We were so lucky to have Josephus in our very own piazza to jumpstart our poetry unit. His charisma was subtle yet he was highly successful in walking in and engaging all in creating. He began with an acrostic poem using his name, while the children did the same with their own names.
The children brainstormed phrases and ideas about the Sit-ins in Greensboro, which ended up flowing over to reflections of the whole Civil Rights Movement. As recognition of the actions of the famous Greensboro Four, Josephus offered a very powerful phrase, “and we sit in their honor”, after children read their thoughts in groups. It was quite moving.
Josephus also played a very contagious game with us by just having everyone recite the letters of the alphabet! What a great energy that produced…and if we didn’t concentrate…BZZZZZ = OUT! Keondra was last standing TWICE!!!!
Our field trip to the International Civil Rights Museum and The Greensboro Four statue at A+T University yesterday was brilliant. There is so much to write about, including our poetry workshop with Josephus – thank goodness the spring break is around the corner and there will be lots of time to create!
For now, have a quick look at the photograph that is worth a thousand words…
“Josephus III is an artist, a poet, and a dreamer who believes in using his gifts to communicate, motivate, and inspire others.”
Are we in for a treat this week! Josephus has agreed to come to Piazza Mannino to jumpstart our Poetry Unit! He will work with the children this Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon on our poetry project inspired by Freedom, Civil Rights and of course, The Greensboro Four and the Sit-in Movement.
Our enthusiasm for our study of the Greensboro Four was directly inspired by Carole Boston Wetherford’s, Freedom on the Menu. This gripping children’s book tells the story of the four A+T University students who ‘sat down to stand up for their rights’ at the white only Woolworth’s lunch counter in downtown Greensboro. The children were passionately outraged at the unfairness of the segregation laws depicted in the story. An urgency to know and understand the history of the Civil Rights Movement inspired by these four brave men, exploded for the children.
Fair, unfair, justice and injustice are all concepts that that our seven, eight and nine year olds can and do fully connect to. By this age, children have developed a very strong sense of what is fair and what is justice. They are not just global concepts, they are personal struggles that children genuinely experience and immediately recognize and feel in their own worlds - ‘that’s not right’, ‘that’s not fair’ are the common cries, frustrations and fuel behind the need for children to take a stand and strive to right the wrongs.
The children of Piazza Mannino have been inspired to embrace other people’s unfair struggles and successes – even the fate of family and relatives in their own community only a few brief generations ago.
The story of the Greensboro Four, Joseph A. McNeil, Franklin E. McCain, David L. Richmond and Ezell A. Blair Jr., has now become a living history for the children, which no doubt stops here. It has opened up a new window to the world of liberty and justice for all…
On February 1st, 1960 in Woolworth’s in Greensboro, the Civil Rights Movement took flight followed by more sit-ins, boycotts and protests. The children have warmly and enthusiastically welcomed guests to Piazza Mannino, who have visited to tell of their own connections to the movement.
Wilma Brown came to speak with us about her involvement in the February Sit-ins. At that time, she was a Dudley High School student. She told of her arrest and how she also refused bail, just like the teenager in the Freedom on the Menu. Of course the children were quite curious about how she was treated in jail and every last detail about her proud, yet frightening experience.
We were also lucky enough to welcome Cameron Falkener to our piazza. He is the son of the late Councilman Waldo C. Falkener, Sr., who was the first black city commissioner in Greensboro and active in the 1960′s. Mr. Cameron Falkener was only eight years old when he sat on his front porch on Dudley Street across from A+T University and watched as day after day, more and more students headed on foot downtown to continue the work of the Greensboro Four, in holding peaceful Sit-ins.
They sat down to stand up for their rights!
The children wrote beautiful thank you notes to Mr. Falkener, which we hope to hand deliver to him at the statue of the Greensboro Four on the A+T University campus after our field trip to the International Civil Rights Museum in just a couple of weeks.
Our field trip to the brand new Int’l Civil Rights Museum downtown at the famous Woolworth’s store has been carefully planned with curators Bamidele Demerson and Lolita Watkins. The children are extremely excitedabout the trip and there are still some arrangements in the workings to make the day even more enjoyable!
…but back to Josephus! He has graciously agreed to work with the children this week to begin our project of creating poetry for a book we are in the process of looking for funding to publish. This experience of learning and writing poetry amidst such powerful passion is what authentic student learning is all about – and great writing can’t take place isolated from the real world!
So many people have already been so generous with their time and interest in this project and it is incredible how willing individuals are in supporting this attempt to give voice to the hearts of these children, who have so naturally connected to the concepts of FREEDOM and RIGHTS. Josephus is one of them…
If you would like to support him in his quest with our children, I have asked him to bring some t-shirts that can be purchased for $20.00. They can be viewed on Josephus’ website. I wish I could offer him more right now, but we are waiting for grants/donations to materialize.
A reading of poetry by Piazza Mannino students and a performance by Josephus of his works on the Sit-ins, is planned to be shared at the International Civil Rights Museum(date not certain at this time – )
What a turnout we had at our school event! Our parents came into our classroom and so many filled out the same Living Museum Interview sheet that the children did! Now each child will have a collection of comments from both classmates and parents!
Thank you for coming out and supporting Piazza Mannino. It was a wonderful evening filled with awe! Check back for more pictures!
What a success! We had several V.I.F.M.s, (Very Important Family Members), and three classes visit our Biography Living Museum today. There was a wonderful atmosphere in the Media Center as each child proudly enlightened visitors and taught them about that very special person they had so thoroughly researched and studied. Elizabeth, Josiah, Nya and Cameron stood proudly and graciously welcomed the visitors who were from fourth, fifth and K-1.
Piazza Mannino students were ready to share the entire process of how they began this in depth research project, many of whom used three references to gather information; books, Internet and reference books such as the encyclopedia. Next week, we shall be writing about the entire research process but first we will be having another Living Museum Presentation in our piazza on Monday evening at 6:30 after the PTA meeting. Some children might just dress up as their person! Here are a few glimpses of what happened today!
Please feel free to leave comments for the children!
My name is Walter and I am learning all about Rosa Parks. Rosa Parks was famous for changing the law. Rosa Parks went to jail because she did not move out of the set for a white man when the bus driver told her to. Two white police officers came to the bus and said, ”You have to go to jail!” Rosa Parks helped change the law so that white and black people would be together at schools, at stores, outside your houses on your porches, on the streets, and married together. Rosa Parks helped change the segregation laws for every state.
Hi my name is Keyshaun and I am studying Vincent van Gogh. Vincent was born March 30 1853.Vincent had a little brother and a little sister. Vincent was 13 when he painted his self portrait in 1889. Vincent was the oldest kid in his family.Vincent painted the ‘Stary Night’ in 1889. Vincent died July 29 1890.
Hi! my name is Nahdia and I am doing a project on Helen Keller and here are some facts! She was born in Tuscumbia Alabama on June 27 1880. Helen Keller was blind since she was a baby. In February 1882 she got sick. She was six moths. She was deaf. She was angry that she couldn’t talk.
I’m Gabe. Apolo Ohno is a famous speed skater. He is going to be in the Olympic Games in Vancouver, Canada. He first started trying to speed skate when he was thirteen. Other speed skaters saw him skating and they asked his dad if he could go and train as a speed skater. His dad said he could. At first it was hard for him. He was getting homesick. He missed his friends and family. After about a month he stopped getting homesick and started training harder. Then when he was only fourteen he went to the Olympic Games and won the gold metal. Now he is 27 years old and competes all the time.
Hi, my name is Nya. I’m doing a project about Jane Yolen. She is famous for writing books. She wrote ‘Mizz Berlin Walks’ and “Owl Moon’. She loves writing stories about stuff that really happened in her life.
My name is Cameron. I working on a project about Wilson Bentley. Wilson was the man who discovered what snowflakes really look like. He was born on February 9, 1865. He really loved the snow. He lived near a farm. He took pictures of the snowflakes and showed the pictures to everyone. They called him “Snowflake Bentley.” He was a great man.
Hi, my name is Zoe. Abigial Adams was born in 1764. She was famous for being a U.S. President’s wife and the mother of the 6th U.S. President. Abigial made a difference by fight for equal rights for women.
My name is Keondra. I am working on a biography about Frida Kahlo. Frida was born on July 6, 1907 in Coyoacan, Mexico. She was famous for her paintings. Her father gave her her first paintbrush. When she became ill with Polio, she taught herself to draw to keep from being sad. Frida’s paintings are some of the most beautiful art ever created.
Hi, my name is Josiah. My biography is on Venus Williams. She is a tennis player. She was born on June 17, 1980. Her dad is her coach. She can run the court and hit every shot with great power. In 1998 Venus won her first single challange.
Hi, my name is Aaliyah. I am doing a biography on Amelia Earhart. Amelia was born on July 24, 1897. Amelia Earhart is famous because she was the first women to fly over the Atlantic Ocean. Amelia took off in golden and red single engine air plane from Harbour Grace Newfoundland on May 20, 1923. Her last flight was in 1937. Amelia disappeared somewhere over the Pacific Ocean. She was forty years old.
Hi my name is Aidan. I am learning about Benjamin Banneker. He was born in 1731. He took apart a watch and he built a clock. And it took him from 1751-1753. Benjamin was friends with Thomas Jefferson. He took a telescope and he looked the night sky.
I am Brandon and I am doing a project about Mae Jemison. Mae Jemison was born on October 17, 1956. Mae had to learn to be an astronaut and became one in 1988. She was the first African American lady to go into space. She went on the space shuttle Endeavour on September 12, 1992. She stayed eight days in space and went around Earth more than 120 times. In 1993 Mae Jemison left NASA and started her own company.
I am Bahijah. I learned about Marian Anderson. She was born on Feb. 27, 1897. She wanted to go to music school but they would not allow black people so she took private lessons instead. In 1955 she was the first Black American to sing opera at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. The concert in N.Y.C. was a success.
My name is Jeremiah. I am learning all about Daniel Boone and hunting. Daniel Boone was born in1734. Daniel was the greatest hunter ever. Daniel had sisters and ten brothers. Daniel had a battle with the Indians the Indians took 3 girls but Daniel rescued them. Daniel died 1820.
I know a lot of facts about Walt Disney. I’m going to tell you some. His real name is Walter Elias Disney and he was born on Dec. 5th 19o1 in Chicago, Illinois. Walt’s pictures were all over the outside of his house he sold his first picture at age 7. These are good facts about Walt Disney. (by Will)
We are 22 amazing 7, 8 and 9 year old students who attend Peeler Open School for the Performing Arts in Greensboro, North Carolina.
We 'live' in House B, or more specifically in Piazza Mannino.
