Representation matters. That’s why I created this free set of Black History Month posters just for you! You can grab your free poster set here!
The global world is diverse. Your classroom is diverse too. Do your books and classroom visuals demonstrate this? Mine haven’t always. And to be honest, it’s a work in progress. I strive daily to find rich, meaningful resources that feature children of all races so that when my students open a book, they can relate, understand, and connect with the person in the book. They can see someone who looks like them.
With Black History Month approaching, the ideas of diversity and representation are even more at the forefront of my mind. That’s just one reason why I can’t wait to use this fun set of posters that feature accomplished, innovative African American leaders. I plan to use these posters as a bulletin board within my classroom for the month but I have a few lesson ideas for them that I want to share with you.
Lesson Idea #1: What Do You Know?
Display each poster at the front of the classroom. Give each student a few post-it notes. Have students write a short fact on each post-it note regarding the African American leaders pictured on the posters and place the post-its under the pictures. After all, students have placed their post-its, read a few facts from under each leader. This will allow you to see which leaders students already do and don’t know a lot about.
Lesson Idea #2: Timeline Line Up
Print smaller versions of the posters (like 6 to a sheet). Give a set of small posters to each group of 4 or 5 students. Have students try to sort the cards into groups according to when the leaders lived. (If needed, you can provide ways to sort for them such as 200+ years ago, within the last 200 years, present day.) Have students share their ideas and tell why they grouped the cards as they did. Then assign each group a leader (or two depending on your class size) and have them research to find out the dates that their African American leader lived.
Lesson Idea #3: One Sentence Snippet
Assign each student one of the notable African Americans to research. Give students about twenty minutes to research using books, articles, or other materials that you provide. Then students should be prepared to share with the class a one sentence snippet that summarizes the person’s main accomplishments.
I can’t wait to use these posters to support my classroom instruction during Black History Month and beyond. And you can use these posters and activities too! If you want to receive a set of these FREE posters of African American leaders like Rosa Parks, Booker T. Washington, and Maya Angelou, just sign up for my email list to get the download!
I hope you got some great ideas for using this free poster set with your class! Make sure you grab your free copy here! I can’t wait to hear how your lessons go!