Weekly Reading & Session Leaders

                                                                                       Spring 2022 Reading Assignments Calendar,  

Week by Week

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Class #10 Tuesday May 17

Life’s Journey: The future

Chapt. #15: “I Dream a World” pgs. 347 - 366

  • Session #1: Poetry discussion:
  • Session #2: Selected poems, poll results, and final discussion
    • Discusson leader: Linda 
      • Still relevant?: Langston Hughes, pgs. 354 - 356
        • “Dream Variation" 
        • “I Dream a World”
        • “For Russell and Rowena Jelliffe”
      • Optimistic or not?:
        • “I Have a Dream” Pat Parker, pg. 361
        • “Walking Down Park” Nikki Giovanni pg. 372
        • “Open Letter” Owen Dodson, pg. 350
        • “The Gods Wrote” Keorapetse Kgositsile, pg. 358-359
      • Apt conclusions?
        • “Daybreak” Sterling Plumpp, pg. 362
        • “The Song Turning Back Into Itself 2. a song for little children” Al Young, pg. 366 - 367

Question Sheet for Class #10 

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Spring 2022: Completed classes

Day #1 Tuesday March 15

Introductions and Previews


Class #2, Tuesday March 22

Themes: Black Woman: Mother, Sister, Girl, Lover, Maid

Chapt. #8: “Is She Our Sister?” pgs. 163 - 200

Question Sheet for Class #2

Class #3 Tuesday March 29

Portraits: The Black man: Boy, Brother, Father, Lover

Chapt. #9: “Don’t It Make You Want to Cry?”  pgs. 201 – 228

Session #2: Poetry discussion:

Session #3: Poetry discussion:

  • Discussion leader: Roz Kurzer
    • Poems: 
      • “Blood to Blood,” Alvin Aubert, pg. 201
        • Bio from the Poetry Foundation
      • “Strong Men” Sterling A. Brown, pg. 204
        • Sterling Brown reads “Strong Men
        • Bio from the Poetry Foundation.
        • Bio from Lift Every Voice
      • Neiel Israel, “When A Black Man Walks” (video); text of poem.

Question Sheet for Class #3

Class #4 Tuesday April 5

Portraits: Children, Childhood, and the Black Child

Chapt. #10: “Whose Children Are These?” pgs. 229 – 244

Question Sheet for Class #4

Class # 5 Tuesday April 12

Soul Support: Family and love

Chapter #11: “They Are All of Me” pgs. 245 - 282

Session #2: Poetry discussion:

Session #3: Poetry discussion:

Question Sheet for Class #5

Class #6 Tuesday April 19

Soul support: Music

Chapt. #12: “Oh, Singing Tree!” 283 - 296

Question Sheet, Class #6

Class #7 Tuesday April 26

Soul Support: Religion

Chapt. #13: “Oh, My Soul is in the Whirlwind”  pgs. 297 – 314

  • Chapter theme: The Church in the African American Experience.
    • Resources:
      • Origins Of The Black Church.” Dr. Anthea Butler, U. Penn, shares the origins of The Black Church from the time Africans were enslaved in America up to Emancipation. 

Session #1: Poetry discussion:

  • Discussion leader: Freeman Freeman 
  • Poems: 
    • "Madam and the Minister" by Langston Hughes, pg. 301.  
    • "The Creation" by James Weldon Johnson, pg. 304
      • The Creation” Video of James Weldon Johnson’s poem, “The Creation" 
    • “Revival" by Kevin Young, pg. 312
    • "Nocturne at Bethesda" by Arna Bontemps, pg. 297
  • Resources:

Session #2: Poetry discussion: 

Question Sheet for Class #7

Class #8 Tuesday  May 3

 Life’s Journey: Death

Chapt. #14: “Dear Lovely Death” pgs. 315 - 346

Question Sheet for Class #8

Class #9 Tuesday May 10

Life’s Journey:  “Black Lives Matter: A Poetry Reader”   An online reader: “. . . a starting place for reading poetry that celebrates, protests, calls out, and responds. We believe Black Lives Matter. Justice matters. Poetry matters.” Here is the list of poems, with links.

Question Sheet for Class #9


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Winter 2022 Assignments, Links and Extra Reading 

Class #1, Tuesday Jan. 11

Class #2, Tuesday Jan. 18         

Chapter 1  “To Make a Poet Black” Pgs. 1-18 

Session #2: Selected poem(s):

Session #3:

Question Sheet for Class 2

Class #3, Tuesday Jan. 25

Chapter 2  “What is Africa to Me” Pgs. 19-29

Session #2: Selected poem(s):

Session #3: Selected poem(s):

Question Sheet for Class #3

Class #4, Tuesday Feb.1

Chapter 3 “The Rocking Loom of History” Pgs 31-56

Session #4: Slideshow: A photo-images tour of slavery


Class #5, Tuesday Feb 8

Chapter “Like Walking Out of Shadow” Pgs. 57-93

Class #6, Tuesday Feb 15             

Chapter “If We Must Die” Pgs.  95-118

Session #2: Selected poem(s):

Session #3: Selected poem(s):

 Class #7 Tuesday Feb 22

Chapter “This Man Shall Be Remembered” Pgs.121-138

Question Sheet for Class #7

Class #8 Tuesday March 1

Chapter “A Rock Against the Wind” Pgs.145-162

Question Sheet for Class #8




© Linda K. Shamoon 2020