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African Harvest


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Posted

Hi all.

 

Our school is about to have a mulit-cultural week and my class will focus on Africa. This is great but it coincides with harvest and I desperately need an afrcan harvest song or poem for our class assembly. Having searched and searched, I am now desperate and can't find anything - can anyone help???????? I'd be soooo grateful. I'm in reception by the way.

 

Thanks!

kellsa

Posted

Hi Kellsa. Your week sounds like the prefect opportunity to take part in the 'make a stand campaign against poverty' campaign.

 

Read the thread about it here

 

I do reacall from my dim and distant years in Afrika a song about harvets but JennyK would remember the words..

Posted

Hiya,

 

Could you do something that uses the 'Handa's Surprise' story? I know it's not harvest exactly, but it includes all the fruit etc that would be harvested in Africa

 

Well maybe, just an idea off the top of my head - feel free to laugh out loud if it's nonsense!

 

SB:)

Posted

Hmmm just re-read your original post, and realised that you said poem! Whoops!

 

Disregard my last suggestion LOL.

 

SB:)

Posted
Hi Kellsa. Your week sounds like the prefect opportunity to take part in the 'make a stand campaign against poverty' campaign.

 

Read the thread about it here

 

I do reacall from my dim and distant years in Afrika a song about harvets but JennyK would remember the words..

 

I agree we have been 'doing' food this half term and have made a big display to promote Fair Trade last week we had a Ghanaian storyteller who talked to the school about the importance of Fair Trade and poverty in Africa.

Posted

Thanks for all the suggestions so far!!!! Sounds like it would be useful to contact jenny, not sure how to do it, anyone help? As Kwanzaa is an African -American festival, i may be treading on Year 2's toes - they're doing the USA, but I do think it would be a really interesting way of looking at the harvest festival in a different culture - thanks, hadn't even thought of it! What a fantastic support network this is!

 

Kellsa

Posted

I have now read somewhere that Kwanzaa is an African festival that has been adopted by African-Americans, even more confused now, just ignore my previous post if that's the case! Does anyone know if it really is an African Festival in its own right and if so I reckon I can use it for my class wthout having to worry our Year 2 class!!!!!! There is so much out there on the internet that describes the actual festival, but not much that says where it originates from.

 

Kellsa

Posted

Wonder if this is any good??

 

 

The Yam Festival is usually held in the beginning of August at the end of the rainy season. A popular holiday in Ghana and Nigeria, the Yam Festival is named after the most common food in many African countries. Yams are the first crops to be harvested. People offer yams to gods and ancestors first before distributing them to the villagers. This is their way of giving thanks to the spirits above them

 

You can find more here:

http://www.familyculture.com/holidays/yamfestival.htm

Posted

Thanks Geraldine

 

Brilliant! This looks really interesting and i can make yam biscuits too! Don't suppose you know any yam songs?

Kellsa

Posted

Kwanzaa is an African American translation of a tradional Afrikan celebration, ie kwanzaa is like a modern version, but teh original celebrations were all known by local lnagauge names eg matunda ya kwanza which is Swahili for first fruits (I believe anyway). It would be a great one to do a nd since it isnt traditionally American, I dont think year 2 can coplain unless they have already deceid to do it..by the way it runs just afer Christmas, probabaly during teh holiday

 

I dont know an yam songs, yams are more prevalant in the west and east, in Zambia we ate more maize, sorghum, cassava so I cant help you there.

However my freind has just arrived in Ghana to do VSO so Ill give her a shout and see if she has acces to email.

 

Jenny Is a memeber here, under the name jennyk, if you seacrh the members you can email or pm her. I have to say thoug she has imntermittent service and lives in teh bush so dont hold your breath.

 

Ive given her a shout though to say you might be in touch..

Posted

Thanks Mundia

 

that's a great help, I'm now 'less confused of Surrey'! You would think trying to find an African harvest song would be a doddle!

 

Kellsa

Posted

You could email Misoshi our Ghanain storyteller Im sure she'd be happy to help her email is

misoshi@aol.com

I am hoping to get the video onto the school website as soon as I have the opportunity to edit it :D

Posted (edited)

Found these songs...good luck with the pronunciation!!!

 

http://www.canteach.ca/elementary/africasong.html

 

 

 

 

LIONS: Song 4 from this site: http://www.badwolfpress.com/anansi.htm) There is a sound file of the song on the site

 

 

We like the yams

We like the yams

That’s all we can say

We work so hard

Out in our backyard

Digging yams all day.

 

We like to roar

We like to stretch

We like leg of lamb

We like the sun

We like to have fun

But we’d rather have a yam.

 

 

Anansi the Spider

Your tricks are well-known

You’d rather steal our yams

than find some on your own.

 

We like the yams

We like the yams

That’s all we can say

We work so hard

Out in our backyard

Digging yams all day.

 

(spoken): This is our yam-digging music! Oh we like this!

 

(LIONS dig and dance as the CHORUS sings)

 

CHORUS:

 

They like the yams

They like the yams

That’s all they can say

They work so hard

Out in their backyard

Digging yams all day.

 

Anansi the Spider

Your tricks are well-known

You’d rather steal their yams than find some on your own.

 

LIONS:

 

We like the yams

We like the yams

That’s all we can say

We work so hard

Out in our backyard

Digging yams all day.

 

LIONS and CHORUS:

 

We work so hard

Out in our backyard . . .

 

LIONS:

. . . digging yams all day.

Edited by Guest
Posted

Thanks so much kermit21, I will definitely be able to do something with all the help you've all given. Now.... it's just a matter of choosing......mmmm

 

Kellsa

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