Students will read a secondary text describing aspects of West African society, including descriptions of agriculture, industry, and political organization. They will then take notes in a graphic organizer provided. Finally, they will analyze the relationship between these three elements by crafting an essay.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan
The Dama is the rite of passage for the men of the Dogon tribe. Conditions must be just right before a Dama can take place, and in the village of Tireli, in Mali, it is the responsibility of the oldest man in the village, the revered "Keeper of the Masks," to determine the timing of the Dama. In this video segment from the series Africa, young men in Tireli feel suspended between boyhood and manhood because there has not been a Dama in the village in 20 years. There is a conflict. A spirit told the village fortune teller that the next Dama would herald the village elder's death, and so the old man believes that if he organizes a Dama he will die.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Lesson Plan, Reading
Connecting to Africa
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Assessment, Diagram/Illustration, Lecture Notes, Lesson Plan, Primary Source, Reading
Who gets to tell the story of human migration around the globe? And what kind of story is it? The Story of Migration, an animated short illustrated by Karrie Fransman, dives into these questions by exploring the complicated connections between migration, development, and global inequalities. Produced by PositiveNegatives and MIDEQ (Migration for Development and Equality) Hub, the colorful animation draws on ethnographic and other evidence-based research from partners across 11 countries. It confronts common misconceptions about migration and centers the perspectives of those who live and work in the Global South who are often left out of popular media representations.
Material Type: Case Study, Diagram/Illustration
Melvin Herbert Evans is the Virgin Islands' first elected governor. Evans graduated from Howard University with a B.S. in 1940 and from the Howard College of Medicine with an M.D. four years later, following graduation from high school on St. Thomas. He then worked in a variety of medical and public health positions for the United States and the Virgin Islands.
Material Type: Lecture Notes, Student Guide
Edward Wilmot Blyden (3 August 1832 – 7 February 1912) was a Liberian educator, author, diplomat, and politician who worked mostly in Liberia. He also spent five years teaching in Sierra Leone, and his writings had an impact in both countries.Blyden was born on 3 August 1832 in St Thomas, Danish West Indies (now known as the United States Virgin Islands) to Free Black parents from the Igbo tribe of modern-day Nigeria.Blyden edited the Liberia Herald from 1855 to 1856 and penned the editorial "A Voice From Bleeding Africa."He also spent time in other British colonies in West Africa, most notably Nigeria and Sierra Leone, where he wrote for both colonies' early newspapers.Additionally, he worked as an editor at The Negro and The African World. He maintained contacts with the American Colonization Society and contributed articles to their journals, African Depository and Colonial Journal.Blyden served as Liberia's ambassador to the United Kingdom and France as a diplomat. Blyden was named Liberia's Secretary of State as a young man (1862–64). He then served as Minister of the Interior from 1880 until 1882. Blyden is often considered the "founder of Pan-Africanism" as a writer. His magnum opus, Christianity, Islam, and the Negro Race (1887), argued that Islam was a more unifying and meaningful religion for Africans than Christianity.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Homework/Assignment, Reading
In this unit, students will become familiar with fables and trickster tales from different cultural traditions and will see how stories change when transferred orally between generations and cultures. They will learn how both types of folktales employ various animals in different ways to portray human strengths and weaknesses and to pass down wisdom from one generation to the next. Use the following lessons to introduce students to world folklore and to explore how folktales convey the perspectives of different world cultures.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan, Unit of Study
Students will analyze a photograph to learn about body image. They will also discuss how society views the human body in different cultures.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Lesson Plan
Reexamination of the Insular Cases Decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in the first decade of the 20th century, the Insular Cases are a series of decisions that established the status of the residents of territories which had recently been acquired by the United States during and immediately after the Spanish-American War. These cases remain the basis for the relationship between the territories and the rest of the United States.1 Many attorneys in the territories say the Insular Cases are the reason they went to law school. However, the Insular Cases are much less well known outside of the territories and are not included in some law school curricula.
Material Type: Lecture Notes
Several professors, government officials and political party members spoke in a forum on political and social issues affecting U.S. territories, which focused mainly on the relationship between the U.S. federal government and the governments of the territories. Following the speakers' prepared remarks, the panelists responded to questions from members of the audience.
Material Type: Case Study, Lecture
This 11-12th grade unit plan was designed for the 9th Annual Virgin Islands Literary Festival and Book Fair, April 2023. English Teacher Regina Keels, a member of the festival committee, developed the unit, executed the lessons as indicated, and demonstrated the Socratic Seminar with colleague Cynthia Santos along with their students during the festival. The unit can be be amended for other Virgin Islands political leaders and their speeches or for the speeches of political leaders globally.
Material Type: Teaching/Learning Strategy, Unit of Study
From a team of Puerto Rican journalists, musicians, and artists, "La Brega" is a 7-part podcast series that opens doors to the Puerto Rican experience.
Material Type: Module
Dr. Hadiya Sewer joins the show to talk about her work with the VI Studies Collective and the St. John Heritage Collective. 1:58 Bajo el Sol Gallery Events 9:56 Theodora Moorehead 11:17 Recovery, changes, developments on St. John since “Irmaria” 16:50 The VI Studies Collective 24:24 Responses from VISCO workshops 30:39 Break 31:45 “Colonialism without Colonizers” speech and British Virgin Islands 40:06 Responses to new governor in US Virgin Islands, Albert Bryan, Jr. 44:09 U.S. Federal government shutdown and the National Park on St. John 47:21 2020 Census, citizenship question, VI delegate to Congress 49:26 Green New Deal and climate justice 57:09 Outro
Material Type: Lecture
1. To introduce students to the Caribbean influence in hip-hop music, focusing on the pioneering group Salt-N-Pepa and the contemporary success of R. City.2. To explore how artists from the Virgin Islands and the Caribbean have contributed to the popularity and expansion of hip-hop music.3. To encourage students to appreciate and celebrate their cultural heritage while embracing diverse narratives in the world of music.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson
These lesson plans delve deep into the pivotal event of the 1878 Fireburn, a significant labor uprising in the Virgin Islands. Rooted in the struggles for human rights, freedom from serfdom variants, and improved labor conditions, the Fireburn stands as a testament to the resilience and courage of estate laborers like Mary Thomas, Axeline Salomon, Mathilde McBean, and Susanna Abramson. Through a series of interactive activities, multimedia resources, and critical discussions, students will journey through the socio-political landscape of the former Danish West Indies, understanding the factors leading up to the uprising and its profound aftermath. The module aims to not only educate but also instill a sense of pride and recognition of the sacrifices made by those who stood up against oppression, shaping the fabric of our heritage and the equity we cherish today in the Virgin Islands of the United States.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lecture Notes, Lesson, Primary Source
"David Hamilton Jackson and All Ahwe: Creative Expression for Cultivating Awareness and Social Change" is a project intended to stimulate our students' exploration of the dynamic relationship between art and community activism utilizing the tools of rights, respect, and responsibility. Through this initiative, students will have the opportunity to craft artistic pieces that capture the essence of David Hamilton Jackson's contributions to labor rights, press freedom, and civil liberties in the Virgin Islands of the United States. These creative works may manifest in various forms, including visual art, written compositions, music, and STEAM projects.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan, Syllabus
The lesson plan "Exploring Emancipation: A Digital Walking Tour of Frederiksted" offers a unique and engaging educational experience that delves into the historical significance of Frederiksted, a place where the 1848 emancipation of all enslaved individuals in the then Danish West Indies was achieved through the resolute efforts of the enslaved themselves. Collaboratively developed by the Crucian Nature and Tourism Organization and the Division of Virgin Islands Cultural Education, this lesson plan aims to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of Frederiksted as an emancipatory stronghold, with a focus on the layered post-1848 emancipation evolution. The lesson is thoughtfully designed to align with the 175th commemoration of the 1848 Emancipation Act, and it fosters peer-to-peer learning while incorporating integrated activities centered around locally significant themes.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Assessment, Lecture, Lesson Plan, Teaching/Learning Strategy
Through this WeQuest, students in 6th grade will explore the history of the United States Virgin Islands native music Quelbe also known as a "Scratch Band." They will be able to listen to quelbe music and see how dancers dance to the music.
Material Type: Lesson
The Digital Storytelling and Oral History Project is a student-centered initiative designed to connect young learners with the heritage stories of their community's past through the art of storytelling and the practice of oral history collection. This project encourages students to become active participants in the preservation of their cultural heritage by engaging with elders, community leaders, and family members to document stories, legends, personal histories, and the lived experiences of their community.
Material Type: Activity/Lab
This article examines the relationship between custody, access, and provenance through a case study of the records of a former Danish colony, the United States Virgin Islands. In 1917, when the United States purchased the Virgin Islands from Denmark, Danish archivists removed the majority of records created there during colonial rule and deposited them in the Danish National Archives. Following its establishment in the 1930s, the National Archives of the United States sent an archivist to the Virgin Islands to claim most of the remaining records and ship them to Washington. The native population of the Virgin Islands, primarily former colonials whose ancestors were brought from Africa as slaves, were left without access to the written sources that comprised their history. While all three parties have claims to custody of the records, the claim of the people of the Virgin Islands relies on an expanded definition of provenance that includes territoriality or locale, as well as on a custodial responsiblity for access. The competing custodial claims suggest a dissonance between legal custody, physical custody, and archival principles that may be resolvable through post- custodial management practices.
Material Type: Lecture Notes, Reading
