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New: Intermediate 1 Curriculum

  • Jun 22
  • 2 min read

Check out our new middle school curriculum!


In this newsletter:

New Product:

Intermediate 1 Curriculum for Middle School


Designed to be completed independently by your student, Intermediate 1: Jazz and the Rise of Recorded Music is a 36 week, literature-based, open-and-go middle school music appreciation curriculum. This course is both rigorous and fun, covering American popular music of the 20th and early 21st century (especially jazz), the science and history of recording, and introductory topics in music theory. With cross-disciplinary learning in history, science, and literature, this music appreciation course is one-of-a-kind! Visit the Intermediate 1 Course page to learn more about this fantastic new course for middle school.


Free Sample:

Intermediate 1

Intermediate 1 Sample Bundle (Curriculum Guide & Student Workbook)

If you are interested in viewing a sample of Intermediate 1, you can download a sample PDF of the Curriculum Guide and Student Workbook pages below. This sample includes a course overview and sample pages from Week 3.


Sale:

20% off Intermediate 1 Curriculum


Intermediate 1: Jazz and the Rise of Recorded Music is available for family use in both print and digital formats! For a limited time, Intermediate 1 is available at 20% off in both formats. The sale begins today, June 22, 2026, and ends on June 30, 2026.


Intermediate 1 Curriculum Guide and Student Workbook, Intermediate 1 Books, Banner "Intermediate 1 is Here!" and 20% off sticker

Learn more about the various formats of Intermediate 1 below:


Sale
Intermediate 1: Bundle (Digital)
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Sale
Intermediate 1: Curriculum Guide (Print)
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Sale
Intermediate 1: Student Workbook (Print)
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We also carry the complete Intermediate 1 Book Bundle at 15% off retail prices.


Intermediate 1: Book Bundle
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Interested in using Intermediate 1 for a group? Visit our Groups page or contact us!

Other News and Updates


  • Primary B: Jumpin' Jazz to Hip Hop (Grades K-2) and Elementary B: Ragtime to Rap (Grades 3-5) are in the works! Make sure you are subscribed so you don't miss any new releases!

  • Our existing curriculum prices are increasing at the end of June. Snag your curriculum before June 30 to make sure you get the best price!

  • Looking to use a Music Comes Alive curriculum in a group setting? We offer group licensing options for co-ops, private schools, and other group settings. See our Groups page.

  • We are delighted to offer Alfred Music products, especially the Alfred Premier Piano books. If you are looking for great piano resources, including lesson, theory, performance, and technique books, check out our Piano page.


Soli Deo Gloria,

Signature Emma R. James

Emma R. James, Ph.D

Founder, Music Comes Alive


New to Music Comes Alive?

Don't miss out on future updates and sales! Subscribe to our newsletter today!



Looking for an easy homeschool music curriculum?


Look no further! Consider our beautiful curriculum offerings. With engaging books, a curated listening list, fully written-out lesson plans, and bonus internet links for more learning, Music Comes Alive makes it easy to add music to your homeschool!


Check out all of our homeschool music curriculum products!


Primary A: Curriculum Guide (Print)
Learn More
Primary A: Activity Pack (Print)
Learn More
Primary A: Bundle (Digital)
Learn More
Primary A: Book Bundle
Learn More
Elementary A: Curriculum Guide (Print)
Learn More

Elementary A: Activity Pack (Print)
Learn More
Elementary A: Bundle (Digital)
Learn More
Elementary A: Book Bundle
Learn More


Bring the joy of music to your homeschool!

Music Comes Alive logo

 
 
 

Intermediate 1 Curriculum Releases on June 22, 2026!

  • Jun 17
  • 4 min read

We're so excited to release our first middle school curriculum!


In this newsletter:

Release Date:

Intermediate 1: Jazz and the Rise of Recorded Music


Friends, I am so excited to announce that we have a release date for Intermediate 1: Jazz and the Rise of Recorded Music, our first middle school curriculum! Intermediate 1 releases on June 22, 2026. This curriculum is both rigorous and fun, covering American popular music (especially jazz), the science and history of recording, and introductory topics in music theory. Read on to learn more about this one-of-a-kind curriculum!


Intermediate 1: Jazz and the Rise of Recorded Music, Coming June 22, 2026! Soft watercolor background

We will be announcing a limited-time new product sale with the release of this curriculum. Make sure you are subscribed to our newsletter so you don't miss any of our announcements and updates!



Learn More About Intermediate 1 Curriculum

Intermediate 1 Curriculum Guide & Student Workbook covers

  • Topics covered in Intermediate 1

    • History Lessons: Learn about American popular music during the 20th and early 21st centuries, focusing primarily on jazz and touching on other popular styles such as pop, rock, country, bluegrass, CCM (Christian Contemporary Music), and hip hop.

    • Listening Assignments: The playlist for this course is carefully cultivated for a middle school audience. Each week's assignment illuminates the history lesson. Additional Bonus Tracks are also recommended for further exploration.

    • Music Theory Lessons: Explore how music works, beginning with fundamental elements of music and proceeding to reading music (including rhythm, pitch, major & minor scales, key signatures, and more). No prior knowledge is required, but if your student already knows something about music, "Expert Challenges" are included on many Music Theory Worksheets to allow them to dive deeper.

    • Literature Study: Explore the impact of music in a middle-grade novel to wrap up the year.

Four books: A Child's Introduction to Jazz, Clayton Byrd Goes Underground, The Science of Song, and Help Your Kids with Music

  • Books used in Intermediate 1

    • The Science of Song: How and Why We Make Music by Allen Cross, Emme Cross & Nicole Mortillaro - Learn about the history of recording technologies and their impact on popular styles of music.

    • A Child's Introduction to Jazz: The Musicians, Culture, and Roots of the World's Coolest Music by Jabari Asim - An engaging look at the history of jazz, packed with information about musicians from early jazz through the current day.

    • DK's Help Your Kids with Music: A Unique Step-By-Step Visual Guide by Carol Vorderman - A visual guide to Music Theory, with colorful graphics and informative text. This course uses approximately one third of the book. Future courses (Intermediate 2 & 3) will use this book as well.

    • Clayton Byrd Goes Underground by Rita Williams-Garcia - A poignant coming-of-age story about a harmonica-playing boy, Clayton, who has one foot in the blues and another in hip hop. This book is used for a literature study at the end of the course.

"History" with a scroll, "Listening" with headphones, "Music Theory" on a five line music staff - headings from the Intermediate 1 Curriculum

  • How does it work?

    • Open-and-go & literature-based

    • Internet-linked, with playlists on Spotify and YouTube and bonus internet content for most lessons

    • Intended for the student to complete independently, but includes opportunities for parent/teacher engagement as desired

    • Curriculum Guide contains scope & sequence, week-at-a-glance pages with scheduled assignments, and answer keys

    • Student Workbook contains lessons, reading and listening questions, and music theory worksheets

    • Scheduled for a full academic year (36 weeks)

    • Takes approximately 40-60 minutes a week (at most)

    • Weeks 1-33 take a three-topic format: History, Listening, and Music Theory

    • Weeks 34-36 comprise a literature study of Clayton Byrd Goes Underground. These weeks use the following format: Story, Listening


Want an inside look into Intermediate 1? Swipe below to see sample pages of the Curriculum Guide and Student Workbook from Week 3: "The Emergence of Recording Technology (1910s)."

We are so excited to share this curriculum with you. As always, please feel free to reach out with additional questions at info@musiccomesalive.com or through our Contacts Form.

Other News and Updates


  • Stay tuned for a new product sale when Intermediate 1 releases on June 22!

  • Primary B: Jumpin' Jazz to Hip Hop (Grades K-2) and Elementary B: Ragtime to Rap (Grades 3-5) are in the works! Make sure you are subscribed so you don't miss any new releases!

  • Our existing curriculum prices are increasing at the end of June. Snag your curriculum before June 30 to make sure you get the best price!

  • Looking to use a Music Comes Alive curriculum in a group setting? We offer group licensing options for co-ops, private schools, and other group settings. See our Groups page.

  • We are delighted to offer Alfred Music products, especially the Alfred Premier Piano books. If you are looking for great piano resources, including lesson, theory, performance, and technique books, check out our Piano page.


Soli Deo Gloria,

Signature Emma R. James

Emma R. James, Ph.D

Founder, Music Comes Alive


Looking for an easy homeschool music curriculum?


Look no further! Consider our beautiful curriculum offerings. With engaging books, a curated listening list, fully written-out lesson plans, and bonus internet links for more learning, Music Comes Alive makes it easy to add music to your homeschool!


Check out all of our homeschool music curriculum products!


Primary A: Curriculum Guide (Print)
Buy Now

Primary A: Activity Pack (Print)
Buy Now

Primary A: Bundle (Digital)
Buy Now

Elementary A: Curriculum Guide (Print)
Buy Now

Elementary A: Activity Pack (Print)
Buy Now

Elementary A: Bundle (Digital)
Buy Now

Primary A: Book Bundle
Buy Now

Elementary A: Book Bundle
Buy Now



New to Music Comes Alive?

Don't miss out on future updates and sales! Subscribe to our newsletter today!



Bring the joy of music to your homeschool!

Music Comes Alive logo

 
 
 

Intermediate 1 Curriculum Coming in June!

  • May 27
  • 2 min read

Read on to learn more about our new middle school course.


In this newsletter:

Coming Soon: Intermediate 1: Jazz and the Rise of Recorded Music


We are so excited to announce the upcoming release of our first middle school curriculum, designed for grades 6-8. Intermediate 1: Jazz and the Rise of Recorded Music covers twentieth and twenty-first century American popular music, with an emphasis on the history of jazz and the history of recording technologies. This course also includes an introduction to music theory.


Intermediate 1 Jazz and the Rise of Recorded Music with music notes in background

Like all of our music appreciation curriculum offerings, our Intermediate 1 curriculum is literature-based. Weeks 1-33 each feature a history reading, a listening assignment, and a theory lesson.


Four books: A Child's Introduction to Jazz, Clayton Byrd Goes Underground, The Science of Song, and Help Your Kids with Music

A Child's Introduction to Jazz and The Science of Song provide the basis for the history lessons, and Help Your Kids with Music is the music theory spine. Bonus internet content and bonus listening tracks give your student opportunities to go deeper. During Weeks 34-36 your student will read the story Clayton Byrd Goes Underground, which integrates themes from the rest of the course, including the blues, hip hop, and instruments such as the electric guitar and the harmonica. As is the case with the history lessons in Weeks 1-33, listening assignments accompany each reading assignment.


Intermediate 1 Curriculum Guide & Student Workbook

Intermediate 1 is designed to be completed independently by the student, with opportunities for parent/teacher engagement as desired. In this course, the Student Workbook contains the instructional text for each lesson. History and listening assignments include questions which can be used for discussion or for written answers, and engaging music theory worksheets help your student put into practice their new music theory knowledge. This course does not require previous musical knowledge, but you will find "Expert Challenges" included on many of the music theory worksheets for students who have some prior experience. The Curriculum Guide for this course contains the scope & sequence, schedule, and answer keys.


Intermediate 1 will be released in June, so stay tuned for the release date!


Other News and Updates


  • Primary B: Jumpin' Jazz to Hip Hop (Grades K-2) and Elementary B: Ragtime to Rap (Grades 3-5) are in the works! Make sure you are subscribed so you don't miss any new releases!

  • Our existing curriculum prices are increasing at the end of June. Snag your curriculum before June 30 to make sure you get the best price!

  • Looking to use Music Comes Alive curricula in a group? We offer group licensing options for co-ops, private schools, and other group settings. See our Groups page.

  • We are delighted to offer Alfred Music products, especially the Alfred Premier Piano books. If you are looking for great piano resources, including lesson, theory, performance, and technique books, check out our Piano page.


Looking for an easy homeschool music curriculum?


Look no further! Consider our beautiful curriculum offerings. With engaging books, a curated listening list, fully written-out lesson plans, and bonus internet links for more learning, Music Comes Alive makes it easy to add music to your homeschool!


Check out all of our homeschool music curriculum products!


Primary A: Curriculum Guide (Print)
Buy Now

Primary A: Activity Pack (Print)
Buy Now

Primary A: Bundle (Digital)
Buy Now

Elementary A: Curriculum Guide (Print)
Buy Now

Elementary A: Activity Pack (Print)
Buy Now

Elementary A: Bundle (Digital)
Buy Now

Primary A: Book Bundle
Buy Now

Elementary A: Book Bundle
Buy Now



New to Music Comes Alive?

Don't miss out on future updates and sales! Subscribe to our newsletter today!



Bring the joy of music to your homeschool!

Music Comes Alive logo

 
 
 
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