One Last River and Roll Jordan Roll are references to the Ohio River as the border between free and slave states. Follow the Drinking Gourd was an instruction to use the North Star as a navigational tool. Wade in the Water was a warning given by fellow slaves to help escaping slaves elude capture by slave catchers with packs of dogs. I have sometimes thought that the mere hearing of those songs would do more to impress some minds with the horrible character of slavery than the reading of whole volumes of philosophy. I did not, when a slave, understand the deep meaning of those songs.
Slaves sing most when they are most unhappy.
Respond through movement that is symbolic of escaping secretly or symbolic of how the music makes you feel. Create a song or a poem to express how they would feel if they were enslaved, seeking freedom, or had achieved freedom. Perform spirituals that evoke feelings such as triumph, freedom, resolve, despair, loss, etc. Research songs and poems from other time periods and cultures that express human desires such as freedom from oppression. Analyze the effect of time, place, and belief system on the interpretation of My Old Kentucky Home, or Steal Away.