With all the recent attention that Hamilton: The American Musical has been getting lately, I have been trying to find ways to utilize it in my American Government classes. For those who are not familiar with all of the awesomeness that is this play, Hamilton tells the story of our Founding Fathers by focusing on Alexander Hamilton's contributions to our nation and President Washington's cabinet. Instead of it being a traditional musical, it is written and performed entirely in rap music, and is cast to make our Founding Fathers more representative of our nation today (for example, Thomas Jefferson is played by a black man). I first learned about this a few years ago after watching the writer, director, and star of the play, Lin Manuel Miranda (who plays Hamilton on Broadway) perform the first track at the White House in 2009. To get a feel for how the entire musical works, watch the video below.
After listening to parts of the album on Spotify, it became very clear that this would be a PERFECT way to get kids engaged in governmental processes. For example, the musical turns one of the major debates in the Cabinet between Jefferson and Hamilton into a rap battle, and there is a full rap song devoted to the Election of 1800, which I always teach about each year during my elections unit. Playing any of these songs and having kids break down the meanings of the lyrics would be a fantastic exercise for any government teacher to do, and it will be something I do when I get to the Election of 1800 and when I explain the Cabinet during my Presidency unit. To listen to Hamilton in its entirety to find out how you can implement it into your classroom, click on the YouTube channel below or stream it through Spotify if you have (or your school has) an account set up.
Hamilton YouTube Channel
Hamilton Spotify Album
Hamilton YouTube Channel
Hamilton Spotify Album