Hamilton-Rapping the Revolution by Chris Mazzacane (Argentina ETA)
This lesson combines Broadway music with American history.
Using ‘Hamilton’ the musical, Chris Mazzacane teaches university students about the American Revolution in Jujuy, Argentina. Hamilton is an award-winning musical that incorporates rap and hip-hop to explore the life of American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton. Chris has this to say about the lesson,
“Every other week I present an optional, supplementary workshop for my upper level students. They have been studying the American Revolution in their U.S. History Class, and I thought it would be fun to use the Broadway musical ‘Hamilton’ to deepen their understanding of the historical context and important events in a fun way. We listened to six songs, analyzed their lyrics, and discussed the events and people that were mentioned. The workshop was a huge success, and I’m so excited I was able to incorporate my love of musical theater into my Fulbright experience.”
This lesson is designed for university-level students but may be used with secondary students with advanced English. Below is a link to the lesson outline which includes questions to lead student discussions.
Hamilton-Rapping the Revolutionary War LP (PDF)-University-Argentina-Chris Mazzacane-2018
Songs for ‘Hamilton’ can be found on Spotify or Youtube.
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