Welcome to the Harlem Renaissance
​
The Harlem Renaissance marked a cultural period during the 1920’s when
African-Americans celebrated their heritage through music, art, literature, politics
and social movements.
View the following website to answer the questions: (Hint: Copy the questions in
to a Google Doc. and type your answers.)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlem_Renaissance
1. What is another name for the Harlem Renaissance?
2. What contributed to the beginnings of this movement?
3. What were some common themes within the movement?
4. List at LEAST 5 major authors, musicians, or political leaders associated with
this movement.
5. Even after this movement ended, what enduring influences did it have on
future generations?
Poetry in Motion
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Langston Hughes was a famous Harlem Renaissance poet. Like others, he developed
themes that connected the African-American heritage to the present. The website for this
activity is:
http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15722
STEP 1: Read “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” to yourself.
STEP 2: Press PLAY to hear Langston Hughes recite his poem.
STEP 3: Answer the following questions in MS Word.
1. How old was Langston Hughes when he wrote this poem?
2. What rivers does Langston Hughes mention and how do they connect the past to the
present?
3. Think: How does Langston Hughes’ verbal reading of the poem affect its overall tone?
All That Jazz Music
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During the Harlem Renaissance, jazz and blues music spread from New Orleans to
Harlem and all throughout the country. At this website, Ron Scott writes:
This improvisational music called jazz is a unique sound, colored with political
and social ramifications, weaved with Black cultural threads. It's the voice of the
ancestors who speak through these great master musicians and the younger
generation.
STEP 1: Watch the brief video biography of Duke Ellington. A Famous Jazz Musician.
http://www.biography.com/people/duke-ellington-9286338
STEP 2: View: to answer the following questions in a Google doc.
1. Who are three famous male and female jazz legends?
https://www.learnjazzstandards.com/blog/6-important-jazz-musicians-you-need-to-know/
Google these answers below:
2. What themes about the African-American heritage resonate from the rhythms of jazz?
3. Think: In your own opinion, why might a jazz museum be important for current and future
generations?
Harlem Renaissance Biography Wheel Project
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Step 1: Choose one of the following people or groups from the Harlem
Renaissance to research as your subject.
Duke Ellington
Jelly Roll Morton
Langston Hughes
Louis Armstrong
The Harlem Globetrotters
Pigmeat Markham
Wilt Chamberlain
Ella Fitzgerald
Step 2: Use the internet to research your topic and answer the following
questions. (You may cut and paste these questions into a Google Doc.)
○ Where and when was the person born? or When and where was
the group created?
○ Describe the early life and education of the subject.
○ Why was the subject or group successful?
○ Describe their family.
○ List 3-5 major accomplishments.
○ How did the subject change the world or impact the Harlem
Renaissance?
○ When and where did the person die? or When and where was the
group at the time it disbanded?
​
Step 3: Use the paper given you to create the Biography Wheel.
Step 4: Create a biography wheel about your subject.
Step 5: Make your biography wheel colorful.
○ Biography_Wheel.bmp
○ Biography_Wheel_Page_2.bmp
○