LM Feb.2018

These events/individuals/experiences should be integrated throughout our curriculum and... taught throughout the school year. We want to celebrate not only the worthwhile accomplish- ments that these figures contributed to our society, but also promote the perseverance and struggle that many had to endure in order to achieve their success. —Dr. Creg Williams, Superintendent, Thornton Fractional HSD 215

In Hazel Crest School District 152½, “African American history is taught throughout the year as part of the English language arts and social studies curriculum.” Superintendent Dr. Sheila Harrison-Williams believes African American history is an integral part of American history and should be treated as

Additional Resources: The Illinois State Board of Education also gives resources to help teachers with black history lessons. Black History Month: Everything You Need Meet African American icons, leaders, activists, and inventors with these teaching resources. Library of Congress: African American History Month National African American History Month in February celebrates the contributions that African Americans have made to American history in their struggles for freedom and equality and deepens our understanding of our nation’s history. African American History Month for Teachers Put the power of primary sources to work in the classroom. Browse ready-to-use lesson plans, student activities, collection guides and research aids. Oxford African American Studies Center This website houses a comprehensive collection of scholarship documenting the many and varied experiences that make up African and African American history and culture.

such. In February, however, District 152½ specifically focuses on African American history. Each school hosts an African American history program and every grade level participates. Students present what they learned via plays, skits, songs and poetry. This allows students to use their own creative flair while paying homage to the history. Dr. Harrison-Williams’ advice for teaching black history: • Teaching African American history should not be limited to the month of February. • African American history should be integrated into lessons throughout the school year using a variety of resources. • When teaching African American history, make it relevant by utilizing and connecting current events with historical events. Overall, the best way to teach students tolerance, is to teach them history. They need to know the struggles of those who came before them, so that we will not digress as a society. Our goal is when students leave our classroom, they will be functioning, positive members of society and it’s our responsibility, as administrators, to show them how. In the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character—that is the goal of true education.”

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