KWANZAA
EVENTS
For more information: Call the Kwanzaa Hotline @585-355-7884
50th Anniversary
What is Kwanzaa? Kwanzaa means “first fruits of the harvest,” it is a time to celebrate African American people, our ancestors and our culture. We seek to honor our past, evaluate our present and commit ourselves to a more productive future. Africans and African-Americans of all religious faiths and backgrounds celebrate Kwanzaa. We need Kwanzaa now more than ever. -Rochester Kwanzaa Coalition
https://twitter.com/RocKwanzaa
rockwanzaa@gmail.com
@RochesterKwanzaaCoalition
In 1997 the U.S. Postal Service issued a Kwanzaa stamp to commemorate the holiday. An even newer Kwanzaa stamp was introduced on October 16, 2004. Talk about why the USPS might have issued Kwanzaa stamps in addition to its other holiday stamps. Ask students to search newspapers, magazines, radio, TV, or online resources for news stories related to Africa. Encourage students to share the news stories they find with their classmates. Identify, on a map of Africa, the country(s) involved in those stories.
Geography/Maps. Display a large map of Africa or have students access an online map. Encourage students to study the map by asking them to count the countries, identify coastal and interior countries, find the southernmost country, and so on. Then provide each student with an outline map of Africa. Read aloud clues such as the country in the northeastern corner of the African continent is called Egypt as you write the word "Egypt" on the board. Ask students to label each country as the clue is read. Other clues might include the large island off the eastern coast of Africa is called Madagascar, the country called Libya borders Egypt to its west, and the easternmost country on the continent of Africa is Somalia. Have students compare their results with an accurate map.
Games. Arrange students into pairs to play a Mancala game. Students might even play this online version of the game.
Research and discussion. Discuss with students the many symbols associated with Kwanzaa. Explain that the three colors associated with Kwanzaa -- red, green, and black -- are also symbolic. Black stands for the unity of all black people. Green stands for freedom. Red represents the blood shed in the fight for freedom and unity. Point out that the colors are the same as those in the Bendera Ya Taifa, the African-American flag designed by Marcus Garvey in the early 1900s. Invite students to investigate the meaning of the colors and images in the United States flag and in other flags from around the world.
Home connection. Suggest that students and other family members assemble a "family album" of photographs or original drawings. Encourage students to interview adult family members and then write a news story about one of their ancestors. Students might construct a family tree, prepare a recipe representing their cultural heritage, or write a letter to another family member describing a favorite family memory.
Critical thinking. Why do people celebrate holidays? What symbols are part of the holidays you celebrate? What can you share about your ethnic or cultural heritage? How might knowledge of, and appreciation for, the past affect the future?
Elementary Resources
Scholastic HMH Teacher Vision Mr. Donn PBS Fun for Spanish Teachers
Online Read Aloud Kwanzaa Video- Kujichagulia the second principal Kwanzaa PDF
Pop Books Online Activities with Activity Village KidsKonnect
Other Resources
Documentaries & Movies
A Rugrats Kwanzaa (2001) is an animated television special from the television series Rugrats. It explores Kwanzaa from a toddler’s perspective when his grandma comes to visit.
The Black Candle (2008) is a documentary about the struggles of African-American communities. It shows the celebrations of Kwanzaa, its significance to the African-American people, and the holiday’s growth out of the Black Power Movement.
Children's Books w/YouTube Links
K Is For Kwanzaa by Juwanda Ford and Ken Wilson-max (4-8 years old).
My First Kwanzaa (My First Holiday) by Karen Katz (2-5 years old).
Together for Kwanzaa (Pictureback(R) by Juwanda G. Ford and Shelly Hehenberger (3-7 years old).
My Family Celebrates Kwanzaa by Lisa Bullard and Constanza Basaluzzo (5-8 years old).
Seven Days Of Kwanzaa by Angela Shelf Medearis (8-12 years old).