The History & Legacy of Myth in the African & Latino Diasporas unit aims to illustrate how myth, legend, and folklore have shaped and been shaped by the diasporic experience of Africans and Latinos. This unit is designed for the African American/Black, Puerto Rican, and Latino Studies course at the high school level, usually in grades 11-12. The unit could also be used in a United States history class. There are three anchor texts relating to the African diaspora, and three relating to the Latino diaspora. Teachers can choose to focus on one or both diasporas as part of the African American/Black, Puerto Rican, and Latino Studies curriculum. Through six suggested anchor texts, students will explore the following questions: What are myths/legends/fairy tales and why do they matter? What do they tell us?; How do people code cultural information in song? Why would people still sing these songs after the information becomes irrelevant? Does cultural information ever really become irrelevant?; What is cultural appropriation? Who can tell what stories? How does being an outsider to a culture change/bias/influence how a story is told?; How have indigenous religious figures interacted with the religious values of the colonizer (specifically Christianity)? The final project has students artistically represent how their chosen myth has changed and evolved over time and space and share their artistic representation in a roundtable format. Overall, this unit provides an opportunity to delve deeper into the culture(s) of these diasporas, which enhances the experience of studying these cultures in the African American/Black, Puerto Rican, and Latino Studies course.
(Developed for African American/Black, Puerto Rican and Latino Studies, grades 11-12, and Modern World History, grade 9; recommended for African American/Black, Puerto Rican and Latino Studies, grades 11-12; Folklore/Mythology, grades 9-12; and Black History Month and Hispanic Heritage Month, grades 6-12)
