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Kwanzaa - What is it?
This celebration is not a festival originating in any of the 55 African countries nor is it an "African" Christmas celebration. Kwanzaa is an African Americans celebration of life from 26 December to 1 January.
Maulana (Ron) Karenga is the creator of Kwanzaa.
Dr. Maulana Karenga introduced the festival in 1966 to the United States as a ritual to welcome the first harvests to the home. Dr. Karenga created this festival for African Americans as a response to the commercialism of Christmas. In fact one might say that Kwanzaa has similarities with Thanksgiving in the United States or the Yam Festival in Ghana and Nigeria. The word "kwanza" is a KiSwahili (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania) word meaning "first."
Five common sets of values are central to the activities of the week: ingathering, reverence, commemoration, recommitment, and celebration. The seven principles (nguzo saba) of Kwanzaa utilize Kiswahili words: unity (umoja), self-determination (kujichagulia), collective work and responsibility (ujima), cooperative economics (ujamaa), purpose (nia), creativity (kuumba), and faith (imani). Each of the seven candles signify the principles. Like the Jewish Hannakah, candles are used to represent concepts of the holiday.
The symbols of Kwanzaa includes crops (mzao) which represents the historical roots of African Americans in agriculture and also the reward for collective labor. The mat (mkeka) lays the foundation for self-actualization. The candle holder (kinara) reminds believers in the ancestral origins in one of 55 African countries. Corn/maize (muhindi) signifies children and the hope associated in the younger generation. Gifts (Zawadi) represent commitments of the parents for the children. The unity cup (Kkimbe cha Umoja) is used to pour libations to the ancestors. Finally, the seven candles (mishumaa saba) remind participants of the several principles and the colors in flags of African liberation movements -- 3 red, 1 black, and 3 green.
Gifts are exchanged. On 31 December participants celebrate with a banquet of food often cuisine from various African countries. Participants greet one another with "Habari gani" which is Kiswahili for "how are you/ how's the news with you?"
For further information about Kwanzaa, write to the University of Sankore Press, 2540 W. 54th St., Los Angeles, CA 90043. A children's book about KWANSA by Deborah Newton Chocolate is available through Childrens' Press, 1990, Chicago.
Additional Resources Everything About Kwanzaa- http://www.tike.com/celeb-kw.htm Kwanzaa is a unique African American celebration with focus on the traditional African values of family, community responsibility, commerce, and self-improvement. Kwanzaa is neither political nor religious and despite some misconceptions, is not a substitute for Christmas. It is simply a time of reaffirming African American people, their ancestors and culture. It's Kwanzaa Time!- http://www.itskwanzaatime.com/ Welcome to It's Kwanzaa Time, Inc.'s web site. This site has been designed to help you obtained a deeper understanding of the Kwanzaa holiday. Includes sections on: Meaning, Statements, Debates, Pictures, Music, Events, and Comments. Kwanzaa 4 Kids- http://kwanzaa4kids.homestead.com/index.html Kwanzaa 4 kids offers an innovative look at Kwanzaa for children and their parents. Teaches the seven principles along with games, Kwanzaa crafts and recipes. As well as kwanzaa coloring, greeting cards and links to black history. Kwanzaa : An African-American Celebration- http://www.globalindex.com/kwanzaa/welcome.htm Kwanzaa (Quansa) is a holiday celebrated by many African-Americans. It is held December 26th through January 1st. It was started in 1966 by Doctor Maulana Karenga, Professor at the California State University, Long Beach, California. This site defines Kwanzaa, its principles, terminology, colors, and ritual. Also discusses the controversy about Kwanzaa celebrations. Kwanzaa Information Center- http://www.melanet.com/kwanzaa/ While the Kwanzaa celebration is a seasonal event, the principles used in celebrating are meant to be a year-round way-of-life. The Kwanzaa Information Center will remain year-round and will contain additional information as we strive to strengthen our families and communities. Kwanzaa Recipes- http://members.tripod.com/~Nancy_J/kwanzaa.htm Nancy J's recipes for Kwanzaa meals, with ingredients lists and cooking instructions. Make a Kwanzaa Card- http://www.chron.com/content/interactive/special/holidays/96/fun/kwanzaa.html Kwanzaa cards are sent to family and friends. You can make one to send. The Official Kwanzaa Site- http://officialkwanzaawebsite.org/ As an African American and Pan-African holiday celebrated by millions throughout the world African community, Kwanzaa brings a cultural message which speaks to the best of what it means to be African and human in the fullest sense.
African American Aesthetics: Kwanzaa Greeting Card ( A Printmaking Lesson
Plan)
Students learn the art of printmaking by creating cards for Kwanzaa.
http://www.phila.k12.pa.us/offices/african&american/afr-lessons-parkinson/af
r-lsns-park-kwan.html
A Christmas Celebration in the Black Culture
Kwanzaa is a relatively new holiday, and this lesson plan will make students
more informed about the celebration, its meaning and activities.
http://www.crpc.rice.edu/CRPC/GT/cjones/lessons/lesson1.html
Kwanzaa
Some suggested recipes to use for Kwanzaa.
http://members.tripod.com/~Nancy_J/kwanzaa.htm
Kwanzaa: An African American Festival
Make Kwanzaa come alive in the classroom with this website which explains
all about the holiday and its customs and has links to many lesson plans.
http://www.whyy.org/smc/allen/ZwanWeb/index.html
Units on African American Culture: Kwanzaa
Discover this virtual treasure trove of ideas and activities in this full unit on Kwanzaa.
http://www.courses.dsu.edu/eled360/publish/emilyh.htm
Africa Access
This electronic guide to children's materials on Africa is provided by
Africa Access, a bibliographic and review service that specializes in the
analysis of children's materials on Africa.
http://filemaker.mcps.k12.md.us/aad/
The African American Journey
A chronicle of Africans in America from early colonial times through the
present. "A comprehensive look at the history of African Americans and their
struggle for freedom. Numerous links to World Wide Web sites concerning
important figures and events in black history, as well as issues surrounding
current events." This site is maintained by World Book.
http://www.worldbook.com/fun/aajourny/html/index.html
The African Heritage Month
A unique perspective is provided on these pages because if offers the unique
point-of-view of African History through the eyes of the Canadian nation.
"Unique to this site are republished articles from the Ghana Review's Black
History supplement."
http://www.dal.ca/~acswww/dalbh.html
African Odyssey Interactive
Geared towards promoting interactive exchanges between artists, teachers,
and students of African art and culture.
http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/odyssey.html
African Resources for the Classroom, Boston University
Gives a number of resources and key curriculum ideas for teachers wishing to
teach about Africa and how the "European" world has considered the
continent. Features a list of handouts, key resource books, newspapers and
film reviews to assist in the lessons.
http://www.sas.upenn.edu/African_Studies/K-12/African_Resources_BU.html
African Americans Biography Book Reports from Mrs. Ohaver's 5th Grade Class
Included with the report is each child's artwork on a stamp commemorating
their chosen person, an audio file of comments, and a photo of each
child-author of the report.
http://www.inform.umd.edu:8080
Africans in America - PBS Special Series
Sponsored by Fannie Mae Foundation, the first comprehensive television
history of the international events leading to the growth of racial slavery
in the United States. Of particular interest is the Teacher's Guide included
in each segment. The guide includes questions and activities, lesson focus,
resources and a program index.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/home.html
The Amistad Comes to Life!
Activities across the grades and across the curriculum bring to life the
story of the revolt on the Amistad. Article by Gary Hopkins, Education
World, Editor-in-Chief.
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/lesson043.shtml
The Amistad Slave Revolt and American Abolition
"The true story of the Amistad is told in the context of the times in which
it took place in this new book for middle grade (5-9) students. A great
read-aloud for elementary and middle schoolers!"
http://www.education-world.com/a_books/books026.shtml
The Anacostia Museum
This museum's mission is to "increase public awareness of the Black
experience." It also examines the impact of contemporary urban and rural
issues such as housing, land loss, transportation, health care, and economic
development. See "Resources" section for lesson plans and teaching helps.
http://www.si.edu/anacostia/
Beyond the Playing Field: Jackie Robinson, Civil Rights Advocate
The National Archives and Records Administration highlight some of the many
contributions Jackie Robinson made to African-American civil rights as it
shares nine telegrams and letters written by this baseball star. Three sets
of lesson plans explore "Civil Rights History," "Character Education," and
"Civic Responsibility," providing the original documents, worksheets, activities, http://www.nara.gov/education/teaching/robinson/robmain.html
Black History
A site that hosts activities and resources for senior high students.
http://dcps.dade.k12.fl.us/www/inst/feb_sr.html
Black History Month
Brought to you by Pacific Bell, this site recognizes Black History Month,
and celebrates it by bringing you over 10 different Internet interactive
activities in respect to black history. Also includes a Black History
Treasure Hunt.
http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/BHM/AfroAm.html
Black History Past to Present
Take this quiz to see if you know of these major events in Black History.
http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/BHM/hunt.html
Black Saga Competition
Black Saga teaches students about the African American experience, the site
expressed it best by saying: "Most educators agree that students need to
answer key social studies questions: What happened in the past? How am I
connected to those in the past? How can the perspective we have about our
own life experiences be viewed as part of the larger human story across
time? The Black Saga Competition addresses these questions and others that
help students learn a more "inclusive" history, not simply for the sake of
"equal time" but because that is the best way to understand our past.
http://www.blacksaga.com/html/black_saga___the_competition.html
Brown vs. Board of Education: An Interactive Experience
A multimedia resource that places the visitor into the atmosphere and
turmoil of the Brown vs. Board of Education case. Learn what it was like to
go to school in the "separate but equal" environment through descriptive
story telling, photos, audio and video. This resource is for the K through
12th grader.
http://www.digisys.net/users/hootie/brown/
The Civil Rights Movement: A Black History Celebration
Just a fantastic assortment of projects to do with middle school students
relating to African American history and the civil rights movement. Students
can do formal essays, trivia games, quizzes, etc.
http://www.fred.net/nhhs/project/civrts.htm
Cooking History
"Back in this era, most African men were farmers, cattle raisers and
fishermen. Planting, sowing and harvesting crops were considered women's
work. Cooking was one of the most important skills a young girl needed to
learn. One traditional dish called fufu was made of pounded yams. Fufu was
served with soup, stew, roasted meat and different sauces. During this time
in history, cooking was done over open pits." This terrific site discusses
aspects of history from 300 A.D.-present. Recipes are included to make the
unit more exciting. A link to the main page Stamp on Black History Home Page will provide a teaching resource for stamp collecting but includes many
lessons to be used for teaching African history.
http://library.advanced.org/10320/History.htm
Course Syllabi Resource Bank (Institute on Race and Ethnicity, University of
Wisconsin - Milwaukee
They invite instructors to deposit their syllabi on the topic of Race and
Ethnicity. This database holds several lessons on Black history.
http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/IRE/Syllabi/africanam.html
Escape to Freedom: Teacher's Guide
The History Channel and Headbone sponsors this "multi-episode research
adventure using the WWW (or books)" that allows upper elementary and middle school kids to experience some of the realities of American slavery, the
flight for freedom, and the new challenges facing an escaped slave. Provides
the setting, background, learning objectives and curriculum, activities, as
well as links to other useful online resources for teaching students about
slavery and emancipation.
http://www.headbone.com/derby/teach/escape/
Fantastic Kids' Timeline of the Life of Dr. King by Buckman School
The kids in Room 100 created this on-line timeline, it features original art
created by the children, depicting events in Dr. Kings life.
http://www.pps.k12.or.us/district/depts/itss/buckman/timeline/kingframe.html
The Fight for Equal Rights: Black Soldiers in the Civil War
A lesson plans (K-12) from the National Archives and Records Administration
Digital Classroom Project.
http://www.nara.gov/education/teaching/usct/home.html
Footsteps: African American History
Footsteps offers online articles and interviews exploring African American
history, as well as interactive games and puzzles, which are free to
educators to use in their classroom. Also provides information on
subscribing to the print version of the magazine and purchasing other
resources geared for teachers.
http://www.footstepsmagazine.com/
A Gateway to African American History
Let your students learn African American history with the help of these
fabulous pages compiled by the North Kenwood/Oakland Charter School. This
site is both comprehensive and creative, spanning modern and ancient
history, painting, music, art and literature, and more. Elementary teachers,
be sure to visit the pages developed especially for younger kids.
http://charter.uchicago.edu/AAH/
Happy Birthday Martin Luther King!
Activities and links for learning about the life of the famous civil rights
leader!
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/lesson046.shtml
Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad
Designed by the students in Mrs. Taverna's second grade class at Pocantico
Hills School, this site includes a timeline, a quiz, character sketches, and
some crossword puzzles about Harriet Tubman. Also included are activity
ideas for incorporating the content into the classroom as part of an
interactive lesson plan.
http://www2.lhric.org/pocantico/tubman/tubman.html
Improving Black Student Achievement: Strategies to Improve Student Self
Image and Achievement Strategies that can assist teachers to minimize the impact of institutional racism on student achievement.
http://www.nwrel.org/cnorse/booklets/achieve/3.html
Instructional Objectives of Mrs. Ohaver's 5th Grade Class Biography Book
Reports
The lesson plan that "lends itself to the use of various technologies as
tools to getting the project done. This multidisciplinary project can be
adapted very easily to most areas of study. Students become producers of
educational resources others may use."
http://www.inform.umd.edu/
The Internet African American History Challenge
The Internet African American History Challenge is an Internet-based
curriculum enhancement tool for Black History education programs.
http://www.brightmoments.com/blackhistory/
K-12 African Guide
The aim of this guide is to assist K-12 teachers, librarians, and students
in locating on-line resources on Africa that can be used in the classroom,
for research and studies. This guide summarizes some relevant materials for
K-12 uses available on Penn African Studies WWW site.
http://www.sas.upenn.edu/African_Studies/Home_Page/AFR_GIDE.html
K-12 African Studies
This site has many types of information about African studies, including a
topic entitled "Today in Black History."
http://www.sas.upenn.edu/African_Studies/K-12/menu_K-12.html
Langston Hughes: Artist and Historian
Created by Medria Blue of Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, for students in
Grades 6-8, this lesson explores Langston Hughes' poetry, setting it as a
"vehicle by which students are exposed to the African-American experience in
the United States of the 1920s through the 1960s."
http://www.cis.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1996/1/96.01.02.x.html
Martin Luther King, Jr. - He Had a Dream
A full examination of Dr. King and the civil rights movement. Of special
interest is the Electronic Classroom section which features high school
students' reflection on the legacy; classes across the nation in
conversation about Dr. King; interactive quizzes and study guides for
students and their instructors.
http://www.seattletimes.com/mlk/index.html
Monument to the Victims of Slavery on the Washington Mall: An Appropriate
Memorial?
Created by Social Studies School Service, this lesson plan is for students
in Grades 7-12. The lesson is a discussion on "creating a memorial to honor
victims of slavery."
http://www.socialstudies.com/c/@VZbMNZM4tYy3./Pages/slavememorial.html
NCADI: Black History Month Tribute
Featuring biographies, history, and teaching aids, this site is packed with
resources and ideas that celebrate the African-American history and culture
in the United States.
http://www.health.org/mlk/mlk98/index.htm
The North Star: Tracing the Underground Railroad Teacher's Resources
"This is where you will find resources for students and teachers. Everything
has been "donated" by people who want to share their experience and
expertise with other members of the Underground Railroad learning
community." Copyright 1997, The North Star Project
http://www.ugrr.org/ugrr/learn/teacher.html
Project Cape Town: Education and Integration in South Africa
Project Cape Town is a multimedia teaching case designed to encourage
reflective practice in teachers. The case draws its material from three
schools that were among the first to become integrated in South Africa. The
events were filmed in November 1993 immediately before the approval of the
constitution that governed elections that brought Nelson Mandela and the
African National Congress into parliamentary control.
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/capetown/
Putting Some Spark in Black History Month
A lesson plan for grades 6-12 that " livens up Black History Month for the
students (our primary reason for using this activity is to shake the
February doldrums). Written by Christopher P. Hegele, Denver Academy
http://www.col-ed.org/cur/sst/sst236.txt
Resources for Teaching About The Amistad
A bibliography of resources for teaching about the Amistad including books
for children and adults, teachers' guides, a video, and other materials.
http://web.bu.edu/AFR/AmistadResources.html
Richard Wright: Black Boy
A PBS biography of an African-American writer who changed the face of
American literature. Of special interest is the Teacher's Guide.
http://www.pbs.org/rwbb/rwtoc.html
The Road to Freedom
This is a very informative site that features information about using the
WWW to teach about slavery.
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/lesson101.shtml
Slavery and Runaway Slaves in Colonial America (1769)
By studying copies of advertisements rewarding the return for runaway slaves
(Savannah Georgia Gazette pages provided), students learn the scope and
breadth of black American slavery, which lasted over one hundred years
leading to the Civil War. Students also see the roots of the struggle for
freedom being born in black men and women long before the birth of Abraham
Lincoln. Plans provide activities including small group and classroom
discussion.
http://www.uiowa.edu/~socialed/lessons/slavery.htm
Slavery: The Gilda Lehrman Institute of American History
The Institute brings teachers together with renowned scholars for seminars
and enrichment programs and develops curricular materials and traveling
exhibitions.
http://vi.uh.edu/pages/mintz/GILDER.HTM
So You Want to Teach About the Amistad?
Students of all ages might not be able to view the movie AMISTAD, but rich
curriculum materials are available for teaching across the grades about this
pivotal event in American history.
http://www.education-world.com/a_curr/curr044.shtml
Teaching African-American History
Where "Every month is Black History Month." Features several lessons,
student exercises, and reviews of special materials that present exciting
ways to bring African-American history into your classroom via the web.
http://catalog.socialstudies.com/c/@v7FCHY0Qe.dNE/Pages/blackhistory.html
The Two Nations of Black America
The companion site to PBS' Frontline Documentary. An excellent resource that
confronts the statement: "How have we reached this point where we have both
the largest black middles class and the largest underclass in our history?"
Interviews with prominent leaders, audio clips, video clips, charts and
other resources that instructors can use for class discussion and teaching.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/race/
The Underground Railroad
National Geographic hosts a wonderful online interactive *museum* on the
Underground Railroad, with photos, text, and many other resources. A
"classroom ideas" section suggests assignments based upon this online
resource broken down for students k-4, 5-8, and 9-12. High tech grabs
student's attention, and the power behind each image keeps it.
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/99/railroad/
Why Schools Should Use the Malcolm X Phenomenon
This article delves into the attraction today's teen have toward Malcolm X
and how teachers can use that curiosity to engage teens in an examination of
many areas of black history. A very good article which teachers, parents and
students should read.
http://www.edweek.org/ew/vol-12/21rock.h12
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