TeachersFirst's Black History Resources
Black History Month, held in February in the United States, is a celebration of the many achievements of African-Americans. Although it started in the United States it is now celebrated throughout the world and not limited to the month of February. This curated collection includes teaching ideas, biographies, interactive sites, research materials, and more to learn about the pivotal roles that African-Americans have had in history and continue to have today. Find inspiration and resources to share with students related to historical time periods, famous figures, and much more.
View our entire collection of tagged resources for Black History.
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Created Equal - National Endowment for the Humanities
Grades
9 to 12
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Four documentary films related to the Civil Rights Movement, available to stream either in part or in their entirety, form the centerpiece of this effort from the National Endowment...more
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Four documentary films related to the Civil Rights Movement, available to stream either in part or in their entirety, form the centerpiece of this effort from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The films cover time periods beginning with the Abolitionist Movement and continuing through the Freedom Marches and the turbulent 1960s. Explore the meaning of freedom and equality in the United States with relevance still today. There are teacher resources, lesson plans, and suggestions for aligning lessons to the Common Core.
tag(s): bill of rights (24), black history (90), civil rights (165), civil war (127), emancipation proclamation (7), segregation (16)
In the Classroom
The documentaries, or the excerpts presented, are all available to stream from the site. While they may be too lengthy to show in their entirety during one class period, they have also been divided into clips according to themes. For example, Equality is part of the full video about Law and the Strategy of Nonviolence. This makes them more adaptable for classroom use. Share the videos on your interactive whiteboard or projector, or flip your class using EdPuzzle, reviewed here, and have students watch clips at home and come back to class ready to discuss. EdPuzzle is a great way to take sections of videos and add your own voice or add questions within the video. Alternatively, you could use VideoAnt, reviewed here, to enhance student learning with students asking questions about the parts where they need clarification. The issues raised by these Created Equal documentaries may be easily incorporated into lessons related to the Civil Rights Movement, modern U.S. history, Black History Month, or civics and government. Use these videos as conversation starters in the classroom.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Ruby Bridges: Connecting Lives - Scholastic
Grades
5 to 8
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Find a complete, cross-curricular, two-part unit for middle school lessons on Ruby Bridges. Read about Ruby Bridges in selected texts and write about your reactions in a double-entry...more
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Find a complete, cross-curricular, two-part unit for middle school lessons on Ruby Bridges. Read about Ruby Bridges in selected texts and write about your reactions in a double-entry journal. Another activity entails designing and building a suspension bridge, connecting the strength of the bridge with Ruby's personal strength. An interesting interview with Ruby Bridges is the highlight of the lessons.
tag(s): african american (93), black history (90), civil rights (165), racism (71), women (104)
In the Classroom
Follow the directions to have your class build suspension bridges, individually or in pairs. Enhance learning by having students create an online book of images and captions about Ruby Bridges using Pixabay, reviewed here, for the images and Book Creator, reviewed here, to make the book. This activity could be an alternative to the hand written double entry journal. Challenge your students to use a site such as Preceden, reviewed here, to create an interactive timeline with event spans that can overlap each other and create a greater understanding of how events can influence other events in Ruby Bridges' life.
This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.
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Nelson Mandela - Facts - Nobel Media
Grades
3 to 12
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Explore information and facts about the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Nelson Mandela, straight from the Nobel Prize website. In addition to basic biographical information, view videos...more
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Explore information and facts about the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Nelson Mandela, straight from the Nobel Prize website. In addition to basic biographical information, view videos of Mandela's Nobel lecture, a bibliography of his writings, a photo gallery and much more.
tag(s): 1960s (29), 1970s (10), 1980s (7), 20th century (48), biographies (88), black history (90), civil rights (165), heroes (19), south africa (12)
In the Classroom
Introduce this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students explore this site independently or in small groups. This site is perfect to include with Black History Month activities or in a unit on Civil Rights leaders. Have students create a simple infographic with words used to describe Mandela sharing their findings using Easel.ly, reviewed here, or Venngage reviewed here. Have students create a word cloud of the important terms they learn from this site using a tool such as Tagxedo, reviewed here, or WordItOut, reviewed here. Use an online tool such as an interactive Two Circle Venn Diagram, reviewed here, to compare South Africa at the time of Mandela's arrest to current South Africa. Have students use Fakebook, reviewed here, to create a "fake" page similar in style to Facebook about Mandela during his time in prison or after his release.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Enslaved Africans - Our Truth - International Slavery Museum, Liverpool England
Grades
7 to 12
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Follow the stories of four African slaves as they were taken on board a transatlantic slave ship in 1780. Begin as you meet your guides from four different tribes. Choose ...more
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Follow the stories of four African slaves as they were taken on board a transatlantic slave ship in 1780. Begin as you meet your guides from four different tribes. Choose a story teller to start. Each guide begins by telling the story of their family life and cultural information. Click on underlined terms to view more information or find the definition to a vocabulary word.
tag(s): africa (140), black history (90), cross cultural understanding (148), slavery (60)
In the Classroom
View this site together on your interactive whiteboard or projector. It would be an interesting counterpoint if your class is reading Paula Fox's The Slave Dancer, even though the time frame is not identical. Allow students to explore on their own. Engage students by challenging cooperative groups to read a specific "journey." Then have them blog about what was the biggest surprise in the story? What did they already know about slavery? Use a blogging tool such as Telegra.ph, reviewed here. With Telegra.ph you just click on an icon to upload images from your computer, add a YouTube or Vimeo, or Twitter links. This blog creator requires no registration. Enhance student learning by having groups use a mapping tool such as Zeemaps, reviewed here, to create a map of slavery voyages. They can even include audio "stories" and pictures.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The Brown Bookshelf - Paula Chase-Hyman
Grades
K to 12
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The Brown Bookshelf features literature for young readers written by and featuring people of color. View archives going back to 2007 to find book reviews, author's chats, and some videos...more
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The Brown Bookshelf features literature for young readers written by and featuring people of color. View archives going back to 2007 to find book reviews, author's chats, and some videos that accompany books featured on the site. A flagship feature of the site is the 28 Days Later portion. Each day during Black History Month features a different author. It is a month-long showcase of the best in Picture Books, Middle Grade, and Young Adult novels written and illustrated by African Americans to help parents, teachers, librarians and booksellers recommend good reads. Archives are available beginning with the 2008 campaign.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): african american (93), black history (90), book lists (125), civil rights (165), literature (220), preK (238)
In the Classroom
Bookmark this site for use throughout the year, not just during Black History Month. Create a link on classroom computers for students to explore and find books for reading. Share this link on your class website or blog for students to use at home. Showcase books found on this site for classroom read alouds. Librarians will find this site helpful for creating displays in their library or for presentations in classrooms. Enhance student learning by having students create commercials for books found on this site using a tool like Powtoon, reviewed here, or Biteable, reviewed here, and share them using a tool such as SchoolTube, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database - Voyages - Emory University
Grades
6 to 12
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This comprehensive site on the African Slave Trade is robust enough for those doing serious research, and accessible enough for those who want an overview and supporting materials for...more
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This comprehensive site on the African Slave Trade is robust enough for those doing serious research, and accessible enough for those who want an overview and supporting materials for a classroom survey. There are lesson plans, an interactive map, links to resources, an image bank, and large, searchable and downloadable data bases of African names, ships used in the slave trade and their voyages, tables of data focused on the number of slaves involved, and timelines.
tag(s): africa (140), black history (90), slavery (60)
In the Classroom
If you are teaching a course that covers the African slave trade, this site will be invaluable. Take some time to browse the interactive maps and timelines, look through the lesson plans, and find images that can be used to supplement reading and discussion. Discover the glossary of terms that could be used for vocabulary work, the tables of information useful for teaching data analysis, and the African name database for genealogy research. Challenge cooperative learning groups to research a specific section of this site and create multimedia presentations. Try Thinglink, reviewed here, to enhance or extend student learning. This site allows you to narrate a picture.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Rosa Parks: How I Fought for Civil Rights - Scholastic
Grades
4 to 8
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The Rosa Parks: How I Fought for Civil Rights website includes free printable lesson plans, worksheets, an interview, a biography, and other reading material that can be easily...more
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The Rosa Parks: How I Fought for Civil Rights website includes free printable lesson plans, worksheets, an interview, a biography, and other reading material that can be easily viewed full-screen on your classroom interactive whiteboard (or with a projector). The site is easy to navigate with links built right into the text for vocabulary and other relevant information. The activities help students understand the importance and necessity of every individual citizen in a democracy working together to contribute to a better way of life for all.
tag(s): black history (90), civil rights (165), martin luther king (39), rosa parks (9), tolerance (9), women (104)
In the Classroom
Spark your students' interest in how one brave individual changed history by not giving up her bus seat to a white passenger. Whether you are doing a unit on people who make a difference, civil rights, tolerance, or studying women and events in history, this self-contained website provides resources and materials that you can display on your classroom whiteboard (or with a projector). Involve students in using the interactive links to enhance learning and springboard discussions on what still needs to be done in regards to acceptance and embracing racial, ethnic, and cultural differences. Use an online tool like The Interactive Three-Circle Venn Diagram, reviewed here, to compare and contrast discrimination in our country then with similar challenges we face today, and what still needs to be accomplished for a better tomorrow. Broaden the concepts to include that even when we are brave and have courage, change doesn't come about immediately; it takes time and continued perseverance. Culminate the unit with a writing prompt for students to reflect on and explain: Have you ever faced something that you thought you couldn't stand up to? Instead of using paper and pencil, integrate technology by having students create blogs sharing their learning and understanding using Telegra.ph, reviewed here. This blog creator requires no registration. With Telegra.ph have students click on an icon to upload related images, add YouTube or Vimeo, or Twitter links.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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By Popular Demand: Jackie and other Baseball Highlights 1860s-1960s - Library of Congress
Grades
6 to 12
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This Library of Congress collection has information on Jackie Robinson and lots more. As always, the images are the star of the show, and there are pictures of early teams, ...more
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This Library of Congress collection has information on Jackie Robinson and lots more. As always, the images are the star of the show, and there are pictures of early teams, documentation about Robinson's entry into the big leagues, and much more. Students can click on a time period (1860s-1890s, 1900s-1930s, 1940-1946, 1947-1956, 1957-1961, or 1962-1972) to learn more about the history of African-Americans and baseball.
tag(s): africa (140), african american (93), baseball (31), black history (90)
In the Classroom
Provide your students with this website and a good 20-minutes of exploration time. Then, enhance learning by having your class write journal entries through the eyes of the African-American baseball stars. If you are beginning the process of integrating technology, replace paper journals and have students create blogs (digital journals) sharing their learning and understanding using Telegra.ph, reviewed here. This blog creator requires no registration. With Telegra.ph have students click on an icon to upload related images, add YouTube or Vimeo, or Twitter links. Or divide the class into cooperative learning groups. Extend learning by having each group research a specific time period and share their findings with the class using an infographic tool created with Canva Infographic Maker, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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A People's Journey, A Nation's Story - African American History and Culture - Smithsonian
Grades
6 to 12
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The National Museum of African American History and Culture is the only national museum devoted to documentation of African-American life in the United States. Explore the virtual museum...more
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The National Museum of African American History and Culture is the only national museum devoted to documentation of African-American life in the United States. Explore the virtual museum through collections, exhibitions, stories, and more. Search collections by topic, era, or name to view artifacts including photographs, maps, and much more.
tag(s): africa (140), african american (93), black history (90)
In the Classroom
This site is a great tool for individual research, add this site to your teacher web page so students can access it from home. Replace paper and pencil and use an online tool such as Interactive Two Circle Venn Diagram, reviewed here from Classtools, to compare information from different time periods or locations in the United States. Enhance learning by having cooperative learning groups create podcasts providing information about African-American life throughout the years, or as a newscast from one particular time or event. Use a site such as podOmatic, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Black Wings: African American Pioneer Aviators - Smithsonian- National Air and Space Museum
Grades
5 to 12
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Inspire future aviators or encourage students to pursue their dreams with this site that traces African American aviators through the years. There are many images and short passages...more
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Inspire future aviators or encourage students to pursue their dreams with this site that traces African American aviators through the years. There are many images and short passages of text. The reading levels are not for younger students. Black Wings permits students to download and use images in their reports, as long as they are classroom projects, either printed or electronic, such as in PowerPoint or other tech tool. Images may not be published on web pages or burned to CD. Be sure to visit the What's New section for featured interviews with aviators. What a terrific and interesting primary source!
tag(s): africa (140), african american (93), black history (90), flight (30)
In the Classroom
Use this one as part of reading comprehension practice and find that your students are actually interested in what they read. Have students create projects about their favorite aviator or aircraft on a poster using Genially, reviewed here, or PowerPoint Online, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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