ACTIVITY 8.1: HALLYU AND K-POP: A GLOBAL PHENOMENON

Students explore Hallyu, the Korean Wave, and analyze K-pop and Hallyu examples.

Activity Questions

  • What is Hallyu, the Korean Wave, and how is it impacting the global economy and global culture?
  • How is K-pop similar to and different from other genres of music?
  • How has the popularity of Korean culture and pop music shaped Korean American identity?
  • How has Korean culture and K-pop influenced your understanding of South Korea’s current status in the world?

Instructional Strategies

  • Use the Lesson 8: Korean Popular Culture in the United States (Activity 8.1) presentation to support this lesson.

Introduction to Hallyu: The Korean Wave

  • Review the activity questions.
  • Present lecture material introducing the topic of Hallyu.
  • OPTIONAL: Show the video A Brief History of Hallyu, which focuses on Korean films (6:47 minutes).

Hallyu Assignment

  • Provide students time in class to pair up and select a Hallyu example to research. Review the assignment with students and provide time in class or assign as homework.
  • Let students know they will select and research a specific example of Hallyu to share. Students will prepare a one-page report including the following:
  1. Title, author, and year originally published/created of the source.
  2. 50-word summary and description
  3. Reasons it has become internationally popular
  4. Whether the intended audience is children, youth, adults, or all the above
  5. Two images of the example
  6. One YouTube clip (less than 3 minutes long) of the example. Record the title, link, and time length on your report and submit the video clip URL to your teacher as required.
  • Have students share their reports and videos in class.

Introduction to K-Pop

  • Open the lesson by playing a song by BTS or BlackPink.
  • Present lecture material introducing the topic of K-pop.

Comparison/Contrast Activity

  • Distribute lyrics to Girls’ Generation’s “Mr. Taxi” and Kelly Clarkson’s “Breakaway.”
  • Play both musical videos and make them available for students to replay while completing the comparison/contrast activity.
  • Distribute and review the K-Pop/American Pop Music Comparison/Contrast Activity Worksheet and have students complete the worksheet in pairs or small groups.

Closing Activity

  • End class with a review and discussion of the activity questions.

Resources

Hallyu Research Assignment (PDF)

K-POP Comparison/Contrast Worksheet (PDF)

YouTube Video: Brief History of Hallyu (6:47 minutes)

YouTube Video: The Korean Wave: How South Korea is Dominating the Internet (9:08 minutes)

Lyrics Breakaway English (PDF)

Lyrics Mr.Taxi Japanese English (PDF)