Oakland African Music Makers

Oakland Africans

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Oakland Africans on their way to play at a wedding

Preparation for Black History Month Celebrations

Supporting Children’s Cultural Competence through Cuban Music Stephanie Manseau, October 29, 2014 Today was the second day of curriculum for my Cuban music investigation. On the first day we discussed ideas about culture, and I introduced the children to Cuban music by reading a children’s book about Celia Cruz and dancing to Salsa music. Today, during the resters’ meeting and activity I showed the children Cuban instruments, and then they got a chance to play some Cuban perc...ussion, including the guiro, maracas, and claves. Our special friend Kofi, who was a student in Geranium last year, came to afternoon circle with his father Kokou to help make Cuban music and culture more concrete and salient to the children. Kokou linked his native West Africa with Cuba through music. He demonstrated how the Arara people in Cuba (descendants of West Africans) play drums in their villages (with sticks). Kokou also showed the children a simple beat to clap, a melody to sing, and movement to go along with his drumming. Through this experience the children became more aware of diversity in others and increased their musical knowledge. They were able to notice and engage in the activity, by sustaining their attention and by demonstrating their understanding of the music by replicating rhythm, melody, and movement. The children also exhibited their developing cultural understanding by demonstrating curiosity for different cultural practices. Cultural competence in children reveal itself in their knowledge of and comfort with people of different cultural and ethnic backgrounds. Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory asserts that children learn what is important in a culture by participating in cultural events and using cultural tools. According to Piaget, preschool children are fairly egocentric, and have a hard time grasping abstract ideas, such as culture. Their cognitive structures make them very proficient at noticing differences and similarities, and grouping things into categories, which can lead to stereotyping; therefore, providing authentic hands on experiences and connecting others’ experiences to the children’s own is essential. I wonder how we can bring each child’s culture into the classroom in a meaningful way. I also wonder how the home-school connection and parent involvement in Geranium can be strengthened through learning about culture. See more

The drums and the heart at Mills College Children School Making sure these little ones get a good start in using the drums to align their heartbeat.

Playing the African drums to Help students in the schools to wake up and step into themselves and access their full potentials and connect to their soulful purpose in life

The village in full action

Believing in the practice

The Kpanlogo Player

The Blekete Player