Emily Basham

Date of Lesson: 2/20/14

Gullah Culture in SC
State Standard: 3-2 The student will demonstrate an understanding of the exploration and settlement
of South Carolina.
Indicator: 3-2.5 Explain the role of Africans in developing the culture and economy of South
Carolina including the growth of the slave trade; slave contributions to the plantation economy; the
daily lives of the enslaved people; the development of the Gullah culture; and their resistance to slavery.

Learning Objective: The student will be able to list facts about the Gullah people during the Civil War.

Essential Question: How did the Gullah culture affect the Civil War in South Carolina?

Assessment: The student will write one interesting fact about Gullah music, one about sweetgrass
baskets, and one about Gullah tales/language. The teacher will check for correctness and record in an
anything chart.

Activities/Procedures:
Opening: The teacher will ask students what they know about slaves before they were brought
to America. The teacher will lead a brief introductory discussion on the basics of what Gullah
culture is. The students will rotate through three classrooms in which they will have a 20 minute
mini-lesson on different aspects of Gullah culture.
Gullah Music: As students enter, the teacher will play a Gullah music track. The teacher will
discuss with the class what they heard. The teacher will play a religious sample. The teacher will
ask students for their observations about the music. The teacher will discuss with the class the
three ways people used music: religion, encouragement, and freedom.
The class will complete an activity using Gullah Net. Students will come up to the board and
participate in the Secret Code. The students will write (on a sticky note) one fact about Gullah
music. The students will stick their assessment to the door as a ticket out the door. The class will
exit the room while listening to another Gullah music track.
Sweetgrass Baskets: The teacher will introduce the lesson by reading the introductory
information on Gullah culture found on Gullah Net. The teacher will also read the traditions
section from the site. The teacher will engage students in conversation about other traditions or
things they know of with Gullah culture.
The students will watch S if for Sweetgrass video, and the teacher will then read the book,
Circle Unbroken, aloud to the students. The students will engage in conversation and
questioning as to the history of the sweet grass basket and its significance. The students will
recap all of the information discussed and will write one new fact they learned on a sticky note
and will hand it to the teacher as a ticket out the door.
Gullah Language/Tales: The teacher will give a short introduction and background about the
Gullah language. A Gullah Alphabet will be read to the class. The students will listen to individual
words spoken in Gullah from http://www.knowitall.org/gullahtales/activity/. The teacher will
have a short review about Gullah, stories and their culture and how they are different from
Americas. The students will write down one fact they learned on a sticky note and will turn it in
to the teacher as a ticket out the door.
Closing: The teacher will ask the EQ and discuss any further questions students may have.



Accommodations:
ESL: The teacher will stop and translate difficult Gullah language pieces. Everything written will be
explained orally.
Special Education: The teacher will read and translate difficult Gullah language pieces. Everything
written will be explained orally.
Early Finishers: The early finishers could read or take the AR test on their library books. They may also
complete more tasks on Gullah Net.

Materials:
Gullah Music: Gullah music CD by Gloria Barr Ford (Track 7, 15, 17), Computer, Promethean board,
http://knowitall.org/gullahmusic/, sticky notes, speakers.
Sweetgrass Baskets: A Circle Unbroken (book), knowitall.org (Gullah Net), Sticky notes, S is for
Sweetgrass YouTube video
Gullah Language/Tales: A Gullah Alphabet (book), knowitall.org/gullahtales/activity, sticky notes

Questioning:
1) Create a Gullah song with one of the three purposes. (Creating)
2) Compare and contrast the use of the baskets from the time of the Civil War to
present day. (Evaluate)
3) What do the songs of the Gullah people tell about their lives? (Analyzing)



Lesson 3 Assessment
The students will write about one fact they learned in each section of the lesson on a sticky
note. The teacher will record accuracy of student fact in an anything chart.
Student Music Tales Baskets
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
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