Last updated: January 13, 2025
Lesson Plan
Who are the Gullah Geechee?
The Gullah Geechee Ring Shouters performed alongside the Winnsboro Ring Shouters in New Orleans in July, 2024.
Gullah Geechee Ring Shouters
- Grade Level:
- Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade
- Subject:
- Literacy and Language Arts,Social Studies
- Lesson Duration:
- 90 Minutes
- Common Core Standards:
- 9-10.RI.2
- State Standards:
- 7.11 Analyze role and importance of social and political reform movements of the nineteenth century.
f. Explain restrictions placed on the trade of enslaved people prior to the Civil War. - Additional Standards:
- NCSS Item 1.1
1 CULTURE AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY
Candidates in social studies should possess the knowledge, capabilities, and dispositions to organize and provide instruction at the appropriate school level for the study of Culture and Culture Diversity - Thinking Skills:
- Applying: Apply an abstract idea in a concrete situation to solve a problem or relate it to a prior experience. Creating: Bring together parts (elements, compounds) of knowledge to form a whole and build relationships for NEW situations. Evaluating: Make informed judgements about the value of ideas or materials. Use standards and criteria to support opinions and views.
Essential Question
Who are the Gullah Geechee People?
What components combine to make Gullah Geechee culture?
Objective
Students will be able to define culture and explain the origins of Gullah Geechee culture. Students will explore how geographic location influences cultural practices and foodways by
examining the Gullah Geechee people’s preservation of West African culinary traditions. Students will explore the cultural significance of traditional practices such as call and response, the ring shout, and Easter Rock, comparing spiritual rituals including the Gullah Geechee and North Louisiana.
Background
Lesson 1 explores Gullah Geechee language. In Lesson 2, we cover Gullah Geechee foodways. Lesson 3 shares the spiritual practices. All of the traditions shared—from its English-based creole language to the red rice and ring shout—are examples of cultural preservation. Cultural preservation involves passing down traditions, languages, customs, and heritage to ensure these cultural elements stick around for generations to come.
1. Materials Needed:
· World map to reference
· Colored pencils
· Printouts of the maps to color and label (the last two pages of this lesson)
· Pencils (for labeling)
· Recording device (cell phone, audio recorder, or pencil and paper)
2. Labeling and Coloring (Lesson 1):
Have students refer to the world map to properly label the blank maps. They can label as many countries and states as you wish, but, at minimum, they should label the primary countries that the Gullah Geechee’s African ancestors came from:
Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Cameroon, Congo, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Mali, Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Guinea, and Burkina Faso.
· They should only the primary countries from which the Gullah Geechee ancestors came on the map of Africa, and the states where they were brought in the United States (North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida). They can use any colors they like; feel free to be creative and vibrant, as African culture is known for its vivid and colorful expression.
Preparation
1. Materials Needed:
· World map to reference
· Colored pencils
· Printouts of the maps to color and label (the last two pages of this lesson)
· Pencils (for labeling)
· Recording device (cell phone, audio recorder, or pencil and paper)
Materials
The foodways of the Gullah Geechee people are a rich tapestry woven from their West African heritage and the resources of their new environment. The shared traditions and culinary practices reflect a deep connection to their ancestral roots and the land they inhabit. By continuing to make baskets using traditional methods, preparing meals like Low Country Boil and red rice, and celebrating with dishes like Hoppin' John, the Gullah Geechee people honor their cultural legacy while adapting to their surroundings. These practices not only sustain their community but also preserve a unique cultural identity that bridges past and present.
Download Gullah Geechee Foodways
Students will explore the cultural significance of traditional practices such as call and response, the ring shout, and Easter Rock, comparing spiritual rituals across the African Diaspora, including the Gullah Geechee and North Louisiana traditions.
Download Gullah Geechee Spiritual Practices
Students will synthesize past lessons to explore the Gullah Geechee community's cultural preservation efforts as examples of both resistance to erasure and resilience in adapting to change.
Download Gullah Geechee Resistance & Resilience
The Gullah Geechee are African Americans with ancestral roots in the Southeastern U.S., from southeastern North Carolina all the way down to northeastern Florida. Their ancestors, taken from West and Central Africa between the early 1600s and the 1850s, were forced into labor due to their skills and strength. To preserve their heritage, they created the Gullah Geechee language by blending native African languages with English. They also incorporated African traditions with Native American and European influences to create the Gullah Geechee culture.
Download Who Are the Gullah Geechee?
Lesson Hook/Preview
Have the students listen to Bessie Jones and the Georgia Sea Island Singers perform "Yonder Come Day" from the Alan Lomax Archive on YouTube.
Bessie Jones and the Georgia Sea Island Singers: Yonder Come Day (1959)
Procedure
Mapping Our Roots: From Africa to the Gullah Geechee Corridor
1. Gather Materials Needed:
· World map to reference
· Colored pencils
· Printouts of the maps to color and label (the last two pages of this lesson)
· Pencils (for labeling)
2. Labeling and Coloring:
· Refer to the world map to properly label the blank maps. You can label as many countries and states as you wish, but, at minimum, label the primary countries that the Gullah Geechee’s African ancestors came from:
Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Cameroon, Congo, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Mali, Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Guinea, and Burkina Faso
· Color only the primary countries from which the Gullah Geechee ancestors came on the map of Africa, and the states where they were brought in the United States (North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida). You can use any colors you like; feel free to be creative and vibrant, as African culture is known for its vivid and colorful expression.
3. Discussion:
· After completing the activity, discuss the maps. Ask students to share:
· Other challenges they imagine Africans had coming from Africa to America
· What culture means
· How their geographic location impacts their culture
· How the Gullah Geechee maintained African traditions in a new country
· If they have ever visited the Gullah Geechee corridor
Vocabulary
Gullah Geechee
The Gullah Geechee are African Americans with ancestral roots in the Southeastern United States—extending from southeastern North Carolina all the way down to northeastern Florida. the Gullah Geechee’s ancestors were taken from West and Central African countries such as Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Benin, and Cameroon.
Culture
Culture is a pattern of behavior shared by a society, or group of people. Many different things make up a society’s culture. These things include beliefs, food, language, music, religion, clothing, arts and tools.
Ancestor
A person from whom one is descended from.
Foodways
Foodways are how people get their food and how they eat it. It’s like a big puzzle that pieces together what people of a particular culture like to eat, how they cook it, where they get the food from, and how they enjoy it with others.
Oral History
Oral history is when people share stories and experiences by talking to each other, helping us learn about the past from the people who were there.
Call and Response
Call and response is a way of singing or speaking where one person says something, then others reply or repeat what was said or sung.
Ring Shout
A ring shout is a dance where people form a circle, move counterclockwise in a rhythmic pattern while shuffling and stomping their feet and clapping their hands, and singing call-and-response songs.
Easter Rock
The Winnsboro Easter Rock Ensemble upholds the Northern Louisiana tradition of Easter Rock by bringing the community together in their church on Easter Eve for a vigil ritual that blends West African and Christian elements. Participants form a circle and move (or “rock”) counterclockwise while singing sacred music.
Resistance
Resistance refers to opposing or withstanding something.
Resilience
Resilience is the ability to bounce back from difficulties, adapt to changes, and grow stronger through challenges. It comes in various forms, such as physical, emotional, psychological, economic, and cultural.
Cultural Preservation
Cultural preservation involves passing down traditions, languages, customs, and heritage to ensure these cultural elements stick around for generations to come.
Assessment Materials
What is Culture?Culture is the way of life for a group of people, including things like their traditions, language, food, and religion, as well as what they celebrate and how they celebrate it. Geographic location plays a central role in culture since it influences the climate, available crops, and the overall way of life, as these factors shape local traditions, clothing, food practices, hobbies people have, and the kind of work that they do.
Culture is the way of life for a group of people, including things like their traditions, language, food, and religion, as well as what they celebrate and how they celebrate it.
Additional Resources
The Gullah Geechee People – Discovering Legacy Of African Cultures
Gullah Geechee Communities - Timucuan Ecological & Historic Preserve (U.S. National Park Service)
Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor (U.S. National Park Service)