Ozark Water Projects – Turning Used Shoes Into Clean Water

“Stand By Me” - Playing For Change

Lesson Ideas – ICE BREAKER for any class
Background: “Playing For Change is a movement created to
inspire and connect the world through music. The idea for this project
came from a common belief that music has the power to break down
boundaries and overcome distances between people. In 2005, Mark Johnson was walking in Santa
Monica, California, when he heard the voice of Roger Ridley singing “Stand By Me.” Roger had so much
soul and conviction in his voice, and Mark approached him about performing “Stand By Me” as a Song
Around the World. Roger agreed, and when Mark returned with recording equipment and cameras he
asked Roger, ‘With a voice like yours, why are you singing on the streets?’ Roger replied, ‘Man I’m in the
Joy business, I come out to be with the people.’ Ever since that day the Playing For Change crew has
traveled the world recording and filming musicians, creating Songs Around the World, and building a
global family.
Creating Songs Around the World inspired us to unite many of the greatest musicians we met throughout
our journey and form the Playing For Change Band. These musicians come from many different countries
and cultures, but through music they speak the same language.” Source:
https://playingforchange.com/about/

Lesson Topics: Social Studies, Music, English, and Character Education

Social Studies Frameworks
K-4: Standard 8 Geographic Representations (special views of the world) & Standard 9
Human-Environment Interaction (place, region and culture).
5th-6th Grades: Standard 8 Geographic Representations (special views of the world)
7th Grade: Strand (world in special terms) Standard 1
Music Frameworks: Strand (Connecting) Standard 11 (society and culture)
ELA: Language, L.5.5.C Homographs, Reading Standard 1 (inferencing)

Lesson Ideas: Look at a world map, identify continents, countries, equator, oceans, etc.
Discuss the difference between countries and states. Have students name different states in the U.S.
Have them name different countries and identify their continent on a map. Discuss that countries
have different cultures and what culture means (definition found below).

**Play the video and have students count how many different countries are listed. Compare
answers. After playing the video look at the map on the website and see if the students were correct.
 Ozark Water Projects – Turning Used Shoes Into Clean Water
“Culture is the characteristics and knowledge of a particular group of people, encompassing language, religion,
cuisine, social habits, music and arts. The Center for Advance Research on Language Acquisition goes a step
further, defining culture as shared patterns of behaviors and interactions, cognitive constructs and understanding
that are learned by socialization. Thus, it can be seen as the growth of a group identity fostered by social patterns
unique to the group. ‘Culture encompasses religion, food, what we wear, how we wear it, our language, marriage,
music, what we believe is right or wrong, how we sit at the table, how we greet visitors, how we behave with loved
ones, and a million other things,’ Cristina De Rossi, an anthropologist at Barnet and Southgate College in London,
told Live Science.” Source: https://www.livescience.com/21478-what-is-culture-definition-of-culture.html What is
Culture By Kim Ann Zimmermann

Screen shot from Playing For Change: “Stand by Me”

Discuss what a street musician is and how location affects them. Discuss and compare what it would
be like to be a street performer in different areas such as New Orleans vs. Rural Arkansas.

Have students identify different instruments that they know; discuss the families of instruments
(percussion, brass, woodwinds, & string) and brainstorm instruments for each. Watch the video and
have students identify each instrument and family that it belongs to.

Discuss rhythm and beat. Have students play the rhythm of the song with their hands; this may be
done on different items such as their desks, legs, etc. They can also try drumming with their pencils
or on 5 gallon buckets turned upside down, etc. Check on the video to see how bucket drumming is
performed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJYTgrH_71U (elementary)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsAFV_bHPPY (high school)

Discuss that recording in a studio is frequently done by laying tracks one on top of the other. Discuss
that an artist often records his/her song and then other layers are added whether that be different
instruments or vocals. Explain that this allows mistakes to be corrected without everyone having to
 Ozark Water Projects – Turning Used Shoes Into Clean Water

redo his/her section, also allows for musicians to be in the studio at different times, and allows for one
musician/singer to play/single multiple instruments and sections.

Discuss that music is often used to bring diverse groups together and how it is used as a common
language between what often appears at first to be very different groups of people.

Introduce Homographs: explain that a homograph is a word that is spelled the same but has multiple
meanings. Example: bat (a mammal) bat (a wooden object to strike a ball) bat (an action hitting
another object sending it in the opposite direction). Have students brainstorm other homographs.
Discuss the word “change” and how it can be a homograph (money, make or become something
different). Read the background information to the students. Have students brainstorm ideas related
to the name of the video and website “Playing for Change” and discuss how the word change is used
to mean two different things here.

The Arkansas Department of Education requires Character Education to be integrated into the overall
academic program of the school. Many of the 12 principles can be addressed by this video as we
learn to respect others that are different than us, explore the idea of courage and what it means to
be courageous even in difficult situations especially when perseverance is needed, discuss what
compassion is and looks like and how we can express it toward those less fortunate than us, and
then how we can take an active role in helping others in both our community and around the world as
it is our social responsibility.
“The focus of Character-Centered Teaching (CCT) is to integrate lessons on character into the
school's overall academic program. Through CCT, character education is not an "add-on" program, but
rather an "add-in" program. The overall CCT approach involves 12 guiding principles. The principles
represent a common ground of basic understanding. The principles are common elements of society
regardless of political leanings, race, religious convictions or gender. The 12 guiding principles are
responsibility, contemplation, initiative, perseverance, optimism, courage, respect, compassion,
adaptability, honesty, trustworthiness, and loyalty.” www.arkansased.org

Discuss how you can “stand by someone” and be a friend, stick up for them, stop someone from
being teased, stand up for what’s right, etc.
Ask this question and discuss, “Is collecting shoes in Arkansas a way to stand by someone
else? How?” Other questions to consider for discussion, “How can we individually stand by the idea
of respecting water, water conservation, pollution, etc?”

Ozark Water Projects: Turning Used Shoes Into Clean Water For All Who Thirst