Seven Hills Celebrates Black History

Throughout Black History Month, Seven Hills students of all ages learned about the contributions of Black Americans, enjoyed to delicious food during the Soul Food Lunch, designed quilts, and learned ballet.

Doherty

Doherty’s Unit I kicked off the month by presenting their ABCs of Black History. From Madame C.J. Walker to Juneteenth to Harriet Tubman, the students shared their projects with their fellow classmates. Each assigned a letter or two, the students presented a fact about Black history for all 26 letters of the alphabet.

Unit III combined their art and language arts learning for their changemaker projects, honoring people of color. Students researched a changemaker like astronaut Jessica Watkins, soccer star Sophia Smith, or Civil Rights leader Coretta Scott King in their language arts class. Then in art teacher Kacey Watkins’ class, the students created portraits of their changemaker inspired by the work of artist Kehinde Wiley.

The students presented their projects to their Doherty classmates at the monthly assembly.

The pre-kindergarten for 2-year-old students learned about Black history through music and dance from special visitors. Director of School Safety and Security Cassandra Tucker taught the students about jazz through the music of Trombone Shorty and held a dance party. After the students learned about ballet dancer Misty Copeland, Unit III student Fayola Shonubi visited the PK2 students to teach them ballet moves.

Lotspeich

Lotspeich second and third graders utilized art class to celebrate Black History Month. Second graders created mixed-media hearts inspired by the vibrant works from artist Jessi Raulet, while third graders sculpted paper relief sculptures inspired by Charles McGee.

Raulet, an American artist based in Paris, founded her lifestyle brand EttaVee in 2014, as a way to sell her colorful hand-painted pieces.

McGee was a renowned American artist and educator celebrated for his dynamic paintings, assemblages, and sculptures. His work is featured in the collections of the Detroit Institute of Arts and the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. In addition to his museum pieces, McGee contributed several large-scale public artworks that enrich the city of Detroit’s cultural landscape.

Kindergartners were inspired by Granville T. Woods, the inventor of the first electric roller coaster, to design their first roller coasters using paper, tape, cardboard, and more. Students incorporated unique elements into their attractions and later presented them and other facts about Woods to their peers.

Fourth graders designed Black History Month quilts during social studies, inspired by the author and artist Faith Rinngold. Students began the project by selecting an African American changemaker to research, and wrote a brief description based on their findings. Students also used their research to inform their quilt design. Each square showed a part of what their changemaker is known for.

Middle and Upper

The month capped off with the annual Soul Food Lunch, hosted by Upper’s African American Awareness Club with the help of the Seven Hills Network of African American Parents. Middle and Upper School students had the opportunity to try a variety of food contributed by families.