Market Revolution: An Active Learning Exercise

We’re halfway through the semester at my wonderful, small liberal arts college. As my survey classes are almost ALWAYS filled with non-majors, I’m always trying to find new ways to engage my students in active learning exercises that they’ll enjoy. This week, we’re focusing on the Market Revolution (through the American Yawp: Chapter 8). I was flummoxed for how I might cover so many minute details, while still conveying the big picture.

So I decided, after showing them the CrashCourse video, that I’d let them do a little Choose-Your-Own-Adventure assignment. I allowed them to group up into small groups of 3 and gave the class a list of suggestions (including, but not limited to):

• Write a skit
• Create a series of political cartoons/comic strips
• Write a short story
• Create a Concept Map
• Create an interactive historical timeline
• Write a text message dialogue between two (or more) characters
• Write a series of poems
• Make a crossword puzzle (including the clues!)
• Create a digital collage with both historical AND modern images
• Create a soundtrack
• Write some historical newspaper articles

They had to take the larger themes/concepts from the chapter and present them through their medium in a convincing way. In the first section, I had 3 groups choose to create crossword puzzles and 3 groups choose to create a soundtrack.

First, the Market Revolution soundtrack, Vol. 1

The Spotify Link for your listening pleasure (a few songs are not on Spotify).

The Market Revolution: A Soundtrack, Vol. 1

Title	Artist
Smokey Factory Blues	Johnny Cash
In the Highway	Mother Maybelle Carter
9 to 5	Dolly Parton
Working Man	Rush
Immigrant Song	Led Zepplin
Run the World	Beyoncé
She Works Hard for the Money	Donna Summer
I’ve Been Working on the Railroad	John Denver
Missed Calls	Kid Ink
Takin’ Care of Business	Bachman Turner Overdrive
Money (That’s What I Want)	Berry Gordy & Janie Bradford
Modern Slavery	Travis Scott, Quavo
Cotton Fields	Creedence Clearwater Revival
Good Drank	2 Chainz, Gucci Mane, Quavo
Working on the Highway	Bruce Springsteen
Taxman	The Beatles
Pick it Up	Famous Dex
Tik Tok	Ke$ha
How to be a Millionaire	ABC
Working Man Blues	Merle Haggard
Computer Age	Neil Young
Hall of Fame	Will.I.Am
Fresh Air	Future
Whip It	Devo
Workin’ for a Livin’	Huey Lewis & the News
Steamboat Willie Whistle	Disney
I Will Survive	Gloria Gaynor
Sneakin’	Drake
Steamboat Song	Blue Water Highway Band
Money	Pink Floyd
Work	Rihanna
America	Childish Gambino
Movin’ Out	Bill Joel
Should I Stay or Should I Go	The Clash
Just a Girl	No Doubt
Heigh Ho	Snow White-Dwarf Chorus
Work Hard, Play Hard	Wiz Khalifa
Don’t Stop Believing	Journey
Selfish	PnB Rock
Swing Low Sweet Chariot	Etta James
We’re All in this Together	High School Musical
We’re Not Gonna Take It	Twisted sister
Lose Yourself	Eminem
A Hard Day’s Night	The Beatles
Kids in America	Kim Wilde
The Wanderer	Dion
America	Neil Diamond
New York, New York	Frank Sinatra
Working Day and Night	Michael Jackson
Stronger	Kelly Clarkson
Big Amount	2 Chainz & Drake
Respect	Aretha Franklin
I Need a Dollar	Aloe Blacc
Rich Girl	Gwen Stefani
Congratulations	Post Malone
The Star Spangled Banner	Francis Scott Key
El Chapo	Savage Realm
Brandy	The Looking Glass

I was impressed with their creativity. And they’re ready to discuss next class WHY they chose the songs that they did.

Market Revolution Crossword Puzzles

For the crossword puzzles, boy were some of them challenging! Here’s some screen shots of 2 of them:

UPDATE: Now with My Second Section!

It was a ton of fun comparing the soundtracks of both sections. There was, as I expected, quite a bit of overlap. But there were also some interesting points of divergence. In this section, I had 4 groups choose the soundtrack option. The last 2 groups chose to create crossword puzzles.

The Market Revolution: A Soundtrack, Vol. 2

One of the students created an awesome piece of artwork for the class soundtrack. That group dubbed the soundtrack: Dance, Dance Market Revolution. Here’s the other Spotify Link for you!

Title	Artist
Queen of the Field	Alicia Keys
I’m a Slave 4 U	Britney Spears
Redemption Song	Bob Marley
Don’t Stop Believing	Journey
I Need a Dollar	Aloe Blacc
Cotton Eyed Joe	The Chieftains, Ricky Skaggs
Freedom	Beyoncé & Kendrick Lamar
Work from Home	Fifth Harmony
B**ch Better Have My Money (BBHMM)	Rihanna
Old McDonald Had a Farm	Veggie Tales
Big Bank	YG
Work B**ch	Britney Spears
Started from the Bottom	Drake
Seize the Day	Broadway show “The Newsies”
Working Class Hero	John Lennon
Billionaire	Travie McCoy
She Works Hard for the Money	Donna Summer
U Can’t Touch This	MC Hammer
Babies in the Mill	Larry Penn, Darryl Holter
Work Remix	A$AP Ferg
Take this Job and Shove It	Johnny Paycheck
Revolution	The Beatles
Run the World	Beyoncé
Ain’t Your Mama	Jennifer Lopez
Another Brick in the Wall	Pink Floyd
Boys	Charlie XCX
Changes	XXXTentacion
Morning Train (9 to 5)	Sheena Easton
Sail	AWOLNATION
And the Beat Goes On	The Whispers
I Will Survive	Gloria Gaynor
This is America	Childish Gambino
When I Grow Up	Pussycat Dolls
Hello	Adele
Stronger	Kelly Clarkson
Le Freak	Chic
Takin’ Care of Business	Bachman-Turner Overdrive
R.E.S.P.E.C.T.	Aretha Franklin
Telegraph Your Love	The Pointer Sisters
Work Hard, Play Hard	Wiz Khalifa
Gold Digger	Kanye West
With God on our Side	Bob Dylan
ABC	Jackson 5
I’ve Been Working on the Railroad	Alvin & the Chipmunks
Fashion	David Bowie
Keep Your Head Up	Andy Grammer
Heigh Ho	Dwarf Chorus (Snow White)
Crazy Train	Ozzy Osborne
Empire State of Mind	Jay-Z, Alicia Keys
Reborn	Kid Cudi
Let’s Go to the Market	Nursery Rhyme
Natural	Imagine Dragons
Rock the Boat	Aaliyah
Tik Tok	Ke$ha
I’m on a Boat	The Lonely Island ft. T-Pain
Pursuit of Happiness	Kid Cudi
Life is a Highway	Rascal Flatts
Come Sail Away	Styx
Elbow Room	School House Rock
Working Day and Night	Michael Jackson
Country Roads (Take Me Home)	John Denver
Train Kept A-Rollin’	Aerosmith
Don’t Judge Me	Chris Brown
9 to 5	Dolly Parton
Party in the USA	Miley Cyrus

And:

More Market Revolution Crosswords!

The End

I gave the students the entire class to work on these. This was after we’d watched the video and had an introduction. The next class will consist of discussion of the assignment and a bit of lecture/Q&A. Let me know what you think of the in-class assignment. How might you implement it into your own classroom?

And if you’re looking for some additional ideas, check out the undergraduate assignment section of my page!