Celebrating Black History Month

The history of African-Americans is an important topic to discuss with your child. Here are a few ideas for how to celebrate and educate them about Black History Month.

First, an excellent resource for interviews with famous African-Americans and images from the civil rights movement in America is YouTube. "The History of Slavery in America" is a video I would recommend for older elementary children who would like to learn about what life was like for enslaved people and how slavery began.

An informative website to visit with your child for Black History Month is www.timeforkids.com. Search for the special Black History Month edition, which is geared toward children in grades second and above. Travel back in time using the interactive timeline that begins with the arrival of slaves in America and ends with the election of Barack Obama, our nation's first African-American president.

After following the interactive timeline, encourage your child to take the History Challenge. Retrace the steps of the protestors who marched from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, and helped pass the 1965 Voting Rights Act that guaranteed everyone the right to vote. Answer questions about the fight for equal rights using the information from the interactive timeline to follow their 54-mile journey across Alabama.

Make sure your child visits the "Oh, Grow Up!" page to learn about six famous African-Americans, including Oprah Winfrey and Colin Powell. Then, see if your child can guess who they are from their kid pictures. Don't forget to check out Special Spotlight: The Arts. This link includes information on the contributions of African-Americans to music, the visual arts and literature.

Another fantastic children's website for Black History Month is scholastic.com. Go to  the search box and type in "top 10 African-American inventors." Geared toward children in grades three and four, this site includes information about famous African-Americans such as George Washington Carver, the inventor of peanut butter, and Lewis Latimer, who helped invent the light bulb.

This month, you can also try some traditional and tasty soul food recipes with your kids. Check out www.kitchendaily.com to find recipes for cornbread, pulled pork barbecue, three-cheese macaroni, chicken 'n' greens, and sweet potato casserole. There are over 100 recipes to choose from!

February is Black History Month, so be sure to celebrate this important time of year with your family.