Drumbeat in our Feet

 

Drumbeat in our Feet

Written by: Patricia A. Keeler and Julio T. Leitao

Published by: Lee & Low Books, 2012

Pages: 32

Culture: Africa

 

In this book, we will learn about the African cultural and some of their dances and rituals. Passed down from generation to generation, these dances bring history to life. The vibrant costumes and rhythmic beats add to this already beautiful story. This story is sure to have people of all ages clapping, stomping, and dancing along with the African traditions. You will want to join the fun as soon as you open the pages of the book.

 

Keeler uses watercolors and pencil to create the illustrations for this book. Some of the images have a sepia-toned feel. Other parts of the book for vibrant with colors from the dancer’s costumes. Keeler’s images bring the movements to life. The dancer’s looks like they are moving across the pages. The images show the traditional dances in a modern way.

 

This would be a perfect book to teacher the students some traditions from other countries. While it will require the teacher dancing, it would be a fun movement activity to engage the students before beginning a lesson on traditions. I would use this as a history-of-yourself lesson. The students would do a little research at home to figure out where they come from. They would then find a tradition of the place to share with the class. I would use this book for a compare and contrast lesson. I would have the students compare the images of the African children doing their traditional dances to the American children learning how to do these dances. How are they the same? How are they different?