character and courage to position themselves to conquer the obstacle.

Through text analysis of song lyrics, this lesson encourages students to examine how environment, experiences, and societal factors can influence their interpretations of The American Dream.

While we have built each lesson and workshop sequentially, feel free to tailor your exploration of them to suit your needs. You may choose to follow a lesson as provided from beginning to end or select sections of various lessons and combine them for a different approach.