Snow & Co, along with its partner, Muzzy Lane, is excited to announce that they have received one of five grants from the Library of Congress’s Lewis-Houghton Civics and Democracy Initiative to create the Music of US™ project. Press kit of photos can be found here.
This initiative supports the creation of resources for secondary school teachers and students to explore history, civics, and democracy through creative arts, especially music, using resources from the rich Library of Congress digital archives.
Bert Snow, Snow & Co Principal, said, “Music of US will provide tools to make the exploration of musical primary sources on screens available to secondary school educators and students across the country, and we will also create and pilot ‘episodes’ built with our new tools with secondary teachers and students this spring.”
The tools and episodes will enable learners to explore the music itself, and to make connections to the societal and historical contexts, movements, and personal histories that connect music with our democracy, civic principles, and life as a diverse nation.
Built on and hosted by the Muzzy Lane Author platform, the Music Of US Project will include:
- Music of US Episodes, in which students can explore facets of the music by tapping on “hotspots” on the music tracks as they play to discover more about the musicians, lyrics, and compositions, as well as the ways in which musicians have contributed to our civic life and what it has meant to be an American.
- The Music Of US Builder App will give students the tools to create their own “episode” projects, using music recordings they have made themselves or chosen from the Library of Congress archives. Students can add photos, images, and writing that illuminate aspects of the music, or connect it to its sources and history and create an interactive experience for others to “play.”
For the project, Snow & Co has assembled a diverse team, including Muzzy Lane, as well as the following educators and experts:
- Lynn Tuttle, Executive Director and CEO of the American String Teachers Association;
- Dr. Blair Williams, Director of Professional Development for the American String Teachers Association;
- Duane Padilla, Content Committee Chair of the American String Teachers Association;
- Jane Knox Mills, 2012 Connecticut Music Educators Association's Middle School Music Teacher of the Year and director of the Virtual Ensemble Project;
- Julie Schaul, education program developer specializing in primary sources work;
- James Sullivan, former Music and Arts critic for the Boston Globe and author of Which Side Are You On?: 20th Century History in 100 Protest Songs;
- Holly Golder, K-12 supervisor of social studies for the Red Clay, Del. school district;
- Barbara Kirby, director of the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources Eastern Region program; and
- Keith Patterson, director of the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources Western Region program.
“We’re proud to be part of such a distinguished, creative team,” said Dave McCool, CEO of Muzzy Lane. “We look forward to seeing how Music of US makes the study of music into a truly multidisciplinary exploration of our shared culture and history.”
About Snow & Co
Snow & Co helps its partners create effective technology solutions that engage learners and improve outcomes. Principal Bert Snow is an award-winning designer and leader with a history of innovation in digital learning and game design. Bert works with a network of colleagues to design and develop engaging, effective digital learning experiences that draw on learning science and the strengths of game design, while focusing on fitting into learners’ lives and meeting educators’ needs. For more information, go to BertSnowandCo.com.
About Muzzy Lane
Muzzy Lane provides content and tools to support the transition to skills-based learning and training. Our SkillBuild line of soft skills courses allow learners to practice and validate their skills, providing an industry validated microcredential upon the successful completion of each course. Our Muzzy Lane Author suite of tools enables partners to develop their own skills-based simulations and courses. These can be integrated into existing courseware or delivered as standalone learning experiences. Partners can award their own microcredentials to their learners as well. We have delivered more than 16 million simulations to millions of learners and would love to help with your skills challenges as well! Visit us at MuzzyLane.com to learn more.
About the Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the world’s largest library, offering access to the creative record of the United States, and extensive materials from around the world, both on-site and online. It is the main research arm of the U.S. Congress and the home of the U.S. Copyright Office. Explore collections, reference services and other programs and plan a visit at loc.gov; access the official site for U.S. federal legislative information at congress.gov; and register creative works of authorship at copyright.gov.
About the Teaching with Primary Sources Partner Program
Since 2006, the Library has awarded Teaching with Primary Sources (TPS) grants to build a nationwide network of organizations that deliver educational programming, and create teaching materials and tools based on the Library’s digitized primary sources and other online resources. Each year members of this network, called the TPS Consortium, support tens of thousands of learners to build knowledge, engagement and critical thinking skills with items from the Library’s collections
