Black History Month is a time for celebration and there is no better way than to sing songs from Africa and African American culture. Adrian second graders helped in the celebration by performing a variety of songs that also were a lesson in language, history, reading, and social studies. They learned a song with a gospel style, a game song collected from the horrible days of slavery, a protest song from the 1960’s, and a song and dance from Zimbabwe. Children wowed the audience with their singing, dancing, knowledge, and enthusiasm.
A group of children in the enrichment program researched animals from Africa and wrote about them. They learned a song about an African Safari and then created masks of their animals with Mrs. Barcza, the art teacher. They performed in costume at the assembly.
Music contributions from Africans and African Americans influence so much of the music we sing and enjoy today. Music, like no other, can contribute to the understanding of times past and the emotions that people experienced at the time, evoking the mood and bringing it to life.
Adrian students were appropriately proud and excited to perform. Mrs. Carol Spackey is the music specialist at Adrian.
