Examine the contributions of African-Americans in the worlds of art and literature. Over the course of a few days, young scholars will read and analyze a poem, a short story, and a piece of art. They complete a range of...

Read and analyze poems by African-American authors. Using the text, they identify the various patterns, subjects, language and dialects used. Then team up to compare and contrast the various authors and define new vocabulary. The lesson...

Here is a complex lesson plan that interweaves the history of the Jim Crow South and the Great Migration with the study of poetry, art, and blues music from the Harlem Renaissance. The plan helps young historians develop a deep...

Students are introduced to the elements of African-American poetry. As a class, they are read different types of poems to discover there are different styles of poems and practice rhyming words. They share information on their family...

Students are introduced to various time periods in history in which African Americans wrote songs and poetry to cope. In groups, they travel between different stations to listen or read poems and music from the Civil War period, Civil...

Sixth graders are introduced to poems written by African-American authors. As a class, they read excerpts of poems from different time periods and discuss how and if anything has changed over time with discrimination and equal rights...

Fifth graders analyze many examples of African-American poetry and examine how different poems reflect the cultural experiences of African-Americans. The poems and spirituals chosen are very effective for public presentation.

Fifth graders focus on their self-esteem and strengths while reading poetry. In groups, they research the contributions and achievements of African-Americans and discuss how they overcame obstacles. They are read a poem, define new...

Students read through poems in a book called Pass it On. There are 19 poems from famous African American poets contained in the book. The poems are specialized for children and after the children have learned about the author and about...

Students read and discuss a selection of news clippings, sermons, and narratives that depict the continued struggle for equality and mistreatment of African American citizens. They present a "60 Minutes"-style news program with the...

Celebrate Black History Month with the help of 10 ideas that delve deep into the history, major events, contributions, famous African Americans, and sheds light on how scholars today can take a proactive stance on current civil rights...

Students investigate the African American culture in the 1920's and the Harlem Renaissance. They read and analyze poems written by poets of the Harlem Renaissance, listen to jazz music and identify the characteristics of the music, and...

Learners explore African-American students literature as an integral building block in empowering all learners to a better awareness when reading and writing. They use as a productive Social Studies tool for overall understanding of the...

Students examine work by outstanding African American poets from the time period of the 1920s and 1930s. They study aspects of American and African American social, cultural and artistic history that influenced the content of some of the...

Middle schoolers analyze the origins of jazz music by examining work songs, spirituals, blues, and gospel songs as well as works of poetry from African American artists. They create their own poems from either the narrative, dramatic,...

Eighth graders read the short biographical sketch and selected poems of Langston Hughes, 8th graders examine the hardships historically faced by Black Americans through class discussion, interpretation, and journaling.

Fifth graders explore poems of African Americans. They research a famous African American, write a report, create a timeline of events in African American history, create a map of the New World, and research Molly Walsh. After...

How does Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun factor into a discussion of the American dream? High schoolers define the American dream and recognize the historical setting of the play. Additionally, they identify...

High schoolers identify and connect themes of selected nonfiction, fiction, poetry, and art to Harlem Renaissance jazz. They compare and contrast historical and fictionalized versions of the jazz scenes of the Harlem Renaissance. They...

Students examine different portrayals of African American women in poems and plays. Individually, they identify the character they want to play and reject the others. After acting out the scene, they hopefully realize that their...

Describe, analyze, compare and contrast poets from the Harlem Renaissance. Critical thinkers analyze the imagery, characterization, tone, symbolism, and historical context of Jacob Lawrence, Helene Johnson, and Paul Laurence Dunbar. A...

Students examine the time period of the Harlem Renaissance. In groups, they compare and contrast the type of art before and after the movement along with the state of society at the time. After reading a book on the topic of their...

Students use Langston Hughes' "Thank You Ma'am" as a reading and vocabulary improvement activity. In this reading and vocabulary lesson, students review the related vocabulary and read the poem. Students discuss the story elements in the...

Students analyze the poem, "The Colored Soldier" by Langston Hughes to gain a greater experience of how poets use language to create meaning, influence thinking and thus become pioneers of change in American society. They work on the...