Black History Month Archives

The United States and Canada observe Black History month in February; the United Kingdom observes it in October. While the commemorative month is a good time to celebrate the achievements and culture of the black community, this focus should not be limited to only one month. Students will benefit learning of the accomplishments and struggles of people of color at any time of the year. This reading set includes all grade levels and multiple topics.

Young Frederick Douglass

Frederick Douglass (c. 1818-1895) was born into slavery in Maryland. As an adult, he escaped into freedom. He became a writer, orator and advocate for the abolition of slavery. In 1845, 16 years before the start of the Civil War, Douglass published his autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick…

African American Inventors: Lewis Latimer

Lewis Howard Latimer was born in 1848 in Chelsea, Massachusetts. His parents had escaped slavery in Virginia, and they were determined that their children would be born into freedom. In 1863 when he was just 15, Lewis joined the U.S. Navy to fight in the Civil War. After the war…

Wilma Rudolph, Olympic Star

Wilma Rudolph was born in Tennessee in 1940. She was the twentieth of twenty-two children in a poor but loving African American family. Because she was born two months early, the doctor doubted she would live. She survived but was ill with a variety of sicknesses throughout her childhood. After…

African American Inventors: Patricia Bath

Dr. Patricia Bath was the first black woman medical doctor to receive a patent in the United States. She now holds four patents for her inventions, which are related to preventing and restoring sight in patients. Born in 1942, she was raised in the Harlem area of New York City.…