Black History Month with Maps101

Dear Educator,

In 1976, President Gerald Ford officially recognized Black History Month for the month of February. He asked the public to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.” Here at Maps101, we are focused on doing just that. This entire month, draw students’ attention to successful Black Americans in all fields of study. Maps101 is your resource for incorporating Black History into your classroom.

Although the Emancipation Proclamation, given by Lincoln during the Civil War, freed those who had been enslaved, it took about a century before the civil rights movement emerged to demand equal rights for African Americans. This exclusive, interactive Field Trip focuses on the movement and its impact. Students will understand school desegregation, meet Rosa Parks, understand the impact of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the March on Washington, and the voting in of America’s first Black president, Barack Obama.

GNN is your weekly resource for thought-provoking, entertaining, age-appropriate articles. There are so many articles for Black History Month it is difficult to pick just one to highlight! Use this link to see the variety of content available. Biographies include well-known and lesser-known figures in Black History. Some articles are even leveled for elementary readers. For those, look for articles labelled GNN Junior. Sample topics include: Disney’s First Black Princess, Hattie McDaniel, Ida B. Wells, Jesse Owens, Colin Powell, Maya Angelou, Miles Davis, Muhammad Ali, Rosa Parks, African Americans in World War II, and more.

Since we are Maps101, of course we have maps and a lot of them! From the Civil War to contemporary topics, we have maps that enhance geographic understanding in the classroom for Black History Month. This week, let’s look at Major Civil Rights Events, 1954-1968. Project the map on the board and have students list each event and the details provided. Then, divide them into groups and assign each group an event from the list to further explore. Have students present what they have learned in class during the month of February. Then, lead a discussion as to how much has changed, or whether it has, for Black Americans since the civil rights movement. Encourage students to delve deeply into the topic to increase their Social Emotional Learning skills.

This is a small sample of the kind of content available to you with your Maps101 subscription. Every week, the editors at Maps101 will provide you with highlights from our extensive collection in this GeoJournal newsletter. We suggest you make a folder to store them for future reference. Expand your students’ world with Maps101!