Black History Month is celebrated each February to acknowledge the significant contributions of African Americans throughout U.S. history. The Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) announces a theme annually to guide our focus and reflection. This year’s theme is A Century of Black History Commemorations, celebrating 100 years of national commemorations of Black history. Read on to discover resources that will support you in engaging and inspiring your students during Black History Month and throughout the year.
The National Education Association (NEA): Black History Month Lessons & Resources
The National Education Association (NEA) offers lesson materials organized by grade level. For adult learners, the Grades 6-8 and 9-12 resources are the most applicable. In addition, the NEA provides articles and a podcast episode to support teachers in preparing to teach Black history meaningfully.
The Smithsonian Learning Lab: National Museum of African American History & Culture
The National Museum of African American History & Culture offers an extensive, curated collection of digital materials for teachers and learners. These materials include primary and secondary sources, many of which are on display in the museum’s exhibits. To access the full library of digital resources, organized by historical topic, view the "All Collections" tab. To access resources related to this year’s theme, explore the museum’s Black History Month Digital Toolkit.
Facing History and Ourselves: The Reconstruction Era and the Fragility of Democracy
This collection of teacher resources focuses on the Reconstruction Era in U.S. History. Many materials in this collection highlight key issues in Black history, such as voting and labor rights.
Facing History and Ourselves: On-Demand Webinars
Facing History and Ourselves offers a library of on-demand teaching webinars and supporting materials that can be filtered by topic. We’ve selected three professional learning webinars related to Black history for you to explore. An account is necessary to view the recordings. If you don’t have an account, you can sign up for free.
- Unsung Women of the Civil Rights Movement
- Legacies of the Reconstruction Era
- Eyes on the Prize in the Classroom: Voices from the Civil Rights Movement
Celebrating Black History with the New York Times
The New York Times has curated a free resource list of articles, essays, photographs, videos, infographics, and more dedicated to Black history. Navigate to the section titled “Learning Network Lessons, Writing Prompts and Films” to find ready-to-use lesson materials.
Black History in Two Minutes or so
This YouTube channel presents short videos ranging from one minute to four minutes long that provide concise explanations of various Black history topics. Teachers may use these videos to inspire classroom discussion and develop writing prompts that align with ELA Standards.
