Need some ideas to get your class involved in Black History Month? We have created a list of ways you can educate your students, from learning about historical figures, reading black literature, and understanding why Black History Month is taught, and how just like Mental Health Month, it should not be restricted to just a month. It should be integrated into the school curriculum.
Celebrate Classroom Diversity
It is so valuable to celebrate the diversity you may have in your classroom. We should be teaching our students to respect every race, religion, gender, and disability. Black History Month may raise questions in the classroom, and black students may ask why their race has a month where others do not. It is important, as an educator, to teach your students the importance of recognising Black History Month, but also teaching that, just like Mental Health Month, etc, it should not be restricted to just a month. It should be embedded into the school curriculum.
Celebrate The Achievements of Black Britons
Below is a list of famous black Britons. Speak with your class about what each of them is famous for, if/how they have historical significance, and the struggles they may have faced (currently or historically) to get into the work they are/were in.
- Mo Farah – British long-distance runner
- Mallory Blackman – British writer
- Mary Prince – The first black woman to publish an autobiography of her experience as a slave
- Olive Morris – British racial activist
- Marcus Rashford – English footballer
- Dame Shirley Bassey – Singer
- Trevor McDonald – Trinidadian-British journalist
- Diane Abbott – Member of Parliament of the United Kingdom
- Mary Seacole – Historical herbalist, nurse, businesswoman and writer
- Kelly Holmes – British athlete
Use Literacy To Explore Black History
It is important to look at famous literature written by black authors. Depending of your age group, get the class to read the book as their homework or get them to go away and write about an essay about the piece and, (if an early black author), the struggles they may have faced in publishing.
- Black and British: A Short, Essential History by David Olusoga (reading age: 9+)
A short, essential introduction to Black British history for readers of 12+ by award winning historian and broadcaster David Olusoga. When did Africans first come to Britain? Who are the well-dressed black children in Georgian paintings? Why did the American Civil War disrupt the Industrial Revolution? These and many other questions are answered in this essential introduction to 1800 years of the Black British history: from the Roman Africans who guarded Hadrian’s Wall right up to the present day.
- The Colour Purple by Alice Walker (reading age: 12+)
Adapted into a Steven Spielberg–directed film that earned Oprah an Oscar nomination, The Color Purple tells the tale of Celie, a young woman growing up in poverty in segregated Georgia. Despite suffering hardship, Celie finds her way back to the ones she loves in a time-tested story.
- Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison (reading page: 5+)
Featuring 40 trailblazing black women in history, this book educates and inspires as it relates true stories of women who broke boundaries and exceeded all expectations.
- Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah (reading age: 11+)
In this heart-stopping adventure, Benjamin Zephaniah shows us what it was like to be a child of the Windrush generation. Benjamin Zephaniah is a British writer and Dub poet whose work often contains the language and rhythms of his Jamaican heritage.
- The Street by Ann Petry (reading age: 13+)
Published in 1946 and the first book by a Black women to sell over a million copies, Petry’s work is a classic. Set in Harlem on 116th Street, it follows Lutie Johnson’s struggles to survive as a divorced mother with a young son amid racism and sexism. With few choices in a city where the Black population lives in decrepit apartments and poverty is a constant companion, Lutie endures despite it all.
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou (reading age: 15+)
Written by a legendary writer, civil rights activist, and one of Oprah’s greatest friends, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is a poetic memoir that captures Angelou’s childhood struggles and the freedoms of her adulthood, which allowed her to find strength amid despair.
Use Film To Explore Black History
- Selma (2014) 12A
Selma is a 2014 historical drama film directed by Ava DuVernay on the 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches initiated and directed by James Bevel and led by Martin Luther King Jr, Hosea Williams, and John Lewis.
- Cinderella (1997) U
Another classic retelling of the famous tale of Cinderella featuring a predominantly black cast, and the first film to actively cast a black woman to pay the role of a historically recognised white woman. The story of the ill-treated stepdaughter turned princess has been rendered through ballets, operas, musicals, and animated movies — all with primarily white actors. Brandy’s casting made her the first Black actress to portray Cinderella on screen.
- The Princess And The Frog (2009) U
This Disney movie is a modern twist on the classic tale of the Princess and the Frog. Tiana, a waitress who lives in New Orleans, wants to own her own restaurant but eventually turns into (you guessed it!) a frog — and chaos ensues. Tiana became Disney’s first animated Black princess, and her debut proved to be a big moment for both her viewers and Disney, which made a brief return to its traditional hand-drawn animation style for the project.
- Remember the Titans (2000) PG
Here’s another movie based on a true story starring Denzel Washington. In Alexandria, Va., high school football is a big deal in the community, beloved by all — but when the school board forces an all-Black and all-white school to integrate, their football teams face challenges.
- Soul (2020) PG
Disney-Pixar’s Soul taps into a rich vein of African-American culture to tell the story of a music teacher who dreams of becoming a great jazz musician and Jamie Foxx is the first African American man to take the star lead in a Pixar animated movie.
- To Sir, With Love (1967) 12A
Based on the autobiographical novel of the same, “To Sir, with Love” follows the story of a teacher forced to tackle the social, financial, and racial issues plaguing an inner city school in London. Beyond its themes, this classic film can encourage appreciation for the story of its leading actor and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, Sidney Poitier, as well. For his activism and work in entertainment, Poitier painted a new, non-stereotypical image of what it meant to be a Black man.
5 Little-Known Black History Facts for the Classroom
- Phillis Wheatley was the first African American to publish a book of poetry, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral, in 1773.
- “Bars Fight,” written by poet and activist Lucy Terry in 1746, was the first known poem written by a Black American.
- The Wealthiest Person Ever Was a Black King. Mansa Musa (1280-1337), king of the Mali Empire during the 14th century in West Africa, is still remembered today as the richest man of all time.
- The islands we now call Britain were part of the Roman Empire – a huge, multicultural Empire. There were Romans from Africa, from the Mediterranean, and from as far East as Persia (modern day Iran). People moved around freely in the Empire, and many black and brown people set up shop in modern day Britain.
- It’s even claimed that Britain’s had two black Queens. One is Queen Phillipa of Hainault (1310 – 1369), and the other is Sophie Charlotte (1744 – 1818). Both are claimed to have had African ancestry, and so were mixed race. There is clear evidence that Sophie Charlotte in particular had North African heritage via her Spanish ancestors.
Make Sure Black History Isn’t Confined to Just A Month
Black History Month can be an opportunity for educators to make a conscious decision to go further in diversifying the curriculum for the whole of the academic year. As a start there are small things, which many teachers are already doing, which can make a difference to supporting inclusivity in the classroom – such as making sure all ethnicities are represented in photos, artwork or pictures used in resources across all subjects, all year round. Any of the Black History Month resources or activities in this blog, or elsewhere, can be taught year-round, not only in October.
Learn The History of Jazz
Jazz music originally came about in the 1920s and was created by black Americans. Jazz music is just as much a part of black history as any other part of American history. Famous black figures in the jazz world include artists such as Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, and Ray Charles- who are just a few of the many who paved the way for jazz to exist. Have your students listen to these famous artists and explain how they are relevant even in today’s society.
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