African American History Resources K-12
BOOKS
BY
Grade Band
Elementary (Grades PreK-3)

I Dream of Trains, by Johnson, Angela

The Moon Over Star, by Aston, Dianna Hutts
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Let It Shine, by Bryan, Ashley

Before John Was a Jazz Giant, by Weatherford, Carole Boston
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I’ve Seen the Promised Land: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., by Myers, Walter Dean

Papa’s Mark, by Lavert, Gwendolyn
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In the Land of Words: New and Selected Poems, by Gilchrist, Jan Spivey
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Almost to Freedom, by Nelson, Vaunda Micheaux
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Thunder Rose, by Nolen, Jerdine

Visiting Langston, by Collier, Bryan
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Freedom River, by Rappaport, Doreen

In Daddy’s Arms I am Tall: African Americans Celebrating Fathers, by Schroeder, Alan

Ashley Bryan’s ABC of African American Poetry, by Bryan, Ashley

Minty: A Story of Young Harriet Tubman, by Schroeder, Alan

Running the Road to ABC, by Lauture, Denize
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Neeny Coming, Neeny Going, by English, Karen
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Little Eight John, by Wahl, Jan
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All Night, all Day: A Child’s First Book of African American Spirituals, by Bryan, Ashley
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When I Am Old With You, by Johnson, Angela
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The Patchwork Quilt, by Flournoy, Valerie
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Bright Eyes, Brown Skin, by Hudson, Cheryl & Ford, Bernette
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Something Beautiful, by Wyeth, Sharon
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The Quilt, by Jonas, Ann
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Bill Pickett: Rodeo-Ridin Cowboy, by Pinkney, Andrea & Pinkney, Brian

Drylongso, by Hamilton, Virginia

I Am Rosa Parks, by Parks, Rosa Parks & Haskins, James

Martin’s Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., by Rappaport, Doreen

Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt, by Hopkinson, Deborah

The Dream Keeper and Other Poems, by Hughes, Langston & Pinkney, Brian

The Palm of My Heart: Poetry by African American Children, by Christie, Gregorie
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The Invisible Hunters: A Legend from the Miskito Indians of Nicaragua, by Rohmer, Harriet et al

Africa Dream, by Greenfield, Eloise
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Mary McLeod Bethune, by Greenfield, Eloise

Ray Charles, by Mathis, Sharon Bell

Jazzy Miz Mozetta, by Roberts, Brenda C.

Family Plays Music, by Cox, Judy
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The Moon Ring, by DuBurke, Randy

Freedom Summer, by Wiles, Deb
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The Piano Man, by Chocolate, Debbie
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Porch Lies: Tales of Slicksters, Tricksters, and Other Wily Characters, by McKissack, Patricia C.
illustrated by Carrilho, Andre

Beautiful Blackbird, by Bryan, Ashley

Before There Was Mozart: The Story of Joseph Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint-George, by ClineRansome, Lesa

Moses, by Weatherford, Carole

My Brother Martin, by Farris, Christine King

We are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball, by Nelson, Kadir

Rosa, by Giovanni, Nickki

Aunt Harriet's Underground Railroad in the Sky, by Ringgold, Faith

Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves - Deputy U.S. Marshal, by Nelson,
Vaunda Micheaux

My People, by Hughes, Langston

Molly Bannaky, by Soentpiet, Chris K. and McGill, Alice

Dear Benjamin Banneker, by Pinkney, Andrea Davis and Pinkney, Brian

Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, by van Wyk, Chris and Bouma, Paddy

Wilma Unlimited: How Wilma Rudolph Became the World's Fastest Woman, by Krull, Kathleen
and Diaz, David

What Color Is My World?: The Lost History of African-American Inventors, by Abdul-Jabbar,
Kareem, Obstfeld, Raymond, and Boos, Ben

Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down, by Pinkney, Andrea Davis and Pinkney, Brian

The Bus Ride That Changed History: The Story of Rosa Parks, by Edwards, Pamela Duncan

Freedom on the Menu: The Greensboro Sit-Ins by Weatherford, Carol Boston

A Sweet Smell of Roses by Johnson, Angela

Jackie’s Gift by Sharon Robinson

The Hallelujah Flight by Phil Bildner

If a Bus Could Talk: The Story of Rosa Parks by Faith Ringgold

The ABCs of Black History: A Children’s Guide by Craig Thompson

Martin’s Big Words by Doreen Rapport

Just Like Josh Gibson by Angela Johnson
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Michelle by Deborah Hopkinson

Climbing Lincoln’s Steps: The African American Journey by Suzanne Slade
Elementary (Grades 4-5)

Romare Bearden: Collage of Memories, by Greenberg, Jan

Against All Odds: Artist Dean Mitchell's Story, by James, Betty R.

Talkin' About Bessie: The Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman, by Grimes, Nikki

Only Passing Through: The Story of Sojouner Truth, by Rockwell, Anne

I Have Heard of a Land, by Thomas, Joyce Carol

Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra, by Pinkney, Andrea Davis

The Hunterman and the Crocodile, by Diakitè, Baba Waguè

The Singing Man, by Medearis, by Shelf, Angela

Meet Danitra Brown, by Grimes, Nikki

Soul Looks Back in Wonder, by Fogelman, Phyllis

The Origin of Life on Earth: An African Creation Myth, by Anderson, David A.

Night on the Neighborhood Street, by Greenfield, Eloise

The Road to Memphis, by Taylor, Mildred

Aida, by Price, Leontyne

Nathaniel Talking, by Greenfield, Eloise

Mirandy and Brother Wind, by McKissack, Patricia

Under the Sunday Tree, by Greenfield, Eloise

Storm in the Night, by Stolz, Mary

Maritcha, by Bolden, Tonya

Ellington Was Not a Street, by Shange, Ntozake & Nelson, Kadir

The Bat Boy and His Violin, by Curtis, Gavin

The Great Migration: An American Story, by Lawrence, Jacob

Harlem, by Myers, Walter Dean

Circle of Gold, by Boyd, Candy Dawson

A Little Love, by Hamilton, Virginia

The Strange New Feeling, by Lester, Julius

Rainbow Jordan, by Childress, Alice

Skates of Uncle Richard, by Fenner, Carol

Something on My Mind, by Grimes, Nikki

Brothers in Hope: The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan, by Christie, R. Gregory

Fly High!: The Story of Bessie Coleman, by Borden, Louise & Kroeger, Mary Kay

Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans, by Nelson, Kadir

Michelle, by Hopkinson, Deborah

Portraits of African-American Heroes, by Bolden, Tonya and Pitcairn, Ansel

Through My Eyes, by Bridges, Ruby

The Kidnapped Prince: The Life of Olaudah Equiano, by Cameron, Ann

Buxton: A Black Utopia in the Heartland, by Schwieder, Dorothy, Hraba, Joseph, and Schwieder,
Elmer
Middle School (Grades 6-8)

The Legend of Buddy Bush, by Moses, Sheila P.

Days of Tears: A Novel in Dialogue, by Lester, Julius

Maritcha: A Nineteenth-Century American Girl, by Bolden, Tonya

Dark Sons, by Grimes, Nikki

The Road to Paris, by Grimes, Nikki

Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story, by Ben Carson

Days of Jubilee: The End of Slavery in the United States, by McKissack, Patricia C. and Frederick L.

Locomotion, by Woodson, Jacqueline

The Battle of Jericho, by Draper, Sharon

The Red Rose Box, by Woods, Brenda

The Land, by Taylor, Mildred

Miracle's Boys, by Woodson, Jacqueline

Let It Shine! Stories of Black Women Freedom Fighters, by Francie, Andrea Davis Pinkney,
English, Karen

Black Hands, White Sails: The Story of African American Whalers, by McKissack, Patricia C. &
Frederick L.

Now is Your Time: The African American Struggle for Freedom, by Myers, Walter Dean

The Words of Martin Luther King, Jr., by Coretta Scott King

Forged by Fire, by Draper, Sharon M.

Breaking Ground, Breaking Silence: The Story of New York's African Burial Ground, by Hansen,
Joyce and McGowan, Gary

I See the Rhythm, by Igus, Toyomi

The Other Side: Shorter Poems, by Johnson, Angela

Toning the Sweep, by Johnson, Angela

Rebels Against Slavery: American Slave Revolts, by McKissack, Patricia C. and Frederick L.

Soujourner Truth: Ain't I a Woman?, by McKissack, Patricia C. and Frederick L.

Justin and the Best Biscuits in the World, by Walter, Mildred Pitts

Let the Circle Be Unbroken, by Taylor, Mildred D.

Childtimes: A Three-Generation Memoir, by Greenfield, Eloise and Little, Lessie Jones

Andrew Young: Young Man With a Mission, by Haskins, James

The Way a Door Closes, by Smith, Hope Anita

The Skin I'm In, by Flake, Sharon

Another Way to Dance, by Southgate, Martha

Elijah of Buxton, by Curtis, Christopher Paul

Twelve Rounds to Glory: The Story of Muhammad Ali, by Smith Jr., Charles R.

Keeping the Night Watch, by Smith, Hope Anita

Maizon at Blue Hill, by Woodson, Jacqueline

My People, by Hughes, Langston, illustrated by Charles R. Smith, Jr.

1001 Things People Should Know about African American History, by Steward, Jeffrey C.

To Be a Slave, by Lester, Julius

Chains, by Anderson, Laurie Halse

A Friendship for Today, by McKissack, Patricia C.

Never Forgotten, by McKissack, Patricia

Nightjohn, by Paulsen, Gary

Freedom Walkers: The Story of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, by Freedman, Russell

The Watsons Go to Birmingham, by Curtis, Christopher Paul

Numbering all the Bones, by Rinaldi, Ann

Powerful Words, by Hudson, Wade
High School (Grades 9-12)

Copper Sun, by Draper, Sharon

The Magnificent Twelve: Florida's Black Junior Colleges, by Smith, Ph.D., Walter L.

Fortune's Bones: The Manumission Requiem, by Nelson, Marilyn

Carver: A Life in Poems, by Nelson, Marilyn

Malcolm X: By Any Means Necessary, by Myers, Walter Dean

Mississippi Challenge, by Walter, Mildred Pitts

Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Freedom Movement, by Patters, Lillie

We Beat the Street: How a Friendship Led to Success, by Davis, Sampson, Jenkins, George, Hunt,
Rameck and Draper, Sharon

Fallen Angels, by Myers, Walter Dean

Anthony Burns: The Defeat and Triumph of a Fugitive Slave, by Hamilton, Virginia

Trouble's Child, by Walter, Mildred Pitts

The Magical Adventures of Pretty Pearl, by Hamilton, Virginia

Lena Horne, by Haskins, James

The Middle Passage: White Ships Black Cargo, by Feelings, Tom

This Life, by Poitier, Sidney

Don't Explain: A Song of Billie Holiday, by De Veaux, Alexis

The Young Landlords, by Myers, Walter Dean

James Van Der Zee: The Picture Takin' Man, by Haskins, James

Let the Lion Eat Straw, by Southerland, Ellease

Cornrows, by Yarborough, Camille

Benjamin Banneker, by Patterson, Lillie

Barbara Jordan, by Haskins, James

Darkness Before Dawn, by Draper, Sharon

Coretta Scott King, by Patterson, Lillie

I Have a Dream, by King, Martin Luther, Jr.

Portia: The Life of Portia Washington Pittman, the Daughter of Booker T. Washington, by
Stewart, Ruth Ann

The Legend of Africana, by Robinson, Dorothy

I Never Had It Made: the Autobiography of Jackie Robinson, as told, by Duckett, Alfred

My Chill Wind, by McDonald, Janet

Lou in the Limelight, by Hunter, Kristin

Movin' Up, by Gordy, Berry

Marvin and Tige, by Glass, Frankcina

Black Troubador: Langston Hughes, by Rollins, Charlemae

Martin Luther King, Jr.: Man of Peace, by Patterson, Lillie

Monster, by Myers, Walter Dean

The First Part Last, by Johnson, Angela

Just Another Hero, by Draper, Sharon M.

Remember: The Journey to School Integration, by Morrison, Toni

Becoming Billie Holiday, by Weatherford, Carole Boston

A Wreath For Emmett Till, by Nelson, Marilyn

The Freedom Business, by Nelson, Marilyn

Street Love, by Myers, Walter Dean

Harlem Hustle, by McDonald, Janet

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing - Traitor to the Nation, by Anderson, M. T.

Mare's War, by Davis, Tanita S.

The Negro Speaks of Rivers, by Hughes, Langston and Lewis, E. B.

Giants: The Parallel lives of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln, by Stauffer, John

Autobiography of My Dead Brother, by Myers, Walter Dean

The Pact: Three Young Men Make a Promise and Fulfill a Dream, by Davis, Sampson, Jenkins,
George, Hunt, Rameck, with Page, Lisa Frazier

Black, Blue, and Gray: African Americans in the Civil War, Haskins, Jim

Black Boy, Wright, Richard

A Raisin in the Sun, Hansberry, Lorraine

Their Eyes Were Watching God, Hurston, Zora Neale

Mining for Freedom: Black History Meets the California Gold Rush, Roberts, Sylvia Alden
Websites for African American History Resources
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/
Africans in America America’s Journey through slavery
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/african/intro.html
The AFRICAN-AMERICAN MOSAIC
A Library of Congress Resource Guide for the Study of
Black History & Culture
http://www.pbs.org/thisfarbyfaith/
This Far by Faith: African American spiritual journeys
http://www.nypl.org/locations/schomburg
NYPL: Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/africa/features/sto
ryofafrica/index.shtml
The Story of Africa
http://blackhistorypages.com/
The Black History Pages link directory is an online
catalog of the best black history websites on the
Internet that have been categorized to make it easier to
find sites that interest you. Visitors can search, browse,
rate and review hundreds of websites.
http://www.archives.gov/research/alic/reference/black
-history.html
National Archives
http://www.blackpast.org/
A very complete data base for African American History
and culture to be used for research.
http://guides.lib.washington.edu/content.php?pid=78827&si
d=583725
A research guide to primary and secondary sources for
African American history.
http://www.aaregistry.org/
African American Registry® (the Registry) is the most
comprehensive on-line storehouse in the world of
African American heritage.
http://www.blackinventor.com/
Welcome to the Black Inventor Online Museum ™, a
look at the great and often unrecognized leaders in the
field of invention and innovation
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/black-voices/
Black Voices
http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/libraryarchives/aanp/freedo
m/
Black publications
http://www.blackcollegian.com/
Since launching THE BLACK COLLEGIAN Magazine in
1970, we have been proudly instrumental in connecting
thousands of employers to hundreds of thousands of
African-American college students seeking entry-level
job opportunities. Along the way, we have helped air
the vital educational and social issues of our day,
http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysou
rcesets/civil-rights/
Library of Congress Jim Crow Collection
http://www.smithsonianeducation.org/heritage_month/bhm/
index.html
http://www.asalh.org/
African American History Month resources
http://www.tolerance.org/article/history-behind-blackhistory-month
The History Behind African American History Month
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/race/
The Two Nations of Black America
http://www.creativefolk.com/blackhistory/blackhistory.html
African American Heritage information
http://www.npr.org/2010/01/18/99315652/songs-of-thecivil-rights-movement
Songs of the Civil Rights Movement
Founding of African American History Month