A Kid's Guide to African American History: More than 70 Activities (A Kid's Guide series)

259 Pages·2007·8.05 MB·English

AGES 6–11
ere are more than 70 hands-on activities, songs, and
games that teach kids about the people, experiences, and
Hevents that shaped African American history.
❂ Make peanut butter like George Washington Carver did
❂ Make a medallion like those worn by early abolitionists
❂ Write a Brer Rabbit story
❂ Play the rhyming game “Juba”
❂ Design an armband like the one worn by a black chief of
the Crow nation A KID’S GUIDE TO
❂ Make a washtub bass
❂ Wear a kufi for Kwanzaa
Along the way, kids wil also learn about inspiring African American artists, inventors, AFRICAN
politicians, and heroes, including Harriet Tubman, Langston Hughes, Oprah Winfrey,
Louis Armstrong, Rosa Parks, Tony Gwynn, and Bessie Coleman.
AMERICAN
“A fascinating look at an aspect of American history that is often left out of history
books.”
—Washington Sun
HISTORY
“With a straightforward, readable text . . . and simple illustrative drawings, even young children
can participate in this activity-based title.”
—School Library Journal MORE THAN 70 ACTIVITIES
“Parents, teachers, and students can pick up this book and be proud of its content.
It not only teaches the mind, but also the heart of understanding.”
—Dorothea (Wilson) Clausen, $14$.1945. 9(5C A(CN A$N18 $.9185.)95)
great-great-great-granddaughter ISBN-13: 978-1-55652-653-4
ISBN-10: 1-55652-653-9
of Thomas Jefferson
NANCY I. SANDERS
A Kid’s Guide to African American Histor y SANDERS
A KID’S GUIDE TO
AFRICAN
AMERICAN
HISTORY
MORE THAN 70 ACTIVITIES
NANCY I. SANDERS
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Sanders, Nancy I.
A Kid’s guide to African American history / Nancy I. Sanders. — 2nd ed.
To all my friends at Sisters in Christ Bible p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Study. Your prayers, encouragement, and ISBN-13: 978-1-55652-653-4
ISBN-10: 1-55652-653-9
support helped make this dream a reality.
1. African Americans—History—Juvenile literature. 2. African Americans—
History—Study and teaching—Activity programs—Juvenile literature. I. Title.
To Rosa Parks. E185.S19 2007
973’.0496073—dc22
Little did I know, when I saw you speak,
of the impact your life would have on me.
2006031670
To Bessie Jones,
Cover and interior illustrations and design: Rattray Design
who inspired me as I read about her life.
The author and the publisher disclaim all liability for use of the information
May her memories and heritage live on contained in this book.
for generations to come.
The author has made every effort to secure permissions for all the material
quoted in this book. If any acknowledgment has inadvertently been omitted,
please contact the publisher.
©2007 by Nancy I. Sanders
All rights reserved
Second edition
Published by Chicago Review Press, Incorporated
814 North Franklin Street
Chicago, Illinois 60610
ISBN-13: 978-1-55652-653-4
ISBN-10: 1-55652-653-9
Printed in the United States of America
5 4 3 2 1
‚ Contents ¯
Time Line vi The Middle Passage 27
Acknowledgments viii Landing in America 29
Introduction ix The Revolutionary War 29
The Shot Heard Around the World 30
1 ∏ THE GLORIES OF AFRICA Merchant Ships 33
A Sandstone Column 3 The Battle of Bunker Hill 37
Design a Mask 4 Black Patriots in the American Revolution 38
The Middle Ages 7 The War at the Sea 40
The City of Timbuktu 7 The Free African Society 42
Potato Stamp Painting 9 The Forten Family of Philadelphia 43
A King’s Scepter 11 Play a Game of Marbles 44
Life in Africa 12 Write an Almanac 48
Call-and-Response Game 13 Make a Star-Watching Chart 50
Communities and Nations 14 America’s Founding Fathers 52
Founding Fathers in Philadelphia 53
2 ∏ COLONIAL AMERICA Founding Fathers in Boston 56
Early Explorers 16 Kneeling Slave Medallion 59
First Settlers 18 A Foundation of Faith 61
Landing in Jamestown 19
3 ∏ LIFE ON A PLANTATION
The Beginning of Slavery 21
Fort Mose 23 Food on a Plantation 66
The Slave Trade 24 Juba 69
Bead Necklace 26 Brer Rabbit and His Friends 70
Tell Me a Riddle 74 Election Day Parade 115
Children’s Rhymes 75 Election Cakes 117
Children’s Songs 76 Pinkster Day 118
Children’s Games 78 Dress Like King Charles 119
Sew a Doll 82 Wear a Chain of Blummies 123
Hoop and Stick 84 Dance on a Shingle 125
Artistic Crafts 85 Hold a High Jump Contest 126
Music and Rhythm 85 The Quakers and Other Abolitionists 127
Make a Rhythm 87 The Underground Railroad 127
Jingle a Tambourine 89 Carry a Candle 130
Build a Washtub Bass 92 Carry a Stick 132
Short’nin’ Bread 94 Follow the North Star 133
The Blue-Tail Fly 94 Native American Communities 134
O Freedom 96 Make a Native American Apron 136
Uncode a Spiritual 97 Wear Cuffs 138
Wear Armbands 140
4 ∏ FREE AFRICAN AMERICANS AND
Craftsmen and Folk Artists 141
ABOLITIONISTS
Make a Bible Quilt 143
The American Colonization Society 102
5 ∏ CIVIL WAR AND THE ROAD TO
Emancipation Papers 105
FREEDOM
Fugitive Slave Laws 106
The Black Press 107 Make a Congressional Medal of Honor 148
Slave Narratives 110 Make Paper Doll Replicas of the U.S. Colored Troops 150
Giants in Literature 111 Emancipation Day 154
Election Day 113 Reconstruction 154
Parmenteering 114 Elected Officials 156
Hold an Egg-Cracking Party 157 7 ∏ THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT
Have a Taffy Pull 159
How One Woman Made a Difference 202
Sharecropping 160
Segregation in Schools 202
The Exodusters 160
Carry a Card Supporting Nonviolence 204
Juneteenth 162
The Sit-In Movement and Freedom Rides 206
Make a Favorite Drink 164
Children Helped Change a Nation 207
Cowboys 165
Make a Hand Fan 210
Design a Brand 167
The March on Washington 212
How Far Was a Trail Ride? 169
Carry a Sign 213
Buffalo Soldiers 171
Jim Crow 171 8 ∏ HOPE FOR TODAY AND A BETTER
The Tuskegee Institute 173 TOMORROW
Make Peanut Butter 174
Dedicated Historians 216
Grow a Sweet Potato Vine 176
A New African American Renaissance 217
Conduct a Scientific Experiment 177
All-Star Athletes 221
Kwanzaa 226
6 ∏ THE TURN OF THE CENTURY
Celebrate Kwanzaa 230
Great Achievements 180
Wear a Kufi 233
Important Inventions 181
Joining Together for a Future of Hope 234
Make Your Own Invention and Patent It 183
The Importance of Music 185
Suggested Reading List for Kids 235
Harlem Renaissance 186
Teacher Resources 235
Play the Cornet 190
Selected Bibliography 236
The World at War . . . Twice 191
Index 241
Creative Milestones 193
Sports, America’s Favorite Games 195
Track-and-Field Day 196
‚ Time Line ¯
Th e G l o r i e s o f A f r i c a
*3100 B.C. Menes, the first pharaoh of united Egypt begins his reign
*1379 B.C. Nefertiti, Queen of Egypt, begins her co-rule of Egypt
*A.D. 1500 Timbuktu, one of the greatest cities of the world is established
1527 Estavanico explores the American Southwest
C o l o n i a l A m e r i c a
1619 Twenty Africans land at Jamestown, Virginia
1641 Slavery is legally recognized in the colonies
1770 Crispus Attucks is the first to die in the American Revolution
1807 Congress bans ships from bringing slaves to America
1843 Sojourner Truth speaks out against slavery
A b o l i t i o n i s t s
1849 Harriet Tubman escapes from slavery and begins work on the
Underground Railroad
*Approximate date
C i v i l W a r
1861 Civil War begins
1863 President Lincoln signs the Emancipation Proclamation
1865 Thirteenth Amendment ends slavery in America
F r e e d o m ’ s R o a d
1881 Booker T. Washington establishes the Tuskegee Institute
1903 W. E. B. Du Bois publishes The Souls of Black Folk
1909 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
(NAACP) is founded
1920s The Harlem Renaissance, a time when extraordinary works are
created by musicians, artists, and writers, reaches its peak
1936 Jesse Owens wins four Olympic gold medals
C i v i l R i g h t s M o v e m e n t
1955 Rosa Parks is arrested
1961 Freedom Rides take place
1963 The March on Washington is held
A N e w H o p e
1966 The first celebration of Kwanzaa is held
1967 Thurgood Marshall is appointed as a Supreme Court justice
1976 Black History Month is established
1986 National holiday is created to honor Dr. King
‚ Acknowledgments ¯
hank you, Jeff, for your enthusiasm for this Quarles, Lerone Bennett Jr., Darlene Clark Hine,
book. I appreciate the many times you Jessie Carney Smith, and Henry Louis Gates Jr.
Talert me to current events in the news to Without the enthusiasm of certain individuals
help keep this information up-to-date. And who have helped me gather important research,
thanks, Danny and Ben, for your continued enthu- writing this edition would have been more difficult.
siasm and interest in my writing projects. You guys I would especially like to thank Deborah Padgett
are the best! from the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, Susan
Thank you, Evelyn Okoreeh, my dear, sweet Halpert from the Houghton Library, and Sheila
friend. Your prayers and encouragement sustain me. Cooke-Kayser, Emily G. Prigot, and Dr. Martin
A special thank you goes to all the historians Blatt of the Boston National Historical Park.
whose intense research and accurate facts help Thanks to the entire publishing family at
make it possible for me to share African American Chicago Review Press. It takes a team to bring a
history with kids. Your books line my bookshelves book to life, and you all are appreciated for the
and are friendly faces that greet me each day I sit countless hours of creative energy you devoted to
down in my office to write. Among the many histo- this project. Thank you, Cynthia Sherry, for your
rians whose outstanding work I constantly refer to, continued vision of this project. And thank you,
I would especially like to express my appreciation Michelle Schoob, for stepping up to the editorial
to Carter Woodson, Charles W. Wesley, Benjamin plate to help make this second edition a winner.
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