Black History Month- Lessons for Everyone

When one thinks about Black History Month, a few names may come to mind: Harriet Tubman, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., George Washington Carver, Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, Oprah Winfrey, and Barack Obama, to name a few. All of these people are African Americans who have made significant contributions to society, despite the challenges that race played in their accomplishments.

In your classroom, acquainting learners with prominent black people can ignite discussions about such things as the American Civil Rights Movement, slavery, the anti-slavery movement, equal rights, segregation, and desegregation. Building on the theme of Black History Month, teachers can generate lessons, projects, discussions, debates and/or classroom activities that are aligned to the Common Core State Standards, while also incorporating history, language arts, and current events.

Below, you will find three ideas for incorporating Black History Month and common core standards into your classroom. These plans are meant to get you started. Build upon these ideas, extend these lessons, and by all means, adapt them for your unique classroom. The goal is to expose students to dates and events that made history, invite them to utilize their critical thinking skills, and help them to consider how historic events have, and continue to have, an impact on society.

Overcoming Racism, Obstacles, and Ignorance

History and Event Timeline and Societal Impact

Using this resource your pupils create a database of notable events in black history. As they research, they must find events that they consider to be important with regard to black history and put them in a database. Pupils must discern whether or not an event is a fact, and then whether or not it is relevant (worth noting in a black history database.) Once they discover an event that meets the criteria, learners construct entries for the database, such as “January 15, 1929, Martin Luther King Jr. was born just after noon in an upstairs bedroom at 501 Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia. His parents were the Reverend and Mrs. Martin Luther King Sr.” After compiling pertinent events, pupils must arrange their facts chronologically in order to formulate a timeline. When creating this assignment, it is important to ask your learners to include recent history. For example, they can enter “November 4, 2008, Barak Obama is elected United States President.” Once the timeline is complete, ask learners to either write or discuss how these events have impacted society at large. Guided questions or writing prompts are a good idea here because the topic is large and without narrowing it down, students are likely to be either overwhelmed by the information or vague with their answers. Now that everyone in your class has the facts, extension ideas are limitless! (Note: If you want to eliminate the technology aspect of the lesson, learners could make their timelines on poster board.)

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.7 Integrate visual information (e.g., in charts, graphs, photographs, videos, or maps) with other information in print and digital texts.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.8 Distinguish among fact, opinion, and reasoned judgment in a text.

 

Fair and Balanced

This resource suggests that after your learners research prominent black leaders, each student chooses five leaders to invite to a roundtable discussion. For this roundtable discussion, pupils write questions they would ask the panel, topics they would want to have covered, and think about issues that face the black community. At this point, you can go one of two ways. You can have your pupils write an essay regarding the effectiveness of their candidates in the discussion (hypothetical, of course). Or, you can have them conduct in-depth research on the lives and work of two of their candidates. They can present their findings in a research paper, in a PowerPoint, or in an oral presentation.  Be sure to take the time to read this lesson in its entirety. There are numerous activities and assignments, all within this single resource. With a little forethought, this plan could be extended for multiple days.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.6.3 Analyze in detail how a key individual, event, or idea is introduced, illustrated, and elaborated in a text (e.g., through examples or anecdotes).

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.6.7 Integrate information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words to develop a coherent understanding of a topic or issue.

 

 New Attitudes and the Abolishment of Slavery

The actions and attitudes of famous white abolitionist, John Brown, are the subject of this resource that asks learners to analyze and evaluate, from both a written and a geographic perspective, the differences between Brown’s views and the views of other abolitionists. Have your learners scrutinize the “Fugitive Slave Bill of 1850," and the “Fugitive Slave Act.” Next, ask them to write their answers to questions like: How did John Brown view and treat African Americans? Or, How did John Brown’s view differ from the attitudes of other whites who spoke out against slavery?” Because this resource utilizes so many academic standards, there are several activities that will stem from it. Analyzing maps and demographic information that coincides with certain regions, is one extension activity that is beneficial for your pupils but doesn’t align with the standards since at this point, the geography standards are not available.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources.

 

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.2 Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.