Storytelling is a very important part of African culture. Many stories were passed down from generation to generation by people telling them to their children, who would then tell their children. Stories might tell tales about history, remind people of religious teachings, or just be told for entertainment.
The story in the video is based on a South African folk tale and an African lullaby. The author, Pete Seeger, is a famous folk singer. He took the lullaby and wrote a story for his children. The story comes from Africa but Pete Seeger puts it in his own words. This video comes from the PBS show Reading Rainbow. Before the story begins, Pete talks to the host, LeVar Burton, about how he came to write the story.
The story includes a song. This song is short and simple. See if you can learn it and sing along whenever it comes up in the story.
While you are listening to the story, think about the following questions:
- Why do you think the people didn’t like the boy and his father? How did their attitude change during the story?
- Why was Abiyoyo so scary to the people?
- What lesson do you think the people of the village learned?
I hope you enjoy today’s story from Africa!
Mr. Steve's Music 