How to Teach Black History Month to Children Through Dramatic Performances
Every February, the United States celebrates Black History Month, during which people celebrate the rich history, culture and religions of African Americans. Include African-American history into lesson plans during February and throughout the year, to enrich your students' understanding of diversity and other cultures. Even African-American students have much to learn about the rich artistic and social history of African-American people. Dramatic performances help children visualize and appreciate historical moments and landmark works of African Americans.
Instructions
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Deliver a famous African-American speech to your class and explain the speech's significance in history and meaning. Speeches by Martin Luther King Jr., W.E.B. DuBois, Rosa Parks or others can deliver powerful meaning and put the words of the past into perspective for students.
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Choose a play that is appropriate for children, with simple themes, content and dialogue. Ask students to perform scenes or sections of the play. Let children read over the play beforehand, but let them read from the script during the performance. "Fences" by August Wilson and Lorraine Hansberry's "A Raisin in the Sun" are iconic plays by African-American writers.
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Re-enact famous moments in African-American history with students to help them feel like a part of history. Moments like Rosa Parks being arrested, Governor George Wallace blocking students from the university and other iconic moments show students both the simplicity and power of these actions.
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Tips & Warnings
Many works dealing with African-American history contain words or scenes that may confuse or upset children, so decide what is appropriate based on the ages and maturity levels of the children you are teaching.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit history image by Ewe Degiampietro from Fotolia.com
