Ah.... February is coming. I know that's true because there are tons of cute Valentine's Day Units popping up on my blogger dashboard. We'll do tons and tons with hearts and Valentines and candy graphs and I couldn't be more excited for all that lovin' in the air. Yeeeeeah. =) But February is a time set aside for another thing: Black History. I'm cookin' up a rockin' black history unit but.... I will have a moment of honesty here and tell you that this unit was brought about from a sad place for me. You see, I was talking to a colleague from a district where there is little diversity. In so many words, she told me that she didn't see the point in teaching any Black History because most of her students weren't Black. I was hurt, and it bothered me on many levels. I feel like ideas like that are what keep some people in our world from being culturally aware and tolerant of others that are unlike themselves. It may be something you rarely think of when you live in a world where the majority of your encounters don't lead you to think in that way. This is why I think it is important to take some time to to teach it. SO...I got to thinking and ya know what? Every year I have struggled to find a good Black History unit that is geared towards primary kiddos...so I decided to write one! I have created a celebratory and uplifting unit on the accomplishments of many famous African Americans- past and present. This unit celebrate artists, dancers, poets, inventors, scientists, and many other game-changers in our nation. I've noticed that a lot of Black History units are often geared toward older grades are sadly usually clouded with entertainers and athletes. I propose that my race is much more than that alone. This is a wonderful and easy way to expose your students to some interesting and fantastic people from our history! I am going to be posting pieces of the unit over the next week and I'll have the completed unit posted on TpT by the weekend. It is my hope that you find some time in February to get some lessons and activities in that celebrate Black History and encourage your students to be more culturally aware!