Helping Children Understand Slavery

 -Tell a made-up story to the children geared to their age that will help them understand what a slave is. For example, for younger children, tell them about a father whose boss will not let him come home to see his son. Days, weeks, and months pass. Finally, the daddy calls and says he will be home on a certain day. The boy is so excited, he invites all of his friends over, and helps his mom bake a cake, and they decorate the whole house. He can’t sleep all night because he loves his daddy so much and can’t wait. The next day, his daddy calls again and says with tears, “I am sorry son. My boss won’t let me come home.” Explain that this is like being a slave, having no control over one’s own life.

-Ask everyone, if you were a slave, what would you hate most?

-Let the children be the “masters” for a moment, and tell them to order the adults to change seats and sit wherever they are told.

-Let the children “slave” to build a pyramid out of sugar cubes! They will love this!!