Night Under the Stars ~ Happy, Happy Kwanzaa

Are you familiar with Kwanzaa? "Based on African harvest festivals, this holiday celebrates African-American people, their culture and their values." During our Night Under the Stars performance, LdVCS students will be singing songs that honor several different holidays celebrated at this time of year and the sense of togetherness that makes this such a special season.

Our class will be singing Happy, Happy Kwanzaa so we've been learning facts about this holiday and discussing how the values that are celebrated during Kwanzaa relate to all of us. We have also been comparing the holiday to other holidays we are familiar with. Here's a link to the interactive website we've been using as a part of our study: http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/holidays/kwanzaa/

 
The song we'll be singing can be found on iTunes. Here are the words:

Happy, Happy Kwanzaa

Chorus

Happy, Happy Kwanzaa
Light the candles one by one
Happy, Happy Kwanzaa
Can be celebrated by everyone

The 1st day of Kwanzaa stands for unity
We are one big family

The 2nd day of Kwanzaa
Self-determination
We make our own way under the sun

Chorus

The 3rd day of Kwanzaa
Responsibility
We can do it together
Joyfully

4th day of Kwanzaa
We buy from each other
Sharing with our neighbors
Is helping one another

Chorus

The 5th day of Kwanzaa
Our purpose is to know
Whose shoulders we stand on
And that is how we grow

The 6th day of Kwanzaa
Beautify your world
‘Cause we’ve got special talents
Each and every boy and girl

Chorus

The 7th day of Kwanzaa
Believe with all your heart
If you believe your dreams come true
Each day’s a brand new start

So let’s celebrate this Kwanzaa
Like one big family
We can change the world together
You and me... Everybody

Chorus

Clap your hands, everybody
Stomp your feet, it’s Kwanzaa
Do your dance, be happy
Sing it with me, come one now
Touch your heart, can you feel it
Close your eyes, can you see it
See your dream, make it fun
Now reach for the sky

Happy, Happy Kwanzaa (Pass it on everybody pass it on now)
Light The Candles One By One (Light one everybody light one)
Happy, Happy Kwanzaa (Pass it on everybody pass it on now)
Can be celebrated by everyone

Trickster Tale Projects

We are working hard to prepare for this week's Education Celebration. It's an opportunity for us to share PBL (Project Based Learning) projects with LdV families and the community. The children in our class will be sharing their Trickster Tale Projects.

For this project, they are working with a partner to retell a favorite trickster tale and will perform a live shadow puppet show to go along with it. Their retells have already been recorded and the kids have been creating puppets and other props to use for their show.

We'll be finishing up the audio portion of the show by adding a bit of music to the beginning and end of each story. We are going to use Freeplay Music to find music that will help to give more information to the audience about what culture the story came from.

They are also working hard to prepare their shadow puppet shows. With all of their shadow makers ready to go, they are selecting just the right lighting and practicing different effects.

Here are a few of the sites we are using to help us understand what the show should (or could) look like:
Kennedy Center's Playing with Shadows
How To Do Your Own Shadow Puppetry Show
Richard Bradshaw: Shadow Puppeteer
Little Fables
Journey to Neverland Shadowography

Can't wait to see how all of this turns out! We'll have videos of the performances to share with you soon...


Here are a couple of quick videos from our experimentation with shadow puppets:

VTS

Last weekend, I went to a fantastic training at the Museum of Photographic Arts that focused on Visual Literacy. Basically, Visual Literacy is based on the idea that images can be 'read' and that a person can gather meaning from the image. One of the ways we emphasize this in class is with the use of something called VTS - Visual Thinking Strategies. I was trained in this over a period of several years and was excited to get a refresher at the training.

In a VTS lesson we look at an image (piece of artwork usually) and discuss it. I use only three questions when asking the children about it:

1. What's going on in this picture?
2. What do you see that makes you say that?
3. What more can we find?

To value what each child has said, I will repeat their thoughts but not interject my own opinions or thoughts. I don't ever say, "That's right!" or "I agree."  I am simply mirroring what they have said (to be sure that I understood.)

When students have the opportunity to talk about art, something amazing happens. There is no right or wrong answer so kids are free to express their opinions. Their comments often build on what other students have said so it's clear to see that they are engaged in the activity, listening thoughtfully to what their classmates think. The experience teaches them to think critically and to give a reason to back up their opinions and feelings. It's always very interesting to hear what the children have to say - come in and join us if you can! I think you'll be very impressed.

Last week, we looked at this photograph at the top of the post by Dorothea Lange called Migrant Mother. Today, we looked at two pieces of art. The first is a sculpture by Francis J. Yellow called Hanta-po (Get Out of the Way.)

And the second is a color woodblock print referred to as Kitchen Scene by Japanese artist, Kitagawa Utamaro.

Talk them over with your child and see what s/he has to say...