Lesson Plan Goal: To learn about cultural traditions of other countries.

Objectives: Students will listen to music in the jazz acappella style. Students will discuss the meaning of the words in a song and matching text. Materials: Book: No Mirrors In My Nanas House by Ysaye M. Barnwell CD included with the book/CD player Lesson: Play the song No Mirrors in My Nanas House as sung by the African American Womens group, Sweet Honey in the Rock. Ask the students what the song is about. You will get some very interesting answers bananas, cracks in the house, the house is falling down. After talking about the song, play it again but share the book with the students this time while you are playing the CD. Ask the students what the song is about? Why do the children in the book have no faces? What did living with her grandmother teach the girl in the book? Would we know what we look like if we had no mirrors hanging in our house or school? This lesson is a great discussion starter for a unit on different cultures and traditions. We studied African tribal customs and why they do not have mirrors. We also talked about what countries our families originated from and looked up some of the traditions/beliefs of those countries. This book is a very good classroom discussion tool.