February Theme: Black History See it on PBS at pbskids.org

Transcription

1 February Theme: Black History See it on PBS at pbskids.org Follow the Runaway slaves journey north along the Underground Railroad by following directions in the song. LeVar celebrates the road to freedom paved by the Underground Railroad, introducing viewers to the history, heroes, stories, and music of the African American culture that emerged from slavery. An a cappella group, Sweet Honey In The Rock, perform and share their historical knowledge of slavery. Discuss: Before viewing the video, discuss what freedom is, who has it, why it is important, if freedom can be taken away, who slaves were and what the students know about slavery. LeVar explains the Underground Railroad was not as a conventional railroad with a train on a track, but as a way for slaves to travel from one safe house to another on their way to Canada or to states where slavery was illegal. Discuss with students why the railroad metaphor was an appropriate description. Much of the program is devoted to music. Discuss with students why music played such an important role in the lives of slaves. Why is music still important in our lives today? Do: Comprehension Questions Included in this PDF file is a page of comprehension questions to check for a basic understanding of the events in Follow the. Sing Follow the At the end of the book is the musical score for Follow the. With the assistance of the music teacher, teach the song to the class. Students also might enjoy learning Lift Ev ry Voice and Sing, the song that is referred to as the African American National Anthem, with words by James Weldon Johnson and lyrics by his brother J. Rosamond Johnson. Two excellent picture book versions of this song are Lift Ev ry Voice and Sing, illustrated by Jan Spivey Gilchrist and Lift Every Voice and Sing, illustrated by Elizabeth Catlett. Both versions contain the musical score. Research people who helped the slaves Harriet Tubman was the African American woman who was a conductor on the Underground Railroad. She made repeated trips to guide slaves to freedom. Other African Americans, born as slaves, made significant contributions on behalf of slaves and to American history in general (e.g. Phillis Wheatley, Sojourner Truth, Frederick Douglass, Crispus Attucks, Nat Turner, Anthony Burns, Dred Scott, and others). Work in pairs or small groups to research the lives and accomplishments of these individuals. Allow time for students to share their findings with the class. Page 1

2 Read: THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD by Raymond Bial BAREFOOT: ESCAPE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD by Pamela Duncan Edwards, illus. by Henry Cole MANY THOUSAND GONE: AFRICAN AMERICANS FROM SLAVERY TO FREEDOM by Virginia Hamilton, illus. by Leo & Diane Dillon NOW LET ME FLY: THE STORY OF A SLAVE FAMILY by Dolores Johnson SEMINOLE DIARY: REMEMBRANCES OF A SLAVE by Dolores Johnson THE FREEDOM RIDDLE by Angela Shelf Medearis, illus. by John Ward FREDERICK DOUGLASS: THE LAST DAY OF SLAVERY by William Miller, illus. by Cedric Lucas AUNT HARRIET S UNDERGROUND RAILROAD IN THE SKY by Faith Ringgold A PLACE CALLED FREEDOM by Scott Russell Sanders, illus. by Thomas B. Allen MINTY: A STORY OF YOUNG HARRIET TUBMAN by Alan Schroeder, illus. by Jerry Pinkney NETTIE S TRIP SOUTH by Ann Turner, illus. by Ronald Himler JOURNEY TO FREEDOM: A STORY OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD by Courtni C. Wright, illus. by Gershom Griffith Web Resources for Teachers: The Underground Railroad Table of Contents Testimony of the Canadian Fugitives Page 2

3 Additional Activities for this episode: Make a timeline of African American history. Place individuals that the students have researched on a timeline, as well as specific events, such as the Emancipation Proclamation and the passage of the 13 th Amendment (that abolished slavery in 1865). Include a general time frame for most of the slave trade and activity on the Underground Railroad. The Underground Railroad Revisit the book so students can examine the illustrations. Look for the Big Dipper and Peg Leg Joe s special mark that he left for escaping slaves to find. Use this opportunity to provide some background for the Underground Railroad activities. Discuss what might have happened to people who assisted runaway slaves (Fugitive Slave Law). Help students to understand that escaped slaves were not safe even in the northern states. In the program, it was mentioned that slaves looked for a lighted lamp in the window of a station to determine if it was safe to approach the house. Discuss why it was necessary to light a lamp. Include in the discussion why students think there were so many people who wanted to help runaway slaves. Storytelling Since slaves were typically not allowed to learn to read and write, storytelling was an important means of communication. Many of the stories were about gaining freedom and involved the symbol of flying; others were animal tales. Ask the media specialist to assist in locating some of these stories to share with the class. Geography On a map of the United States, locate the southern states from which slaves escaped, the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, and the states where the vast network of the Underground Railroad was located. To help students understand the physical picture of the era, give them individual maps and have them color the southern states (which eventually became the Confederate States of America) orange. These states included: South Carolina, Alabama, Louisiana, Virginia, Tennessee, Florida, Mississippi, Georgia, Texas, Arkansas, and North Carolina. On the same map have them color the northern states blue and Canada tan. Discuss the location of each color block and what the route the slaves might have taken to get away. Creative Writing Ask students to write their own ending to the story by writing about what each of the characters does in Canada. Encourage students to add as much detail as possible. A writing form is available in this PDF file. School to home Connection: Family Involvement Create a take home pack for students to check out and share this theme with their family. Below is a list of items to use in creating the pack: A copy of the family activity sheet available to print out at the end of the PDF file. A copy of the feature book A copy of the Reading Rainbow episode. A two gallon zip lock bag or child s backpack Put these items together into the bag or backpack. Have students take turns checking out this resource to share with their family. Note: You can find ready to use Family Literacy Kits on the gpn.unl.edu/rainbow website. Page 3

4 Name Answer these questions about Follow the using complete sentences. 1. When and where did the story take place? 2. Who was Peg Leg Joe and what did he want to do? 3. What did he teach the slaves? 4. What was a slave auction? 5. Why did Molly and James decide to run away the night they did? 6. How did the masters try to find runaway slaves? 7. Why did the slaves travel at night and sleep during the day? 8. What was the Underground Railroad? 9. Why did the people in the Underground Railroad have to hide the slaves? 10. In what places did the slaves hid throughout the book? 11. Why did slaves want to go to Canada? 12. What was the? Repro 1 Page 4

5 Name Write your own ending to the story. What did Molly, Jame, Isaiah, Hattie, and George do in Canada? Repro 2 Page 5

6 GPN Reading Rainbow Episode Runaway slaves journey north along the Underground Railroad by following directions in a song,. In the video LeVar celebrates the road to freedom paved by the Underground Railroad, introducing viewers to the history, heroes, stories and music of the African American culture, which emerged from slavery. Members of an a cappella group, Sweet Honey In The Rock, perform and share their historical knowledge of slavery. Here are several activities you and your child can do together after watching this episode. Star Gazing Plan a family star-gazing party on a clear night when the moon is a small crescent. If you live in the city close to bright lights, find the darkest place you can for gazing. Take along: A star chart that is available in books and newspapers. This chart is a map of the sky and tells which constellations are visible and when. A flashlight so you can see where you are going and can read your chart. If possible, cover the flashlight with red cellophane so your eyes won t have to re-adjust every time you look up at the stars. A notebook to write down the shape of the constellations you find and their names. A blanket for lying on the ground. A Constellation Of Your Own You will need: Black construction paper Self-stick stars Your children will have fun re-creating a constellation they saw in the nighttime sky or creating a constellation of their very own by arranging self-stick stars on black paper. Remember, constellations can be people, animals, or objects. A white crayon can be used to write the name of the constellation. Encourage your children to make up a story about each constellation they create. African Animal Masks African mask carvers often created masks that looked like animals. Masks would often resemble wild cats found in Africa, such as the lion, leopard or cheetah. To make animal masks at home, you need: paper plates colored paper crayons or markers scissors glue craft sticks Draw the face of an African animal or other animal on a plate. An adult can cut out holes for the eyes and nose. The mask can then be colored and paper scraps added for details. Glue a craft stick to the inside of the mask along the bottom to make a handle. Now your mask is ready to wear! Episode 96 Visit Your Community Library Here are some books you can check out on your next trip to the library Shake It To The One That You Love The Best: Play Songs And Lullabies From Black Musical Traditions, collected and adapted by Cheryl Warren Mattox A Picture Book Of Harriet Tubman by David A. Adler Sweet Clara And The Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson Repro 3 Page 6