How to Write Lesson Plans for Black History Month

Black History Month is celebrated in Canada and the U.S. throughout February. The celebration of Black History Month grew out of a shorter celebration known as Negro History Week, which began in 1926. By 1976, the celebration had lengthened to an entire month and became known as the "National Afro-American History Month." Today, the celebration offers an opportunity for students to learn more about African-American history.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Post pictures of famous African-Americans as the anticipatory set for your first lesson. Put biographies on the backs of the pictures. Break the students into groups of two or three. Each group gets one picture, reads the biography and creates a three-minute oral report for the class.

2. Read an excerpt from "Aunt Harriet's Underground Railroad in the Sky," as your anticipatory set. Use a poem with older students. Guide students through a timeline of Harriet Tubman's life and contributions to the Underground Railroad.

3. Review major milestones in the Civil Rights Movement. Introduce a picture of Rosa Parks as part of your anticipatory set. Ask students what Rosa Parks did to get arrested. Explain the event and its ramifications in detail. You might play the tribute song "Sister Rosa" by the Neville Brothers.

4. Use one class period to discuss the contributions of Martin Luther King Jr. Introduce students to the Nobel Peace Prize. Ask students what Martin Luther King Jr. did to earn this prize in 1964.

5. Show a video of Martin Luther King's speech, "I Have a Dream." Ask students to write their own dreams for the country's future using a worksheet that follows the format of the "I Have a Dream" speech.

6. Present your students with a list of inventions or discoveries made by African-Americans, including the botanical scientist George Washington Carver. Ask the students to review the list and then write a paragraph describing what life would be like today if these African-Americans had not made those discoveries.

Resources

• See video of Martin Luther King Jr.
• Find an online biography of Harriet Tubman at Ihric.
• Get a list of African-American scientists at Teachervision.

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[dearlonda]

on 2/11/2009 Excellent article! Highly feasible for teachers, highly retainable for students. And no sports figures! ;-) I couldn't resist.