LEO: Castles Made of Sand

BLUESONG GUIDE DESCRIPTIONRecorded in October of 1967 “Castles Made of Sand” is a beautiful ballad about impermanence and the ephemeral nature of existence. Science teachers could easily use the song to explore life cycles found in nature, while Mindblue suggests linking Hendrix’s powerful metaphor to a play like Macbeth or a novel like The Great Gatsby where the protagonists create their own “castles made of sand.”

This BlueSong Guide walks students through Hendrix’s use of imagery, symbolism and characterization. The included differentiated lesson plan offers a series of companion activities catered to multiple intelligences. For example, one activity asks students to create a PowerPoint® presentation comparing the transient lifestyles of the migrant farmers depicted in Of Mice and Men to the characters in Hendrix’s song.

THEMES/SUBJECTS

Impermanence

Change

LIT TERMS

Stanza

Metaphor

LITERATURE

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

The Red Pony by John Steinbeck

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

Macbeth by William Shakespeare

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