Activity One: Group students by twos and assign each pair an African Nation. By using the Web and library resources, have your students discover as much as they can about visual arts in that nation. Include a timeline with examples of art from each time period. You can have them start their research at the Guggenheim Museum. It has an interactive, clickable map that will help them get started with their research.

The Kennedy Center African Odyssey Interactive. This site promotes an ongoing exchange of ideas, information, and resources between artists, teachers, and students of African arts and culture. Click on VISUAL AND PERFORMING ARTS and you will get mega links to images, audio and video files, and documents for learning about the visual and performing arts in and from Africa. National Museum of African Art AFRICAN ART MUSEUM On-line reference to the artistic styles of Africa Africa: Arts Agora Gallery: African Art Web Sites

Activity Two: Put your students into groups of four and have them create a dance through which they can teach classmates about some aspect of African culture. Dancing groups may have a narrator who helps interpret the symbolic meaning of the dance steps. Have students bring rhythm instruments-hand drums, bells, rattles, etc. to accompany their dances.

African Music and Dance. Interactive site including scenes from a Blekete Sacred Ritual Dance and scenes from a West African Music and Dance-Drumming Concert. Includes audio and visual clips, a Kpanlogo Song Book, and links to other African dance sites. An excellent place for students to start their research into African dance and music. African Dance and African American Dance in a convenient link library.

African drumming web sites. Includes ENCYCLOPEDIA OF AFRICAN MUSIC. Ishangi Family African Dancers. Informative web site that gives history and pictures of African dance. International Library of African Music. Includes videos and sound clips of African instruments and African music. The Musical Instruments. Gives a few examples of African musical instruments. African dance video (56 seconds). African music video (62 seconds). The African Music Encyclopedia. Comprehensive site that allows the students to search African music and musicians by artist and country. Includes a glossary of terms and links to other African music sites.

Activity Three: Research the history of Kente Cloth-cloth developed by the Akans in Ghana and worn during ceremonial events and special occasions by kings. Help students discover the historical background, symbolic meaning of colors and designs, and techniques used in weaving the Kente cloths. Next, have them trace the political and fashion significance of these cloths in the United States. Have the students draw and color their designs on paper or cloth, or if you are feeling brave and creative, use Claris Works and have the kids "weave" a Kente Cloth on the computer.