When Music Becomes a Gateway to Learning

Building Outside the Blocks with History Beats

If you want to engage students, start with the things they love. For so many young people, that means music. Music is a universal language; it’s something that speaks to identity, emotion, and community. It’s also a powerful gateway to learning.

Over the years, I’ve designed a number of music-inspired Building Outside the Blocks (BOBs) projects, including my well-known Personal Playlist Project (the inspiration for my Personal Playlist Podcast and Play It Forward, my TEDx Talk ), Music and Lyrics, 3-Song Story, and History Beats. Each project takes students’ natural connection to music and turns it into a pathway for skill-building, creativity, and critical thinking.

The Origins of History Beats

I first conceived of History Beats while teaching MYP 2 Individuals and Societies in an IB school in Ontario. Balancing a globally minded school culture with the very Canada-focused history curriculum got me thinking: How can I widen the lens of history for my students while meeting curriculum expectations in literacy, research, and communication?

The answer: have students use music as a doorway into history. With History Beats, students choose a song with historical significance, annotate the lyrics, research multiple perspectives, and present their findings to the class. Along the way, they sharpen literacy skills (reading, writing, oral communication, media literacy), explore music analysis and, most importantly, learn to think critically about bias and perspective.

The last time that I facilitated this BOB was when I wasn’t teaching history. Instead, I found myself teaching music, something I am not formally trained to do, in a virtual classroom during the pandemic. History Beats became a bridge. It gave my Grade 8’s a way to meet music expectations (analyzing how musical elements contribute to meaning) while also developing research skills, critical thinking, and cross-curricular connections.

How It Works

I introduced the project with a brief outline and shared a list of “historical” songs students could start with, but they weren’t limited to the list. They had choice. From there, students signed up for a presentation date, worked independently, and then shared with their peers, like with all BOBs

For about a month, our virtual classroom became a space of discovery. Every few days, we listened to two presentations. The songs spanned genres and eras, from This Is America by Childish Gambino to Mississippi Goddam by Nina Simone, from London Bridge Is Falling Down to Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story from Hamilton.

The learning was truly global and deeply human. Through lyrics and research, students explored themes of racism, equal rights, war, rebellion, disease, colonialism, and Indigenous peoples.

What Students Learned

The impact of History Beats came through not only in their presentations but in their reflections:

• “The songs we had to choose had to have a historical meaning behind it, so we went deep into the history of the event the song was talking about.” – Andrew

• “We are combining literacy, music, history and communication skills. Now, when we hear new music we can analyze it through a new eye.” – Eva

• “This was a very powerful project because there were a mix of music and history components included. I think it’s important that we understand the events that happened in history so that we can in a way, predict the future.” – Melissa

• “History Beats was a smart way to combine music and history class together, learning about both important historical events and searching for parts of music in the song.” – Caiah

• “Each of us had a chance to teach another and that experience matters.” – Jake

• “I didn’t know what class I was in—it felt like history but also music and literacy.” – Felix

Why It Matters

History Beats demonstrates the power of music to connect students to content, to each other, and to the world. It’s:

• Cross-curricular – weaving together literacy, music, history, research, and communication.

• Student-driven – built on choice, autonomy, and authentic engagement.

• Global – expanding beyond the local curriculum to explore diverse perspectives.

• High-yielding – fostering not only academic growth but also critical competencies like organization, responsibility, and collaboration.

In a virtual classroom, it was especially powerful. It helped students meet multiple curricular expectations, strengthened learning skills, and prepared them for future projects like the Impact Project. It also embodied the global competencies of collaboration, critical thinking, and communication—reminders of what matters most in education.

Closing Beat

As one of my mentors reminded me, projects like these don’t just tick boxes; they fill classrooms with “music, love, and pride.” Music is history’s echo. It tells stories that textbooks can’t, inviting us to listen, analyze, and understand from multiple perspectives. Songs are living archives- melodies that carry the stories, struggles, and triumphs of the past into the hearts of the present.

That’s the heart of History Beats: students learning with and from one another through songs that illuminate the narratives of the past and spark meaningful conversations about the issues that shape our present.

Want to explore more of the musical BOBs? Check out my site.

I’ll be writing about all of my Building Outside the Blocks projects (BOBs) through this medium. Stay connected by subscribing.