Adults — do you think you know about history? We’ll be studying slavery during our Discovering Early America unit, and yesterday, we started with a little challenge. Students tried to guess which of these facts are true, and which are false. Do you think you know? Give it a try, and look down at the bottom for the answer.Which facts do you think are true? Which are false? Scroll down for the answer…

Answer: Many people think that all Africans lived in undeveloped villages, and that they only came to America as slaves. In fact, every fact above is true! Before the time of slavery, there were big, developed civilizations in Africa. And some of the first African Americans lived free in the colonies. Let’s make sure that we spread the word — African American history doesn’t begin with people who are helpless and sad.

Sources:

• http://www.patheos.com/blogs/homeschoolchronicles/2013/10/black-history-did-not-begin-with-slavery/
• http://www.theroot.com/articles/history/2012/10/who_was_the_first_african_ american_100_amazing_facts_about_the_negro.html
• http://www.blackpast.org/aah/de-souza-matthias-circa-1642
• http://www.understandingslavery.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=306&Itemid=151