Heritage Packs: Multicultural Lesson Guides
Heritage Packs are designed to help home educators and school teachers bridge the gap between the traditional curriculum they love and the legitimate need to add some delicious butterscotch, caramel, and mocha fudge to the yummy cream. If your table is set and the feast looks good but you’re missing a little flavor (or flava!), choose some “special sauce” from the selection of Heritage Packs below. Filled with literary mirrors and windows, these lesson guides will lighten your load and allow you to focus on what you love most – your children.
What’s in a Heritage Pack?
Each pack contains a list of recommended living books and lifegiving books with book summaries and integrated at-a-glance lesson plans.
You’ll receive a suggested weekly page breakdown that combines books for a cohesive program, and some packs come with recommendations for books across multiple age ranges so families can study and grow together.
In addition to the base lesson plans, each pack includes suggestions for optional videos and one or two bonus books – just for fun!
Heritage Packs
Black History and African Culture Lesson Guides
Amazing Africa Heritage Pack
The Amazing Africa! Heritage Pack is designed to introduce your child to the wonderful continent of Africa through high-level overviews of many countries combined with more in-depth “visits” using engaging living picture books.
Melanated Tales Heritage Pack
The Melanated Tales Heritage Pack takes children on a journey through African and African American folktales, fairy tales, and tall tales featuring Black characters. Some are retellings of favorites from Hans Christian Andersen and the Brothers Grimm while others are original.
Harlem Renaissance Stomp! Heritage Pack
The Harlem Renaissance Heritage Pack covers a golden age in African American culture from about 1918 until the mid-1930s when a brave and talented group of Black musicians, artists, poets, novelists, actors, and public figures came together in New York City’s Harlem neighborhood.
Heart and Soul Heritage Pack
The Heart & Soul Heritage Pack is designed as a broad journey through the contributions and experiences of African Americans across the history of America. The lesson plans are grounded in Kadir Nelson’s stirring paintings and words.
Civil Rights Heritage Pack
The Civil Rights Heritage Pack is a survey of the brave men and women who risked their reputations, livelihoods, and often even their very lives to press towards what they knew to be right.
Voices Heritage Pack
The Voices Heritage Pack highlights the stories of Black leaders and events to provide a deeper understanding of how some of the lesser-known figures from history helped shape and enrich the cultural road map of African Americans.
Joyful Generations Heritage Pack
The Joyful Generations Heritage Pack tells stories of iconic and lesser-known people from the past and present. The age-appropriate books and videos share the fullness of various Black people’s life experiences as they dealt with enslavement, segregation, poverty, and other difficult circumstances. But make no mistake, the focus of this study is triumph, achievement, and joy.
Heritage Pack Bundle A
A discounted bundle of three lesson guides designed for Early Elementary students interested in African geography (the modern-day land and its people), fairytales and folktales featuring Black characters, and African American history and culture.
Heritage Pack Bundle B
A discounted bundle of four lesson guides designed for Late Elementary & Middle School students interested in an overview of African American history, a deep dive into the Civil Rights Movement, an exploration of the Harlem Renaissance, and a survey of Black achievement.
Heritage Pack Bundle C
A discounted bundle of seven lesson guides designed for students in 1st - 6th grades who are interested in African geography and African American folktales, history, and achievements before, during, and after the Civil Rights Movement and Harlem Renaissance.
Frequently Asked Questions:
What if I already own a book that is similar to what you recommend in the pack?
You may find that you already have some of these books on your shelves (Isn’t that always great?!), but if not, there is a link and password to purchase the books on each Heritage Pack receipt. In many cases, it would be totally fine to swap similar books. However, sometimes the entire pack is built around a single book, and much of the richness would be lost without the central title. Alternates and substitutions are addressed in each pack.
How many weeks of lessons plans will I receive?
Each pack covers a different length of time – usually 24 or 36 weeks (see pack description for details). You can follow the plan to complete the pack in the stated number of weeks or control your own pace by reading more or less often.
What are the recommended ages for the Heritage packs?
The recommended ages vary from pack to pack and are only general guides. Often, you can easily include younger and older siblings for total family learning.
Will I receive a hard copy of the Heritage Packs?
Not unless you select that option at checkout. Otherwise, this is a digital product, and you will receive a PDF upon purchase. Check out #14 below for info on printing.
Can I share these lesson plans with other people?
Because this is my business and I have put a lot of time and money into developing these plans, I ask that you not post or share the plans with others. I have intentionally made them very affordable so each family can purchase directly from my site.
When will I receive the plans?
Immediately upon purchase, a page will come up with a download link. If you’re unable to save the file at that time (because you’re on your phone), you will receive a PDF download link in your receipt via email immediately after purchase. There will also be a link and password for a digital booklist that will make it easier for you to quickly check pricing and/or purchase the titles in your pack. The immediate download link always works. Occasionally, the email with the download link is blocked or ends up in spam. If you do not receive your file link email right away, please check your spam box. If it’s not there, email me at heritagemomblog@gmail.com and I will send an attachment.
I received a Heritage Mom receipt with other links, but the file is not there.
The file is hyperlinked as the name of the Heritage Pack you purchased – right under the link asking you to leave a review. If you have a receipt from Heritage Mom (not the Paypal receipt), then you definitely have the file. There are two links on every receipt: (1) a link to the Heritage Pack, and (2) a link to a private resources page with updates, additional notes, and links to every book.
Do the packs include discussion questions, activities, projects, and student worksheets?
No, the packs include exactly what is listed on each description page – typically the booklist with an explanation of how the books are used, descriptions of each book, and a weekly lesson guide with recommended page numbers for combining books and optional videos to help bring additional life to the lessons. There are no student worksheets or projects. The Civil Rights Heritage Pack has activities built into one of the books, but that is the only one that includes additional activities. Many parents/teachers using the packs follow up the readings by asking the child to provide an oral or written narration, depending on the age of the child, and/or initiate a discussion of the material with the child based upon the reading.
It appears that the Heritage Packs focus on African and African American culture and history. What about other ethnicities and cultures?
I hear you! I started with the low-hanging fruit for me (the books, people, and cultures I know best), but I’ve expanded the offering to include more POC voices in my Heritage Hymns and Sweet Tea & Cookies lesson guides.
Are the books included?
No, you are only purchasing the lesson guide to go along with the books listed on each page. If you are purchasing books online, please consider using the links provided. They are affiliate links, and I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support as this is what allows me to keep the lesson plans reasonably priced for everyone.
What if one of the links is broken?
Occasionally, one of the video links may change or a video may be taken down. When you encounter issues, check the link in the pack that takes you to the video file. That is where I post updated links and any other necessary updates for the Heritage Packs. If you check that page and no update is mentioned, please email me at heritagemomblog@gmail.com, and I will provide a replacement link to you via email and post it on the updates page for others.
How am I supposed to afford all of these books?
Book budgets are different for each family. If you need some financial relief (We’ve all been there!), check your local library, and don’t be afraid to request books they don’t carry. You won’t find many of the books at thrift stores, but you can find most of them used online. And last but not least, many of the picture books are read aloud on YouTube by various people. That is not the ideal option because, obviously, the actual book is better, but if it’s between watching on YouTube and not being exposed to the book at all, I vote for YouTube! Shhh…Please don’t tell Charlotte.
Is there a discount for multiple purchases?
Your receipt will have a link for leaving a review. If you return to the site and leave a review for your first purchase, you’ll receive a 10% off coupon for another store purchase.
Is there an option to purchase a hard copy?
Yes! A ‘Print & Ship’ option has been added for each Heritage Pack. Pricing varies, but all hard copy purchases include an immediate digital download. Discounted shipping is applied when ordering more than one Heritage Pack at a time. Items usually arrive much sooner, but please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery from our third-party printing company. Please be sure to enter your FULL mailing address (including zip code) in the order notes! Double-check for typos.
What is your return policy?
Due to the digital nature of the product, I do not accept returns or exchanges. Please read each description carefully and ask questions before purchasing.