African Fairy Tales & Folktales (Ongoing)

In this fun and interactive class, kids get to listen to an enthralling African Fairy Tale / Folktale each week. As the story is being told, participants will get to play different characters as they act out scenes from the tale. They'll learn interesting facts about the country, geography or history behind the story and they'll spend a few minutes discussing the important lessons they learned. This class will have the kids moving and talking as they act out scenes and eagerly wait to find out how the story ends. ​

Schedule of Stories
Week of Nov 15 to Nov 21- Why girls wear their hair long
Week of Nov 22 to Nov 28- The careless mermaid
Week of Nov 29 to Dec 5 - The enchanting song of the magical bird 
Week of Dec 6 to Dec 12 - How the tortoise got a curved back
Week of Dec 13 to Dec 19 - Why lightning lives in the sky
Week of Jan 3 to Jan 9 - The lazy tortoise and the king’s carving
Week of Jan 10 to Jan 16 - The woman with no children
Week of Jan 17 to Jan 23 - The woman with sores
Week of Jan 24 to Jan 30 - The girl who loved her mother
Week of Jan 31 to Feb 6 - Where do stories come from?
Week of Feb 7 to Feb 13 - Jabu and the lion
Week of Feb 14 to Feb 20 -  The elephant and the hare
Week of Feb 21 to Feb 27 - The tortoise, the pigeon, and the horse’s head 
Week of Feb 28 to Mar 6 - The three competitive brothers
Week of Mar 7 to Mar 13 -  Why bats are nocturnal
Week of Mar 14 to Mar 20 - The snake with seven heads
Week of Mar 21 to Mar 27 - The fisherman and the magic ring
Week of Mar 28 to Apr 3 - Anansi and the tug-o-war
Week of Apr 4 to Apr 10 - The quest for dawn
Week of Apr 11 to Apr 17 - The Blacksmith
Week of Apr 18 to Apr 24 - The mother who turned to dust
Week of Apr 25 to May 1 – Fesito goes to market
Week of May 2 to May 8 - The origin of fire
Week of May 9 to May15 – Mansa Musa
Week of May 16 to May 22 – Jarbar and Fembar
Week of May 23 to May 29 - The disobedient girl
Week of May 30 to Jun 5 – The King and his Magic Ring
Week of Jun 6 to Jun 12 – Princess Yennenga
Week of Jun 13 to Jun 19 - The cloud princess
Week of Jun 20 to Jun 26 - Why there are flies on a cow's face
Week of Jun 27 to Jul 3 - The clever monkey
Week of Jul 4 to Jul 10 - Mpipidi and the Motli Tree
Week of Jul 11 to Jul 17 - The snake chief
Week of Jul 18 to Jul 24 - The Shapeshifter
Week of Jul 25 to Jul 31 - TBD
Week of Aug 1 to Aug 7 - Living things coming back to life

Why Take This Class?

Learning about culture can either help children connect with their roots and appreciate their own history more, or it can help them better appreciate diversity so that they can respectfully interact and engage with people from different backgrounds. Plus, global awareness is highlighted by CEOs and educational experts as one of the most important skills that leaders of tomorrow need to possess in order to be successful in their careers.

Using folktales is a fun way for kids to learn about other cultures because who doesn’t love a good story? The stories in this class are captivating and entertaining, and are most likely like nothing the kids have heard before, which makes the session all that more enchanting.