Lesson Links
Brian Burns
TxDOT

Lesson: Texas Favorites
Song: What I Like About Texas
Artist: Gary P. Nunn
CD: The Best of Gary P. Nunn

TEKS

Social Studies
(7.9). Geography.
(A). locate places and regions of importance in Texas during the 19th and 20th centuries;
(7.21). Social studies skills
(C). organize and interpret information from outlines, reports, databases, and visuals including graphs, charts, timelines, and maps;
Language Arts
(7.13). Reading/inquiry/research. The student inquires and conducts research using a variety of sources.
(B). use text organizers, including headings, graphic features, and tables of contents, to locate and organize information
(C). use multiple sources, including electronic texts, experts, and print resources, to locate information relevant to research questions
(D). interpret and use graphic sources of information such as maps, graphs, timelines or tables to address research questions

Materials:

• Song and lyrics: What I Like About Texas
• What I Like About Texas research sheet
• Atlas
• Texas Online Handbook
• Textbook (Celebrating Texas)
• Texas Almanac

Procedures:

1. Listen to Gary P. Nunn's What I Like About Texas.
2. Assign What I Like About Texas research sheet.
3. Review resources such as textbook, atlas, almanac and online sources.
4. Allow students to work in teams to complete the sheet.

Extensions:

1. Have students write their own poem about the things they like about Texas.
2. Assign students to illustrate one of their favorite things about Texas.

Download: What I Like About Texas Research Sheet (doc)

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Lesson: Everywhere in Texas (Celebrating Texas: Chapter 3)
Song: I've Been Everywhere in Texas
Artist: Brian Burns
CD Title: The Eagle and the Snake: Songs of the Texians

TEKS

Social Studies
(7.9). Geography.
(A). locate places and regions of importance in Texas during the 19th and 20th centuries;
(7.21). Social studies skills
(C). organize and interpret information from outlines, reports, databases, and visuals including graphs, charts, timelines, and maps;
Math
(7.13). Underlying processes and mathematical tools.
(A). identify and apply mathematics to everyday experiences, to activities in and outside of school, with other disciplines, and with other mathematical topics

Materials:

• I've Been Everywhere in Texas song and lyrics (Visit Brian Burns for lyrics)
• Texas outline map (with scale for distance)
• map colors
• Texas highway map

Procedures:

1. Invite students to share information about a favorite Texas city or cities they have visited.
2. Listen to I've Been Everywhere in Texas.
3. Ask students to create a list of some of the cities mentioned in the lyrics.
4. Allow students to work with a partner (or small group) and combine lists.
5. Direct students to work with partners (or small group) to categorize the list. You may suggest categories such as cities I've visited, cities I would like to visit, cities that sound Spanish etc. Students should decide on 3 to 4 categories.
6. Assign the students to create maps of Texas cities. Students should place and label at least 3 cities per category.
7. Make a key using different colors for categories chosen in Step 5.

OR

1. Pass out outline maps of Texas.
2. Listen to I've Been Everywhere in Texas.
3. Partners write down one location in Texas they would like to visit from each geographic regions.
4. Students work to plan a round-trip road trip to the 4 spots.
5. Map the round trip route by labeling the highways.
6. Use the map's scale to label the distances between each city.

Extension:

• Using Texas highway maps, have students plan a Texas road trip. Students should map out their routes and label cities and highways. Students can then use the scale to measure the distance and use a speed of 60 mph to determine drive time between cities.

Downloads:

• I've Been Everywhere in Texas Worksheet (doc)
• Texas outline map (pdf)

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Lesson: Texas Rivers (Celebrating Texas: Chapter 3)
Song: The Brazos
Artist: Katy Moffat
CD Title: Travelin' Texas Volume 3

TEKS

Social Studies
(7.8). Geography
(A). Create thematic maps
(7.9). Geography.
(A). locate places and regions of importance in Texas during the 19th and 20th centuries;
(7.21). Social studies skills
(C). organize and interpret information from outlines, reports, databases, and visuals including graphs, charts, timelines, and maps;
Language Arts
(7.10). Reading/comprehension.
(D). describe mental images that text descriptions evoke (4-8);
(7.15). Writing/purposes.
(C). write to inform such as to explain, describe, report, and narrate (4-8);

Materials:

• Katy Moffat's The Brazos (or Townes Van Zandt's Texas River Song)
• Texas outline map
• Texas atlas

Procedures:

1. Listen to The Brazos
2. Create a 2 column table. The heading for column one should be River Names. The heading for column 2 should be River Descriptors.
3. Work in partners to list Texas rivers mentioned in the song.
4. Use the 2 column table you created to record the names of the Texas rivers mentioned in the song and words the singer uses to describe each river.
5. Using the 2 column table, a blank outline map of Texas and a Texas atlas to map the Texas rivers from the song.

Extensions:

• It seems as though the author has traveled along the rivers. Draw out a possible route that match the travelogue-lyrics of the song.
• Pick a river mentioned in the song. Research to discover its source and mouth. Identify the different regions through which the river travels. Write a story about a raft trip down that river. Draw a series of pictures showing various scenes along the float trip.

Downloads:

• Outline map of Texas (pdf)
• Texas River Song (doc)

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Lesson: On The Coast (Celebrating Texas: Chapter 3)
Song: The South Coast of Texas
Artist: Guy Clark
CD Title: Keepers

TEKS

Social Studies
(7.9). Geography
(C). analyze the effects of physical and human factors such as climate, weather, landforms, irrigation, transportation, and communication on major events in Texas.
(7.10). Geography
(A). identify ways in which Texans have adapted to and modified the environment and analyze the consequences of the modifications; and  
Language Arts
(7.10). Reading/comprehension.
(D). describe mental images that text descriptions evoke (4-8);
(7.15). Writing/purposes.
(C). write to inform such as to explain, describe, report, and narrate (4-8);

Materials:

• Lyrics (verses only) to Guy Clark's The South Coast of Texas
• South Coast of Texas Worksheet (optional; see Downloads below)

Procedures:

1. Read Mr. Clark's lyrics to the verses of The South Coast of Texas.
2. Analyze the lyrics to find examples of the 5 themes of geography.
3. Work in partners to complete a graphic organizer showing aspects of the 5 geographic themes as presented in Mr. Clark's song.
4. Listen to the song.

Extension:

• Write an original poem or lyric about another region in Texas.

Downloads:

• The South Coast of Texas worksheet (doc)
• The South Coast of Texas lyrics (doc)

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Lesson: Texas Categories
Song: Ohio (Come Back to Texas)
Artist: Bowling for Soup
EP iTunes: Who Likes Pizza?

TEKS

Social Studies
(7.9). Geography.
(A). locate places and regions of importance in Texas during the 19th and 20th centuries;
(7.21). Social studies skills
(C). organize and interpret information from outlines, reports, databases, and visuals including graphs, charts, timelines, and maps;
Language Arts
(7.13). Reading/inquiry/research. The student inquires and conducts research using a variety of sources.
(B). use text organizers, including headings, graphic features, and tables of contents, to locate and organize information
(C). use multiple sources, including electronic texts, experts, and print resources, to locate information relevant to research questions
(D). interpret and use graphic sources of information such as maps, graphs, timelines or tables to address research questions

Materials:

• Ohio (Come Back to Texas) lyrics and Tree Map template (doc)

• Texas map  Texas Online Handbook

• Textbook (Celebrating Texas)

• Texas Almanac

• Famous Texans (web page)

Procedures: 

1. Listen to Bowling for Soup’s Ohio (Come Back to Texas.)

2. Read the lyrics

3. Review resources such as textbook, atlas, almanac and online sources.

4. Allow students to work in teams to complete the sheet.

Extension:

Have students write petitions calling for someone to “come back to Texas.”

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