Black History Month Project
Black History
Month
Informational Essay/Oral Presentations
Name___________________________________________Class_____
Black History Month Project
Black History Month
Informational Essay/Oral Presentations
Watch the short clip of influential African Americans. Fill out the square
below while you watch.
WHO DO YOU
RECOGNIZE?
WHO INTERESTS
YOU AND WHY?
WHY DO WE CELEBRATE
BLACK HISTORY MONTH?
IN YOUR OPINION, SHOULD WE
CELEBRATE IT?
WHY OR WHY NOT?
Black History Month Project
Black History Month
Informational Essay/Oral Presentations
Black History Month, or National African American History Month, is an
annual celebration of achievements by black Americans and a time for recognizing
the central role of African Americans in U.S. history. The event grew out of “Negro
History Week,” the brainchild of noted historian Carter G. Woodson and other
prominent African Americans. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially
designated the month of February as Black History Month. Other countries
around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a
month to celebrating black history.
What is Black History Month?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
What else is Black History Month called?
__________________________________________________________________
Who came up with Black History Month?
__________________________________________________________________
When did presidents first start recognizing Black History Month? __________
What other nations recognize a Black History Month?
__________________________________________________________________
Black History Month Project
Look over this list of influential African Americans. Highlight several that you would be
interested in learning more about.
Influential African Americans
of the 20th Century
Athletes
Authors
















Hank Aaron
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Muhammad Ali
Arthur Ashe
Charles Barkley
Wilt Chamberlain
Althea Gibson
Reggie Jackson
Michael Jordan
Jackie Joyner-Kersee
Sugar Ray Leonard
Joe Louis
Jesse Owens
Jackie Robinson
Tiger Woods
Civil Rights Leaders and Activists
















Ella Baker
Stokely Carmichael
W.E.B. DuBois
Medgar Evers
Marcus Garvey
Martin Luther King Jr.
Malcolm X
James Meredith
Elijah Muhammad
Rosa Parks
Bobby Seale
Fred Shuttlesworth
Emmett Till
Ida Bell Wells-Barnett
Walter White
Roy Wilkins








Maya Angelou
Ralph Ellison
Alex Haley
Lorraine Hansberry
Langston Hughes
Zora Neale Hurston
Toni Morrison
Walter Mosley
Richard Wright
Entertainers
















Josephine Baker
Halle Berry
Bill Cosby
Dorothy Dandridge
Sammy Davis Jr.
Morgan Freeman
Gregory Hines
Lena Horne
James Earl Jones
Spike Lee
Eddie Murphy
Sidney Poitier
Richard Pryor
Will Smith
Denzel Washington
Oprah Winfrey
Black History Month Project
Inventors, Scientists, and Educators

















Archibald Alphonso Alexander
Patricia Bath
Bessie Coleman
David Crosthwait Jr.
Mark Dean
Charles Drew
Matthew Henson
Mae Jemison
Percy Lavon Julian
Frederick McKinley Jones
Ernest Everett Just
Mary McLeod Bethune
Garrett Augustus Morgan
Charles Henry Turner
Madame C.J. Walker
Booker T. Washington
Daniel Hale Williams
Singers and Musicians
















Marian Anderson
Louis Armstrong
Harry Belafonte
Chuck Berry
Ray Charles
Nat King Cole
Miles Davis
Duke Ellington
Aretha Franklin
Dizzy Gillespie
Jimi Hendrix
Billie Holiday
Michael Jackson
Robert Johnson
Diana Ross
Stevie Wonder
Politicians, Lawyers, and Other
Government Leaders














Ralph Bunche
Benjamin Oliver Davis Sr.
Minnie Joycelyn Elders
Jesse Jackson
Daniel "Chappie" James
Thurgood Marshall
Kwesi Mfume
Barack Obama
Michelle Obama
Colin Powell
Condoleezza Rice
Clarence Thomas
Andrew Young
Coleman Young
Other individuals that are not on this list?
Black History Month Project
Black History Month
Informational Essay/Oral Presentations
Before you begin your research, it’s important to take a moment to talk about
reliable vs. unreliable websites.
What it means:
Examples:
RELIABLE
Why is it important
to use reliable websites
when researching a project?
Non-Examples:
Black History Month Project
How Do You Verify That a Source Is Reliable?
1. Check ________________________________ to see if you can find the same
information in more than one location.
2. Look at the ______________________________. Does it look professional
or unprofessional?
3. Is there any evidence of _________________________ on the site?
4. Can _______________________ provide information or is the information
only provided by experts?
Make sure that you are getting your information from a
site you can trust!
Black History Month Project
Reliable Sites
to Begin Your Research
1. Biography.Com (www.biography.com)
2. History.Com (www.history.com)
3.Encyclopedia.Com (www.encyclopedia.com)
Unreliable Sites to Avoid
When Researching
Black History Month Project
Black History Month
Informational Essay/Oral Presentations
RESEARCH PAGES
I’m Researching: _____________________________________
Most Interesting Fact(s):
Birth/Early
Childhood
Notes
~When/Where was
he/she born?
~Who were his/her
parents/siblings?
~Any interesting
information from this
time in his/her life?
~Did anything happen
during this time that
helped him/her become
who he/she wanted to
be?
Black History Month Project
Teen/Early Adult
Life Notes
~Where did he/she go to
school? Did they like/not
like school?
~Did anything
important/interesting happen
during this time in his/her
life?
~Did they go to college?
Join the military? Get
married? Have children?
~Did anything happen during
this time that helped him/her
become who he/she wanted
to be?
Important
Accomplishments
~What did he/she do that
made them someone we
remember?
~Did he/she receive awards
for their accomplishments?
~What did he/she do after
becoming famous?
Black History Month Project
Later Life/Death Notes
~What did he/she do later in life?
~ If this person is dead, when/how did they
die?
~ Was their anything that was done to
memorialize this person when they died?
Additional Notes:
Black History Month Project
Black History Month
Informational Essay/Oral Presentations
Essay Graphic Organizer
Prompt: Who is someone we celebrate during Black History Month? Why do we
celebrate that person? Do you think it is important to celebrate Black History
Month? Why or why not?
Essay Outline
Introductory Paragraph
1. Grabber Sentence that introduces the topic with an interesting fact,
anecdote, or statement about your person, Black History Month, or both.
2. Transition Sentence(s) that move the reader from the Grabber Sentence to
the Thesis Sentence.
3. Thesis Sentence that helps the reader understand why you are writing this
essay and what they will be reading.
Black History Month Project
Support Paragraph I: Life of ___________________________
1. Transition/Topic Sentence that introduces this paragraph:
2 . Informative Sentence(s) about your person’s life:
3. Informative Sentence(s) about any events that might have helped him/her
become who they became:
4. Conclusion/Transition Sentence to the next paragraph:
Black History Month Project
Support Paragraph II: Why We Celebrate ______________________________
1. Transition/Topic Sentence that introduces this paragraph:
2 . Informative Sentence(s) about why your person is famous:
3. Informative Sentence(s) about why what they did/do is
important/impressive (Can include your personal opinion.):
4. Conclusion/Transition Sentence to the next paragraph:
Black History Month Project
Support Paragraph III
1. Transition/Topic Sentence that introduces this paragraph:
2 . Informative Sentence(s) about why we celebrate Black History Month:
3. Informative Sentence(s) about why you think we should/should not
celebrate Black History Month that is tied to the person you learning about:
4. Conclusion/Transition Sentence to the next paragraph:
Black History Month Project
Concluding Paragraph
1. Restated Thesis Sentence:
2. Brief Counter-Argument Sentence to those who might disagree with your
opinion of Black History Month.
3. Closing Sentence(s) that wraps up your essay: