Unit One: Why Study Africa?

Teacher Discussion:

This activity is intended to be a class discussion. Ask students to study the map on the computer, as an overhead, or as a handout, and answer the question provided above.

Below, detailed responses are provided to enable the discussion.

• Image 1 shows a man in traditional dress playing a special kind of drum. These drums are used for ceremonies.
• Image 2 shows children sitting in the kitchen at night in a rural village in Zimbabwe. The older boys in the family have made guitars out of materials they found and are entertaining the family for the evening. This family also has a radio they use for listening to music in the evening as they sit together after dinner.
• Image 3 shows an exhibit of traditional art at a museum in West Africa. These are special costumes and props used in traditional ceremonies.
• Image 4 shows the specially decorated pots that Zimbabwean women make and bring to their new home when they are married. One of the important things about art in Africa is that it often has "functional" purposes and is made by ordinary people.