Black History Month

Black History Month celebrates African-American history and the contributions of Black people in the United States.

Description & History

Black History Month began in 1925 when Carter G. Woodson and the organization he founded, the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH), conceived and announced Negro History Week. His intent was to raise awareness of African American's contributions to civilization and the event was first celebrated in February 1926 during a week that encompassed the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. In 1976, the nation's bicentennial, the celebration was expanded to a month by President Gerald R. Ford. ASNLH provides a yearly theme.

Professional Learning Resources

AASL Town Hall | Black History Month Reimagined

In 2021, then AASL President Kathy Carrol hosted a panel of experts to discuss Black History Month Reimagined during an AASL Town Hall.

Black School Librarianship: Navigating Race and Creating Change

Revist Knowledge Quest, Volume 49, No. 4 as five libraries sharing their experiences in school libraries as Black women educators. This issue requires an AASL member login.

Devices displaying knowledgequest.aasl.org with a faded background of books

African American History in Real Life – The Black College Football Hall of Fame

School librarians must take the lead in diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Read about Media Daniels’ efforts to use February as a launch for a deeper look at the history of Black college football with her high school students.

This image is a cover for a series related to The Civil Rights Movement, likely from the Library of Congress. The text "Discover and Learn with the Library" emphasizes learning resources or historical material provided by the Library of Congress. The image features a historic scene of a civil rights gathering, portraying a diverse crowd listening or observing attentively.

The Civil Rights Movement (Discover and Learn with the Library series)

Published by the Library of Congress and ALA, this resource provides grades 6-12 educators with classroom-ready materials, primary source facsimiles, citations, teaching strategies, and guides to online resources aligned with state curricula.

Black History Month Resources from the Anti-Defamation League

This curated collection from ADL includes Resources on Black History, Classroom Resources on Race and Racism, Classroom Resources on Racial Disparities and Social Justice, Classroom Resources on Voting Rights: Past and Present, and more.

Learner Engagement Resources

Revisiting a Pairing with Hidden Figures

Pair primary sources, the picture book Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race, and augmented reality in this lesson pitch from Tom Bober.

Black History Month Picture Book Lesson Ideas

Each of the picture books featured by blogger Maureen Schlosser could be the foundation of deep exploration into the environment, economics, or sustainability: Saving American Beach, Pies from Nowhere, and Harlem Grown.

Black History Month for Teachers

Browse ready-to-use lesson plans, student activities, collection guides, and research aids from the Library of Congress and other institutions including the National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, and Smithsonian Institution.

National Museum of African American History and Culture

NMAAHC provides educational offerings for students and educators in grades 3-12. Resources are designed to stimulate new ways of thinking and cultivate a passion for lifelong learning.

NAACP Connect

Black History Month digital media and events from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Black History Month Lessons & Resources

The National Education Association has compiled a selection of lesson plans that cover a variety of subjects that can be adapted to fit multiple grade levels.