DIA at Sheridan

This week, Sheridan celebrated DIA, a community-based, family literacy initiative celebrated across the United States. One of the goals of this day is to honor home languages and cultures, and thus promote bilingual and multilingual literacy and global understanding.

As part of DIA, Imani Gonzalez shared her knowledge of traditional world music with the Sheridan students. She uses traditional native and world music to support as a tool to understanding the rich diversity of cultures through stories, legends, rhythmic patterns, salutations, facts and traditional manners. The students "traveled" with her through the cultures of India; SeneGambia region of West Africa; Brazil; the Yoruba people of Cuba; Ga people of Ghana, West Africa; Shona people of Zimbabwe, South Africa; and such Native American Nations as the Seminole, Cherokee, Hopi, Crow, Iroquois and more. Through call and response, the students learned songs from around the world!