Traditions Around the World: Kwanzaa

Essential Questions of the Unit:

Why do people celebrate traditions?
What are some ways that different cultures celebrate their
traditions?
Guiding Questions for the Lesson:
What is the celebration based on?
What is a tradition?
Why do people celebrate this tradition?
What is a culture?
Why was Kwanzaa developed?
How long does Kwanzaa last?
What is a principle?
What is a kinara?
Standards:
-1.C.1 Understand the diversity of people in the local community.
-1.C.1.2 Use literature to help people understand diverse cultures.
-1.H.1.2 Explain the importance of folklore and celebrations and
their impact on local communities.
-1.V.1 Use the language of visual arts to communicate effectively.
-1.V.1.2 Create original art that expresses ideas, themes, and events.
-1.V.3 Create art using a variety of tools, media, and processes, safely
and appropriately.
-1.CX.1 Understand the global, historical, societal, and cultural contexts
of the visual arts.
-1.CX.1.1 Recognize how visual arts are used in customs and traditions of
various cultures.
Objectives:
The learner will:
Learn about a culture by listening to a piece of music
Recognize Africa on the map and identify it as a continent.
State the purpose of Kwanzaa.
Describe the general characteristics of Kwanzaa.
Create their own kinara, or candle holder that represents the 7 days
and 7 principles of Kwanzaa

Resources:
https://www.teachervision.com/kwanzaa/teacher-resources/6638.html
http://learningtogive.org/lessons/unit158/lesson1.html
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/holidays/kwanzaa/
www.Pinterest.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6wNDdCXVxM (African Drum
Instrumental Music Clip)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kV-6qVp98Q#t=21 (Video clip of
child explaing Kwanzaa)
Activities:
1. First, I will have the students sit on the floor with their eyes closed as I
play one track of some African Drum Instrumental music (listed in
resources).
I will say: Make sure to let your imaginations create pictures in their heads
as you listen. Now please raise your hand and I will call on you to describe
what you heard and saw and how it made you feel.
2. Tell the students that this music comes from Africa. Show the students
where Africa is located on a world map.
I will say: Africa is actually the second largest continent and it contains
many countries and cultures. Culture is a form of civilization or a group of
people that share particular beliefs and traditions. The music that we just
heard was a specific tradition of this part of the world.
3. Then I will say: Kwanzaa is an African-American tradition that lasts for 7
days. Kwanzaa was developed to celebrate the African traditions of
many Americans and increase unity and pride within the community. A
community is a group of people living in the same area and having
common interests and goals. Kwanzaa is based on first-harvest
celebrations of various African cultures. As I previously mentioned,
Kwanzaa lasts for 7 days and this is to represent the seven principles of
Kwanzaa. Principles are guiding beliefs that are implemented in daily life.
These principles are based on many African traditions and spoken in a
language that is called Swahili and is spoken in many countries of Africa.

Help students relate this to their own experience by asking if they or

anyone they know celebrates Kwanzaa or other types of traditions related
to their familys cultural heritage.)
4. I will say: as you listen to the beginning of this book, try to listen for The
Seven Principles of Kwanzaa that are represented by the seven different
candles that are used to celebrate this tradition.
Then, I will read aloud the introduction from the book Seven Candles of
Kwanzaa by Andrea Davis Pinkney. Below shows The Seven Principles of
Kwanzaa that the students should be listening for.
1. umoja - to maintain unity in the family and community
2. kujichagulia - self-determination, to be responsible and speak for
oneself
3. ujima - collective work and responsibility, to build and maintain a
community
4. ujamaa - economic co-operation, to help and profit one another
5. nia - purpose, to build and develop the community for the benefit
of the people
6. kuumba - creativity, to do everything possible to leave the
community more beautiful and beneficial for future generations
7. imani - faith, to believe in parents, teachers and leaders.
After the I read, I will display the above list for the students to read aloud
with me.
5. I will say: The video clip that we are about to watch will allow you the
opportunity to see a child that is around your age taking about how he
celebrates traditions of Kwanzaa. This will help you to have a better
understanding of what it is like to be a part of his culture.
Then, play the clip from Sesame Street (link to video resource above) that
has a child describing different components of Kwanzaa.
6. Finally, the students will create their own Kinara
I will say: Students, you will now be creating your own Kinara to help
remind you what you have learned about Kwanzaa and the traditions
behind it. A Kinara is the set of candles that are used to represent the 7
days and 7 principles of Kwanzaa. Each night a particular candle is lit to
celebrate this tradition.

Then, I will tell them what the steps

and what they will need to complete
this project and let them begin.
You will need:
6 small cardboard tubes
1 long cardboard tube
Green Paint
Red Paint
Black Paint
Yellow tissue paper
White glue
Instructions:
-Paint 3 of the small tubes in red and the other 3 in green. Paint the long
tube black.
-When the tubes are dry glue them side by side so the form a line, the
three green one side, three red the other and the black tube in the center.
-Crumble up a sheet of yellow tissue paper and push into the top of each
tube so that it looks like flames.
Assessment Plan:
-During each of these lessons, the students will learn about where the
tradition is celebrated, how the tradition is celebrated, who celebrates
the tradition, when they celebrate the tradition, and why they celebrate
the tradition. The students will all have their own Travel Journal that will
look like a little suitcase. They will show me their understanding by filling
out the previously mentioned aspects of traditions in this journal. Once I
have checked their work for understanding, they will receive a sticker of
the countrys flag they just visited to place on the front of their suitcase.