Teacher2Teacher

Black History Resources

Teacher2Teacher gathered resources for teachers on Black History. Below are some of those resources on relevant topics for today’s teachers. These were originally provided during Black History month but educators understand that this topic should not be limited to one part of the year only. I recommend that you have some time before clicking on the links below. You’ll be sure find plenty of ideas that will lead you to more ideas.

EDUTOPIA

• Arts Education and African American history, a collection of resources from the Kennedy Center ArtsEdge. ArtsEdge has reorganized their digital resources and I’m sure you’ll find their data base filled with resources you can use on the topic and beyond.
• Resources from Smithsonian Education Black History feature various collections, from “The Blues and Langston Hughes” to “Harlem Renaissance: A Reading List.” It’s a great place to let your students explore primary sources, and there is something for students of all ages.
• The Library of Congress has lesson plans for teachers and primary sources for students to explore, including artwork, baseball cards, political cartoons, and photographs. Also be sure to check out the Library’s civil rights-themed collection.
• PBS includes an article about the documentary film titled More Than a Month about why Black History Month should not only be one month – the coldest and shortest month of the year. The young filmmakers cross country story focuses on the four components: education, history, identity, and commercialism.
• Scholastic provides useful resources for arts educators on African American Heritage. Arts and culture resources including the History of Jazz with Wynton Marsalis.
• National Education Association: Integrating African-American Culture & History into Your Curriculum. Resources on and about poets including The Poet’s Voice: Langston Hughes and You.

Find more in this Edutopia article written by Matt Davis.

In this ASCD article Historical Black Excellence Provides a Blueprint for Reimagining Education you’ll find Gholdy Muhammad’s review of the reality of the inequities in the education system for black and brown children. Gholdy has been studying the history of African American education and literacy development in the U.S. from the 19th century forward. The article provides a deep look at the facts from the past that frame the what and why of today’s curriculum.

UnboundEd provides a anti-racist tool kit – a set of resources to help school communities disrupt inequity by inspiring reflections, conversations, and actions on issues of race, racism, and bias. There are several resources within the .pdf toolkit that are downloadable.

A valuable article called The Do’s and Don’ts of Teaching Black History from Learning for Justice. I find that the Learning for Justice website is very valuable to support teaching and learning.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, Washington, D.C. Sergii Figurnyi – stock.adobe.com

#We Teach On

Teacher2Teacher

In Appreciation

Happy Week, Teachers!

If I could drive all over the state this week and provide every teacher with an apple, I would! I’d say THANK YOU and let you know how much I appreciate the work (and play) that you do each day providing an excellent arts education to every learner!

I hope that your week includes at least one celebration that’s all about you! Perhaps you have a full week planned to celebrate yourself and your colleagues. Pat yourself on the back and yelp so loud that I can hear you – from your school to the Maine Arts Commission!

If you’re interested in letting others know about how grateful you are for someone who supports the work that you do or perhaps someone who has inspired you in the past, you can record your story.  All week long Teacher2Teacher is collecting stories of gratitude.

Click here to record your own message thanking a teacher whose influence, guidance or support made a lasting impression on you and your practice.

You can listen to examples of messages recorded by other educators by scrolling to the bottom of the page. I recorded a message thanking all of the visual and performing arts teachers in Maine and a special shout out to the Teacher Leaders and the Teaching Artists Leaders from the Maine Arts Leadership Initiative.

Have a great week and be sure and do something nice for yourself and your colleagues!