If you’re Jamaican and your children or grandchildren were born in London, Toronto, New York, or anywhere outside “yaad”, you already know the moment.
Your child looks up and asks, “Grandma, what’s Nine Night?”
You pause. Because how do you explain a mourning tradition without scaring them? How do you teach pride in Jonkunnu without starting with slavery? How do you explain why Easter in Jamaica means bun and cheese, not chocolate eggs?
I’ve spent 36 years teaching in classrooms on three continents . I’m also a Jamaican author writing stories for children in the diaspora. And here’s what I’ve learned: heritage doesn’t have to feel heavy. It can be clear, warm, and easy to understand.
These three traditions are the perfect place to start. Share this with another Jamaican parent or grandparent today. If we don’t pass these stories on, the world will leave our children believing they have no history of their own.
1. Nine Night: We Remember Together, So No One Is Alone
What it looks like from abroad
A house full of people at 2am. Singing. Playing dominoes, ludo, cards. Drinking soup. To a child, it can look like a party. And that causes confusion: “Why are we celebrating when someone has died?”
How to explain it, gently and clearly
“In Jamaica, when someone we love dies, we don’t leave them alone. For nine nights, family and friends stay together. We sing and play their favourite songs. We tell stories about the funny things they did. We play games and we eat. On the ninth night there’s more singing, music, dancing, food, and short speeches from friends and family. We do this because we love them, and we want them to know they’re remembered.
What your child needs to understand
a) Why we stay up all night
In older African tradition, it’s believed the spirit takes nine nights to complete its journey. We stay awake as a sign of love and respect. It’s like keeping a light on for someone you care about.
b) The songs are songs to comfort the living, mourn the dead and honour the person who passed
Songs like “Nearer my God to Thee and Yu better hurry hurry up, get ready to go.”Children learn early that grief and love can exist at the same time.
c) It helps us heal
British and American culture often says, “Be strong. Don’t cry.” Jamaican culture says, “Cry if you need to. Talk if you need to. Sing if you need to.” Nine Night teaches children that feelings are allowed. That’s emotional intelligence.
For parents of children under 7
Skip the word “spirit”. Keep it simple: “We tell stories so we remember them.” That’s enough. That’s powerful.
2. Jonkunnu / John Canoe: The Dance That Refused to Be Broken
What it looks like from abroad
Tall costumes, masks, drums that shake the ground. To a child, it can look like Halloween.
How to explain it, with pride rather than pain
“A long time ago, Christmas was the only day enslaved Jamaicans were given time to rest. Our ancestors didn’t just rest. They made bright costumes, played drums, and danced through the streets. They called it Jonkunnu. It was their way of saying, ‘You may control my body, but you cannot control my spirit. I am still African. I am still free inside.’”
What your child needs to understand
a) The costumes show creativity
Patchwork clothes, tall hats, cow horns, horse tails. Our ancestors used materials that were thrown away and turned them into art. That’s the Jamaican spirit: we create beauty from what we have. That’s a lesson for life.
b) The drums were our way of communicating
Different drum beats carried different messages: “Come and dance”, “There is danger”, “Let us celebrate”. Before phones or letters, our people spoke through rhythm. If your child loves music, tell them: “Your ancestors invented their own language with drums.”
c) It still matters today
After emancipation in 1834, Jonkunnu didn’t end. It was never only about Christmas. It was about survival and identity. When you see Junkanoo in The Bahamas, Carnival in Notting Hill, or the energy of dancehall, you’re seeing Jonkunnu’s descendants. We’re still dancing. We’re still here.
For grandparents
Don’t begin with trauma. Begin with creativity. “Your people were brilliant costume makers.” Add the historical detail as your child gets older. Pride comes first. Understanding follows.
3. Bun and Cheese at Easter: The Taste of Two Cultures Becoming One
What it looks like from abroad
A dense, spiced bun with a block of bright red cheese. Children often say, “Sweet and salty together? That’s strange.”
How to explain it, in one simple bite
“Easter in Jamaica tastes like bun and cheese. But it’s more than food. The British brought hot cross buns for Easter. Our African ancestors added Jamaican spices like allspice and nutmeg, and ate it with cheese, a food that gave them strength. Bun plus cheese equals two cultures coming together. Just like you. You’re Jamaican and British. Jamaican and Canadian. Both. Not half.”
What your child needs to understand
a) It’s history you can taste
Hot cross bun represents a British tradition. Spiced bun brings African flavours. Cheese was a food that sustained our ancestors. Every Easter, when you take a bite, you’re tasting over 300 years of Jamaican history.
b) Easter is about celebration
For 40 days during Lent, many people give up meat and sweets. Bun and cheese marked the end of that time. It said, “We made it through. Now we celebrate.” Children need to learn that difficult seasons don’t last forever.
c) It’s a perfect lesson about identity
Many children in the diaspora feel “too Jamaican for school, too foreign for yard”. Bun and cheese shows them the opposite. Being mixed isn’t being broken. Being mixed is being Jamaican. Being mixed is being strong.
For parents
Use food to teach heritage. Children remember taste before they remember dates. Buy bun and cheese this Easter. As you eat it together, say one sentence: “This taste is older than our family. Your ancestors made this.” That’s a history lesson they’ll never forget.
Why These Three Traditions Matter
If you’re raising Jamaican children outside Jamaica, you’re doing quiet but important work. The world will teach them many things. Unless you act, it won’t teach them who they are.
These three traditions work because they give children what they need most:
1. Nine Night teaches them that loss is handled with community, not isolation.
2. Jonkunnu teaches them that resilience can look like creativity and joy, not only struggle.
3. Bun and Cheese teaches them that having two cultures doesn’t make them less. It makes them more.
They come from resilience. They come from rhythm. They come from a people who turn pain into poetry and struggle into song.