Cincinnati Art Museum ....................................... Symbols in African Art

Pre-Videoconference Activities      .pdf of this page
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Day 1
Introduce lesson by talking to students about symbols.  Teacher should include definition of symbols, as well as how they are used.  Have students brainstorm about different symbols that are in their everyday environment.  These may include but are not limited to, community, state, and national symbols.

Read The Talking Cloth by Rhonda Mitchell, either together as a class, or individually by students.  After the book has been read, break the class into small groups.  Have students discuss what they believe is the function of the objects and symbols in the story.

Talk to students about some objects and symbols that have meaning to you (e.g. favorite piece of jewelry, grandmother's quilt, etc.).  Show these objects to the class, and pass them around or let students touch them while you talk about them.  Discuss the customs and traditions behind these objects.  Ask the students if any of these objects could be considered works of art.  Discuss what is art.

For homework, have students locate an object or objects from their home that may be considered a work of art.  A parent letter will be sent home explaining the unit of study and purpose of this homework assignment.

Day 2
The purpose of this activity is to introduce students to a sampling of African Symbols.  Each of the activities asks students to make a personal commitment to what they like, believe, or feel.  The links included come from all over the World Wide Web and represent a variety of resources.

On day two, students will share their chosen objects from home with the class and will complete a web activity to learn how symbols are used in society.  The activity starts at http://www.kn.sbc.com/wired/fil/pages/samafricansa.html

Students may complete the activities alone or by working in a group.  Students may complete all or only some of the activities depending on the class goals.

During the web activity, students chose a symbol with which they identify.  The students are asked to write down the name of the symbol, its meaning, and to make a sketch of it.  These symbols will be used later in the lesson, and will be brought up during the videoconference with the Cincinnati Art Museum.