The oundtrack of Your Life
AP Psychology Assignment
This is an individual assignment. I will give you all of the
documents you need to plan and execute this task.
(Modified, with thanks for a lesson plan from Dr. Goering at University of
Arkansas)
Music motivates us, calms us, inspires us and at times, irritates us. You might think of it as the
backdrop against which we live our lives. Songs can bring vivid memories of people, places, and
events from our own past and serve to document our thoughts, feelings, and emotions at a
given time or place.
Part I: Brainstorm
Think about your life up until now. What major events have changed you, shaped your life,
influenced you, shook you? Create a list of events that made a difference in your life. Now
brainstorm songs that might fit these events. The lyrics must relate and not just remind you of
an event or period. (Remember to use school-appropriate songs—for example NOT Ceelo’s
original version, but the radio-safe “Forget You”)
Part II: Relate It to Psychology
Using your "imaginary soundtrack" of the events in your life, look through your textbook and
find at least eight psychology concepts that correspond with the songs and events you selected
Part III: Produce It
Just like a music producer, try to create the sequence of your chosen songs. Put some thought
into the order of your songs and the complete package you are presenting.
Assignment work: Find the lyrics. Make your playlist. Create the CD cover.
Part IV: Reflect
Now that you have created the soundtrack to your life, write a 1-page reflective essay that
explains why you chose the particular songs that you did.
Final Assignment Presentation: Prepare for your short presentation. Determine what part of
your soundtrack you will share (no more than 4-5 mins). Be prepared to explain why it is
meaningful. ** As we listen to the soundtracks, please remember that this is a personal
assignment in which students are really putting themselves into their final assignment. Be kind!
You will turn in
1) These planning pages completed
2) your CD of songs or online
playlist (include link on CD cover)
3) a creative CD cover
4) a page of lyrics (for all songs)
5) your 1-2 page reflective essay
DO NOT COPY AND PASTE FROM THE INTERNET—if you
do, you will earn an F for your final exam grade!!!
Calendar for our final AP Psychology Weeks:
May 13—Soundtrack Guidelines Review
May 13 Finish Awakenings Movie
May 14-19—Work days in class with laptops (can bring in your own)
May 20th, 21st & 22nd -- Presentation Dates
May 25 – MEMORIAL DAY – NO SCHOOL
FINAL EXAM BLOCK SCHEDULE:
Tuesday, May 26th – 1st Period – Final Exam
3rd Period – Final Exam – Additional Soundtrack Presentations
5th Period – Final Exam
Tuesday, May 26th - Temple Grandin
Wednesday, May 27th – 2nd Period – Final Exam – Additional Soundtrack Presentations
4th Period – Final Exam
6th Period – Final Exam
Wednesday, May 27th – Temple Grandin
Thursday, May 28th – 1st, 3rd & 5th Period Finals, continued
Friday, May 29th – 2nd, 4th and 6th Period Finals, continued
GRADING: We all know what a good, thoughtful assignment involves and what the
final product should look like. (NO typos, grammatically error-free, wellresearched and thoroughly prepared… ALL elements of Assignment Requirements
Addressed) see Grading Rubric below:
SOUNDTRACK PLANNING SHEET #1
SOUNDTRACK PLANNING SHEET #2
SOUNDTRACK PLANNING SHEET #3
Part III – Produce It
SOUNDTRACK PLANNING SHEET #4
Part IV: Reflect
Now that you have created the soundtrack to your life, write a reflective letter (addressed to
“Dear Listener,”) that explains why you chose the particular songs that you did.
For each song, you will need to reflect on the experiences, people, places, and
events that inspired this selection.
Make sure to underline each psychology term in your explanation.
Use the outline below to help you construct this letter.
The questions are only listed to help you begin writing. You do not need
to answer each and every question (or any of the questions!) as long as
you have sufficiently explained the topic of each section.
Explanation of yourself (One paragraph): This paragraph is basically a brief
autobiography: ·
o Who are you? ·
o Where are you from? ·
o Where are you now? Etc. etc.
Explanation of this soundtrack (One paragraph): This paragraph outlines your rationale or
purpose in creating this soundtrack: ·
o What is this album you have created? ·
o Why are you completing it? (because it is an assignment is NOT an answer!) ·
o What do you hope to get out of this assignment? ·
o What do you see yourself doing with this later in life? ·
o Who might your share it with?
Explanation of each song on the soundtrack (One paragraph per song): This section is made
up of many smaller paragraphs. Song by song be sure to explain: ·
o What is the name of the song and the artist? ·
o Why is each song important to you? ·
o How does each song connect to your life? ·
o What does each song reveal about the kind of
person you are and what you think is important in
your life?
Final remarks and reflection on the soundtrack as a whole
(One paragraph:) This paragraph is your conclusion in
which you should thank your reader for taking the time to
listen to your soundtrack and offer any final reflections
upon this assignment as a whole.
Homework: Find the lyrics. Make your playlist. Create the CD cover. If time allows, start your
reflective letter to explain why each event, song, and psychology term are important to you. You
may also determine what part of your soundtrack to present in the class.
SAMPLE
Part I: Brainstorm
Think about your life up until now. What major events have changed you, shaped your, influenced
you, shook you? Are there times that were wildly happy or incredibly sad? What moments have
made you shift in how you see the world? They may be huge like the death of a loved one or your
first day of high school. Or they might have seemed insignificant at the time like meeting your best
friend or starting to play a sport. Create a list of events that made a difference in your life.
Event 1 moving to Canada & living by myself without my parents or siblings
Event 2 first day of high school
Event 3 going to a Korean public school
Event 4 first day of KIS
Event 5 losing my grandfather
Event 6 being sick
Event 7 fire
Event 8 junior year
Now brainstorm songs that might fit these events. (Remember to use school-appropriate songs )
Song 1 가족 by 이승환
Song 2 Butterfly Fly Away
Song 3 청개구리
Song 4 혼자라고 생각말기
Song 5 Missing You by Brandy
Song 6 Love This Life by Crowded House
Song 7 말하는대로 by 유재석 & 이적
Song 8 So Small by Carrie Underwood
Part II: Relate It to Psychology
Using your "imaginary soundtrack" of the events in your life, look through your textbook and find at
least eight psychology concepts that correspond with the songs and events you selected.
Psych Concept 1 approach-avoidance conflict
Why? I was happy that I was able to live in a new place for a while, but sad that I had to be away
from my family
Psych Concept 2 self-fulfilling prophecy
Why? Because I thought I was more independent and mature, I may have influenced other people
to treat me as if I am more mature
Psych Concept 3 prejudice
Why? before attending korean public school, I had the prejudice that everyone’s going to be really
scary (i had heard so many scary stories about school) and I was fearful at first
Psych Concept 4 introversion
Why? because I am introverted and shy, I was afraid of having to make new friends all over again
Psych Concept 5 classical learning
Why? the day my grandfather passed away, my dad, sister, and I were at home and my mom was at the
hospital updating us on how my grandfather was. every time my dad’s phone rang, I was very scared that my
grandfather had passed away
Psych Concept 6 General Adaptation Syndrome
Why? I was really stressed before leaving for Vietnam, with SAT prep every single day. I was hardly hit with
sickness in Vietnam
Psych Concept 7 rationalization (defense mechanism)
Why? to protect myself from painful thoughts, I tried to come up with a beneficial result of the fire and tried
to be optimistic!
Psych Concept 8 Erikson’s Stages of Development (Identity v. Role Confusion)
Why? i am in my adolescent years (17) and is having role confusion, trying to define myself
Part III: Produce It
Just like a music producer, try to create the sequence of your chosen songs. For example, your songs might
be listed in the chronological order of the events they document, or they might be mixed together so that all
of the slow songs are not back-to-back. DO NOT just list them randomly. Put some thought into the order of
your songs and the complete package you are presenting.
Track 1 Song Title 가족
Event moving to Canada & living by myself
Artist or Group: 홍대광
Psych Concept: approach-avoidance
Track 2 Song Title Butterfly Fly Away
Event first day of high school
Artist or Group: Miley Cyrus
Psych Concept: self-fulfilling prophecy
Track 3 Song Title 청개구리 (Blue Frog)
Event going to a Korean public school
Artist or Group: Kim Bo Kyung
Psych Concept: prejudice
Track 4 Song Title “Don’t Think You’re Alone “
Event losing my grandfather
Artist or Group: Kim Bo Kyung
Psych Concept: Introversion
Track 5 Song Title “Missing You“
Event losing my grandfather
Artist or Group: Brandy
Psych Concept: classical conditioning
Track 6 Song Title “Love This Life”
Event being sick
Artist or Group: Crowded House
Psych Concept: General Adaptation Syndrome
Track 7 Song Title 말하는대로 (As One Says)
Event fire
Artist or Group: Drooping Snail
Psych Concept: rationalization (defense mechanism)
Track 8 Song Title “So Small”
Event junior year
Artist or Group: Carrie Underwood
Psych Concept: Identity v. Role Confusion (Erikson)
Part IV – Reflect (in this sample, none of the songs have quotation marks…make sure your songs
do / some things are also misspelled) Include psychological concepts in the discussion.
Letter of Reflection
Dear Listener,
… Thank you all for listening to my album. I am Michael Cho, a senior at Korea International School. I am 17 years old,
and was born in Seoul, Korea; although I currently attend an international school, I spent most of my life living in Korea.
I love playing sports and music itself. I love listening to it as well as playing it. I created this album out of my love
towards music and to have an opportunity to organize and look back through the different phases of my youth. Today is
the last day I will spend as a high school senior, and quickly approaching is the day marking the end of my high school
chapter.
I am a high school senior that will be graduating very quickly. Hence, before I go off to college and become more
independent and alone, I wanted to have a chance to sit and reflect about my past––what has changed, shaped and
influenced me? I would like to learn more about myself; I may have been a different person in the past, and I certainly
will be in the future. I want to see my growth from a more objective perspective. There were both enjoyable and
regretful moments in my life, and I would like to cherish all of them. In the future, I wish I could look back at this work
and be able to reflect once again. It would not have to be a thorough reflection, but a mere moment of thought and
reminiscence would be sufficient––like a time machine, taking me back into time. Also, I hope many people, especially
those who are wondering about decision making, get to see this album and look through my growth as a student and a
person.
The very first track of this album is Kids by MGMT. When I was 8 years old, my mother, my sister and I moved to
Vancouver, Canada. It was a result of the educational boom that was starting in Korea regarding English. My parents
back then thought that early exposure to a foreign language at its native environment would corroborate their child’s
learning of the language and possibly the culture. Hence, I went to Canada against my will, without any prior English
education. In the end, I did learn English. Considering that we only spent about a year at Canada, I did learn the
language well and the moving was a good choice. However, I began to develop an external locus of control within
myself. I thought that outside influences such as my parents and the environment had greater control over my life and
destiny than did my will and desire. I chose this song because it shows how environment shapes kids or people of any
age.
Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) by Green Day show how I changed over time. As I came back to Korea and attended
Korean public school, I realized that the education and the environment did not suit me. Hence, I courageously asked
my parents for transfer to a school with a Western ambience. I enrolled at Korea International School out of my own
will. This stark contrast in behavior shows my growth in the span of a year. I developed an internal locus of control; I
knew that I was the one responsible for this decision and that my new life at KIS will mainly and heavily depend on my
attitude and work ethic. I realized that my choices are what will bring changes in my life the most. This songs fits such
feelings because it talks about how there is always a consequence for an action and that we should give everything we
got to have the “time of our lives”.
The third track is Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007, composed by Johann Sebastian Bach, for unaccompanied cello.
Currently, many of my classmates, underclassmen and teachers know that I play the violoncello and that I have great
passion in it. However, this spark of fire was lit by this short piece, featuring cello, without any accompaniment. It was
back when was 8 years old. I heard this piece through a radio, and was fascinated by the tone of the instrument right
away. My career as an amateur cellist that began about a decade ago still continues, and I still have the same amount,
maybe more, of the passion. I continuously challenge myself to play more difficult songs at a higher level of perfection. I
strive to get better and I practice, even though nobody forces me to do so. I am achievement motivated to play the
cello, and now I cannot imagine myself living without my cello.
My fourth track is another classical piece. It is Elgar Cello concerto in E Minor, 4th movement, composed by Edward
Elgar. Every time I listen to this piece, I time-travel to winter of 2011. I was on stage with the Arte Youth orchestra. I
was performing a concerto with the orchestra’s accompaniment. While everything was going fine, my finger slipped off
the fingerboard due to my sweat. There was an awkward pause in the hall, and I blurted out “Ah”; I was that much in
panic. The audience, of course, giggled and I had to continue playing, holding my tears of embarrassment. This episodic
memory is now engraved in my brain. This definitely gave me a small trauma towards the stage, and I became
extremely nervous when I went on stage. However, I changed my perception; I began to practice more and started
image-training for my performances. The fear, thankfully, decreased. This painful experience taught me the value of
practice and preparation, as well as maintaing confidence.
My last classical piece, The Symphony No. 9 in E minor, From the New World, Op. 95, B. 178, 4th movement Allegro con
fuoco, composed by Antonin Dvorak, is one of my favorite classical pieces, but that is not the only reason it is included
in this album. Last summer, I did community service for the Sejong Harmony Orchestra. This orchestra, consisting of
low-income children that cannot afford instruments or even their meals, is funded by the Sejong Arts Center. It
benchmarks the “El Sistema” of Venezuela. The orchestra gives children free instruments, and even meals during their
weekly practices. I was mind-blown to see children who were initially quite and unmotivated change into an active and
passionate lovers of music. As a music lover myself, it was an unforgettable experience to spend time with these
children. All I could do was teach them how to play cello and play alongside them. I was definitely intrinsically
motivated, I was not paid but I loved the time I spent with those children. So, how does relate to this difficult
symphony? Unbelievably, the orchestra played that symphony on stage last summer. Because I know the amount of
tears and sweats that were put into the single piece, it is now played in my heart.
The world-class rock band Oasis’ Stand by Me is my sixth track. This song made it into the album because the lyrics of
this song literally stood by me during my junior year, which is infamous for its difficulty and workload. Although I began
the school year full of determination, life was a tough opponent. It beat me down to the ground every time I tried to get
back up and move forward. It felt as if I was predestined to fail. Regardless of my efforts, nothing worked out for me.
Grades dropped, relationships with friends and family enfeebled, along with my health; I sprained my ankle, suddenly
gaining weight. In essence, it was a horrible school year. Even basketball did not work out–I was benched the entire
season. I naturally developed learned helplessness, and thought that no matter what I did, I will continue to fail and
never rise. In such time of hardship, this song stayed with me. During the time when I needed the most support, this
song was there for me, despite being intangible.
Lose Yourself, a popular song by Eminem, highlights my experience with my beloved basketball team. Winter of 2012,
our team went overseas to participate in the AISA tournament. Winning a championship is the dream of any athlete,
regardless of the sport. Our team probably had more injuries than all the participating teams’ combined, and we could
not even bring our star player. Even though we started off the season awkward with each other, we bonded together.
We evolved from individual players to a true team that worked and fought for each other. We had our superordinate
goal, we fought for it, and we earned it. We are now a family of brothers.
My last song Good Ol’ 39 Days by The Script depict my happiness about my college acceptance. I worked hard for four
years in high school to achieve a goal; to get accepted to a prestigious university. It was due to the self-actualization
needs of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs that motivated me greatly to come this far. Such a feat would be considered
reaching one’s unique potential in high school standards, and I was definitely satisfied with the result. There were both
laborious and delightful moments during the four years. Just as the lyrics suggest, I now know that all those moments
will be the same good ol’ days in the future, and I will cherish all those memories.
Just like a lengthy book, life has its sections, or chapters. I already have finished my previous two large sections;
elementary and middle school. Now, I am about to mark a period in my third and final chapter of youth–high school. I
do not know how I will be in the future, but I know I will always strive to get better each day and bring about a change,
regardless of its significance and magnitude.
Once again,
Thank you.
Grading Rubric
STUDENT:
REQUIREMENTS
Planning Sheets
Brainstorm Events and
Link to Songs (Planning
Sheets)
Link to Psychological
Concepts
Response Paper
Explanation of Yourself
Explanation of
Soundtrack
Explanation of Each
Song on the
Soundtrack
15
10
5-0
You have brainstormed 8
events and 8 songs and
listed them in your
packet
You have successfully
linked all 8 events and
songs to a psychological
concept that makes
sense.
You have brainstormed
only 4 events and 4
songs and listed them in
your packet
You have successfully
linked 4 of the 8
events/songs to a
psychological concept
that makes sense
You have brainstormed
fewer than 4 events and
4 songs
You have answered
background questions
about yourself to provide
background knowledge.
Your explanation does a
great job of answering all
the questions and giving
a complete purpose for
this assignment
You have provided a
complete explanation of
each of your 8 songs
You have left out
significant details about
who you are
You have done a less
than satisfactory job of
answering the questions
“who are you?”
You have not provided
any explanation for why
you did this assignment
OR you simply said “I had
to for an assignment”
You have provided
incomplete explanations
for 4 or fewer songs, or
only provided
explanation for 2-3
songs.
You did not write a
conclusion
Final Remarks and
Reflection on the
Soundtrack
You wrote an insightful
conclusion
Presentation
You have designed a
thorough and creative
presentation
CD Cover has a creative
& original design that
reflects the content of
the songs on the CD
Songs organized in an
interesting manner
CD & Creativity
You have given an
average/mediocre
explanation for why you
have done this
assignment
You have provided an
incomplete explanation
for your songs, or you
have only provided an
explanation of 4-6 of
your songs
You wrote a lacking
conclusion
You presentation was
lacking in either effort or
creativity
CD cover lacks creativity
CD has 5-6 songs
arranged haphazardly
You have linked fewer
than 4 events/songs to a
psychological concept
that makes sense.
Your presentation was
severely lacking in both
effort and creativity.
No CD cover design or
lacks originality
Fewer than 4 songs on
the CD
COLUMN TOTALS
TOTAL
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