Celebrating Black History Month in Schools

Olivia Robinson, MA

#RepresentationMatters. As an educator, I believe that it is important to celebrate all cultural backgrounds represented in our schools. This allows students to learn and embrace the students they share classes with and the communities in which they live. It also provides educators the opportunity to learn about the students and the families they serve. As a former teacher and current school administrator, I always make sure to cultivate experiences for my students to help bring awareness and celebrate Black culture. Below are my top 10 favorite activities to celebrate Black History Month in schools:

1. Bookmarker Competitions

Hosted by the school librarian - students would use the knowledge acquired over the duration of Black History Month to illustrate on a bookmarker. They would then be voted on by the student body to determine a winner.

2. Black History Museum

Using an empty classroom or room in the school, teachers created a museum encompassing multiple aspects of Black history. Each wall in the room focused on something different with QR codes for the students to scan with iPads. One wall was dedicated to the arts, another wall focused on history, and the other on pop culture. All content was age appropriate for the grade level.

3. Black History Trivia

On the morning announcements, students would read Black history facts. Students were then asked trivia questions at lunch for a prize to encourage them to listen to the morning announcements.

4. Students Interviews

In the era of COVID-19, we were not permitted to have guests on campus, so we would set up Zoom meetings with our students and influential Black community members. Students were required to do research on the person, write the questions, and lead the interview while being supervised by a staff member.

5. Community Speakers

Black community leaders would come in and meet with the student body. We had non-profit organizations, presidents of large businesses, and professors from the local university come in to speak with our students.

6. Celebrating Music

On the morning announcements, we would have students discuss their projects over Jazz music to the student body. At lunch, the Jazz music discussed during the morning announcements would be played while the students were eating.

8. Black Cinema Tuesday

Every Tuesday in February, students would stay after school to watch age appropriate films that highlight Black history. Some of the films included Black Panther, Selma, Hidden Figures, and Pride.

7. Research/Poster Competitions

Advisory classes selected 1 HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) to research and create an informational poster. Posters were then displayed and voted on. The winning advisory received recognition and a prize.

9. #BlackIsBeautifulDay

The word ‘Black’ tends to have a negative connotation, so on #BlackIsBeautifulDay, students and staff were encouraged to wear the color Black or shades of brown to embrace the beauty of the word ‘Black’.

10. Gallery Walk

Teachers created informational posters for their students to engage in a gallery walk throughout the month. Students were then quizzed on the information during pep-rallies.