Black History Month 2024 Teaching Resources
Get ready for Black History Month 2024 with hundreds of printables, worksheets, digital activities and more ways to bring the stories of Black Americans alive in your classroom this February.
This collection of Black History teaching resources was created by the teacher team at Teach Starter, with printable and digital options that have been designed to meet Common Core and state standards. The majority include editable options so you can easily differentiate them for your students, and each one has been reviewed by a member of our teaching team to ensure they're classroom-ready — so you can save time on your lesson planning.
Teaching about Black History for the first time this February, or simply looking for fresh ideas to bring this topic to life in the classroom? Explore some tips from our teachers, including a look at the theme for the 98th celebration of Black History in the US and some important historical information about the month to anwer students' questions.
When Is Black History Month?
Black History Month is officially marked in February every year. In 2024, due to the leap year, the month will be marked from February 1 to February 29.
What Is the Theme for Black History Month 2024?
Each year, the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History (ASALH) chooses the theme for Black History Month. In 2024, that theme is African Americans and the Arts because — as the ASALH explains:
"In celebrating the entire history of African Americans and the arts, the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) puts into the national spotlight the richness of the past and present with an eye towards what the rest of the twentieth-first century will bring."
Black History Month Activity Ideas for Teachers
Some ideas to approach the theme in the classroom this year include:
- Discuss the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s and the ways in which it continues today.
- Host an African American read-in event. Join schools around the US on February 3 by reading books and texts written by Black authors in the classroom, exploring the 2024 theme of "the arts" through the lens of important Black writers.
- Focus biography projects on Black Americans. Give your students a list of notable Black Americans who have resisted oppression. Students can fill out biography cubes with details about these history-changing figures.
- Set up an interactive bulletin board for students to uncover new facts about Black Americans who have been activists and changemakers throughout American history.
- Explore Black artists! To incorporate the theme for 2024, teach your students about the work of artists like Jean-Michael Basquiat and Norman Lewis.
- Explore the poetry of Black Americans. From protests against slavery through spirituals to the use of powerful spoken word poetry today, oral poems have long been a means of resistance for Black Americans. Turn your ELA lessons to Black poets and the oral tradition this month.
Who Started Black History Month?
If you're looking to teach students the background of Black History Month itself, you'll need to start with Carter G. Woodson.
Known as the father of Black History Month, Woodson was a historian and author whose establishment of Negro History Week in 1926 paved the way for the federal declaration of February as Black History Month some 50 years later.
The founder of the ASALH — which today determines the theme for each Black History Month — Woodsen never meant for the study of Black history to be limited to just a week, or even just a month.
Woodsen’s work until his death in 1950 and the work of the ASALH since has been to promote the “year-round and year-after-year study of African American history.”
When Did Black History Month Start?
Although Woodson laid the groundwork in the 1920s, Black History Month would not officially start until 1976 when President Gerald Ford became the first president to declare February as Black History Month.
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Dr. Mae Jemison – Biography Structure Sorting Task
Read and sort to help students learn about the structure of a biography with our cut and paste biography worksheet.
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Thurgood Marshall Constructed Response Worksheet
Discover the influence and positive character traits of Thurgood Marshall with a reading passage and RACES writing prompt for fourth grade.
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Sojourner Truth Constructed Response Worksheet
Learn facts about Sojourner Truth with an informational reading passage and writing activity for third grade and up.
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Marshall vs. Tubman Differentiated Paired Passage Worksheets
Combine reading and history content with differentiated reading comprehension worksheets.
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I Have a Dream - Speech Analysis Activity
Review MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech text and explore the metaphors he used to convey his message through the accompanying questions.
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Who Is Ruby Bridges? – Shared Reading and Activity
Read along to learn about Ruby Bridges and her role in desegregation with this 14-slide PowerPoint presentation.
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Ruby Bridges – Comprehension Task
Review our profile on 6-year-old civil rights figure Ruby Bridges, and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
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Black History Profile: Amelia Boynton - Comprehension Worksheet
Review our profile on civil rights activist Amelia Boynton and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
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Black History Profile: Carol Moseley Braun - Comprehension Worksheet
Review our profile on Illinois Senator Carol Moseley Braun and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
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Black History Profile: Thomas Mundy Peterson - Comprehension Worksheet
Review our profile on history-maker Thomas Mundy Peterson and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
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Black History Profile: Shirley Chisholm - Comprehension Worksheet
Review our profile on Congresswoman and first Black presidential candidate Shirley Chisholm, and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
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Black History Profile: Barack Obama - Comprehension Worksheet
Review our profile on the first African American President of the United States, and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
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Black History Month – Teaching Presentation
Introduce your students to the origins of Black History Month with this 13-slide PowerPoint presentation.
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My Nobel Peace Prize – Lower Grades
Encourage students to think about how they could make the world a better place with our Nobel Peace Prize drawing template.
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My Nobel Peace Prize – Upper Grades
Encourage students to think about how they could make the world a better place with our Nobel Peace Prize writing template.
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Read Along Pocket Chart Cards – Dr. Mae Jemison
Use this set of 13 sight word and image display cards for your reading and history lessons.
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Inspirational Woman Profile: Obiageli Ezekwesili – Comprehension Worksheet
Review our profile on Nigerian social pioneer Obiageli Ezekwesili and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
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Read Along Pocket Chart Cards - Martin Luther King, Jr.
Use this set of 12 MLK text and image pocket chart cards for reading and sight word practice.
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Read Along Pocket Chart Cards – Black History Month
Use this set of Black History Month text and image pocket chart cards for reading and history lessons.
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Innovative Inventors - Comprehension Worksheet
Meet famous Black History Month figures with this informational text and comprehension questions activity.
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Black History Profile: Kamala Harris - Comprehension Worksheet
Review our profile on Vice President Kamala Harris and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
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Shirley Chisholm and Carol Moseley Braun Cut and Sort Worksheet
Compare and contrast the lives of two influential Black American lawmakers in this cut-and-sort activity.
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10 Fun Facts Writing Template
Use this template to distinguish between fact and opinion when studying informational or biographical texts.
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A Historic Movement – Teaching Presentation
Introduce students to the people and events of the American civil rights movement with this 17-slide PowerPoint presentation.
- Black History Month 2024 Worksheets
- Black History Month 2024 Templates
- Black History Month 2024 Instructional Slide Decks
- Black History Month 2024 Posters
- Black History Month 2024 Mini Book
- Black History Month 2024 Coloring Pages
- Black History Month 2024 Cut and Paste Worksheets
- Black History Month 2024 Graphic Organizers
- Black History Month 2024 Writing Templates
- Black History Month 2024 Brochure Templates
- Black History Month 2024 Bulletin Board Displays
- Black History Month 2024 Puzzles
- Black History Month 2024 Flipbooks
- Black History Month 2024 Labels Signs Decorations
- Black History Month 2024 Word Walls
- Black History Month 2024 Bookmarks
- Black History Month 2024 Craft Activities
- Black History Month 2024 Matchup Games
- Black History Month 2024 Games
- Black History Month 2024 Task Cards
- Black History Month 2024 Crossword Puzzles
- Black History Month 2024 for Pre-K
- Black History Month 2024 for Kindergarten
- Black History Month 2024 for 1st Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 2nd Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 3rd Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 4th Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 5th Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 6th Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 7th Grade