Black History Month 2024 Teaching Resources
Get ready for Black History Month 2024 with hundreds of printables, worksheets, digital activities and more ways to bring the stories of Black Americans alive in your classroom this February.
This collection of Black History teaching resources was created by the teacher team at Teach Starter, with printable and digital options that have been designed to meet Common Core and state standards. The majority include editable options so you can easily differentiate them for your students, and each one has been reviewed by a member of our teaching team to ensure they're classroom-ready — so you can save time on your lesson planning.
Teaching about Black History for the first time this February, or simply looking for fresh ideas to bring this topic to life in the classroom? Explore some tips from our teachers, including a look at the theme for the 98th celebration of Black History in the US and some important historical information about the month to anwer students' questions.
When Is Black History Month?
Black History Month is officially marked in February every year. In 2024, due to the leap year, the month will be marked from February 1 to February 29.
What Is the Theme for Black History Month 2024?
Each year, the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History (ASALH) chooses the theme for Black History Month. In 2024, that theme is African Americans and the Arts because — as the ASALH explains:
"In celebrating the entire history of African Americans and the arts, the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) puts into the national spotlight the richness of the past and present with an eye towards what the rest of the twentieth-first century will bring."
Black History Month Activity Ideas for Teachers
Some ideas to approach the theme in the classroom this year include:
- Discuss the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s and the ways in which it continues today.
- Host an African American read-in event. Join schools around the US on February 3 by reading books and texts written by Black authors in the classroom, exploring the 2024 theme of "the arts" through the lens of important Black writers.
- Focus biography projects on Black Americans. Give your students a list of notable Black Americans who have resisted oppression. Students can fill out biography cubes with details about these history-changing figures.
- Set up an interactive bulletin board for students to uncover new facts about Black Americans who have been activists and changemakers throughout American history.
- Explore Black artists! To incorporate the theme for 2024, teach your students about the work of artists like Jean-Michael Basquiat and Norman Lewis.
- Explore the poetry of Black Americans. From protests against slavery through spirituals to the use of powerful spoken word poetry today, oral poems have long been a means of resistance for Black Americans. Turn your ELA lessons to Black poets and the oral tradition this month.
Who Started Black History Month?
If you're looking to teach students the background of Black History Month itself, you'll need to start with Carter G. Woodson.
Known as the father of Black History Month, Woodson was a historian and author whose establishment of Negro History Week in 1926 paved the way for the federal declaration of February as Black History Month some 50 years later.
The founder of the ASALH — which today determines the theme for each Black History Month — Woodsen never meant for the study of Black history to be limited to just a week, or even just a month.
Woodsen’s work until his death in 1950 and the work of the ASALH since has been to promote the “year-round and year-after-year study of African American history.”
When Did Black History Month Start?
Although Woodson laid the groundwork in the 1920s, Black History Month would not officially start until 1976 when President Gerald Ford became the first president to declare February as Black History Month.
- Free Plan
Biography Timeline Template
Use this multipurpose timeline template for a variety of assignments, projects, and more!
- Free Plan
Character Development – Fakebook Page Worksheet
Use research and creative writing skills to design a social media profile for fiction or nonfiction persons.
- Plus Plan
Sojourner Truth Constructed Response Worksheet
Learn facts about Sojourner Truth with an informational reading passage and writing activity for third grade and up.
- Free Plan
Diversity Craft Templates
Prepare for your diversity-themed lessons and more with 3 versatile black and white craft templates.
- Plus Plan
Character Traits Graphic Organizer
Describe the most notable mental and moral qualities of a real or fictional person.
- Plus Plan
Who Is Rosa Parks? – Shared Reading and Activity
Learn about and discuss activist Rosa Parks and the Montgomery bus boycott with this 15-slide read-along PowerPoint presentation.
- Plus Plan
Martin Luther King, Jr. Reading Activity Pack
Apply a range of reading comprehension strategies to learn about Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Free Plan
The Civil Rights Movement and Segregation in America Brochure
Demonstrate learning about the major events and leaders who helped end segregation in the United States during the Civil Rights Movement with a brochure project.
- Plus Plan
Influential Black Leaders Research Organizers
Dive into a research project on influential Black leaders with a set of Historical Figure graphic organizers.
- Plus Plan
Ruby Bridges – Comprehension Task
Review our profile on 6-year-old civil rights figure Ruby Bridges, and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
- Free Plan
Black History Profile: Shirley Chisholm - Comprehension Worksheet
Review our profile on Congresswoman and first Black presidential candidate Shirley Chisholm, and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
- Plus Plan
Innovative Inventors - Comprehension Worksheet
Meet famous Black History Month figures with this informational text and comprehension questions activity.
- Plus Plan
Who Is Martin Luther King, Jr? - Shared Reading and Activity
Use this 13-slide PowerPoint as a collaborative reading exercise about Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Free Plan
Black History Word Wall Cards
Use this set of 42 Black History Month vocabulary words to expand your students’ language skills and knowledge of history.
- Plus Plan
Who's Who - Dr. Mae Jemison
Learn about Dr. Mae Jemison with this cut-and-paste activity for younger students.
- Plus Plan
Martin Luther King, Jr. Coloring Pages
Celebrate MLK Day in the classroom and engage your students in thoughtful discussion with a Martin Luther King, Jr. Coloring Page!
- Plus Plan
Martin Luther King, Jr. Trifold Brochure
Demonstrate learning about the Martin Luther King’s contributions to the Civil Rights Movement with a brochure project.
- Plus Plan
Segregation and the Civil Rights Movement Instructional Slide Deck
Travel into the past and take your students along to discover the long road to the desegregation of schools in the United States.
- Plus Plan
Timeline of the Civil Rights Movement Worksheet
Craft an chronological timeline for students to visually model the events occurring during the Civil Rights Movement.
- Plus Plan
Famous Women in History– Female Inventors Teaching Presentation
Teach about the most influential female inventors in history with this 15-slide instructional slide deck.
- Plus Plan
Harriet Tubman Comprehension Worksheet
Uncover facts about Harriet Tubman with a Reading Passage and Comprehension worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Thurgood Marshall Constructed Response Worksheet
Discover the influence and positive character traits of Thurgood Marshall with a reading passage and RACES writing prompt for fourth grade.
- Plus Plan
Who Is Ruby Bridges? – Shared Reading and Activity
Read along to learn about Ruby Bridges and her role in desegregation with this 14-slide PowerPoint presentation.
- Plus Plan
Black History Month – Teaching Presentation
Introduce your students to the origins of Black History Month with this 13-slide PowerPoint presentation.
- Black History Month 2024 Worksheets
- Black History Month 2024 Templates
- Black History Month 2024 Instructional Slide Decks
- Black History Month 2024 Posters
- Black History Month 2024 Coloring Pages
- Black History Month 2024 Mini Book
- Black History Month 2024 Cut and Paste Worksheets
- Black History Month 2024 Brochure Templates
- Black History Month 2024 Writing Templates
- Black History Month 2024 Flipbooks
- Black History Month 2024 Labels Signs Decorations
- Black History Month 2024 Bookmarks
- Black History Month 2024 Bulletin Board Displays
- Black History Month 2024 Puzzles
- Black History Month 2024 Word Walls
- Black History Month 2024 Craft Activities
- Black History Month 2024 Matchup Games
- Black History Month 2024 Games
- Black History Month 2024 Task Cards
- Black History Month 2024 Crossword Puzzles
- Black History Month 2024 for Pre-K
- Black History Month 2024 for Kindergarten
- Black History Month 2024 for 1st Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 2nd Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 3rd Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 4th Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 5th Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 6th Grade
- Black History Month 2024 for 7th Grade