6 Books and STEM Challenges to Celebrate Black History Month
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February is Black History Month and the perfect time to celebrate the incredible contributions of African Americans in STEM.
While these books are great to share during the month of February, it is important to amplify black voices and their stories all year long. Our classroom libraries and the stories we share with our students should be reflective of the diversity that makes up our world.
Every child should have the opportunity to see themselves represented within a main character, a story setting, or a book author. We’ve put together a list of six books and STEM challenges to celebrate Black History Month in your elementary classroom:
6 Books and STEM Challenges to Celebrate Black History Month
The Girl With a Mind for Math by Julia Finley Mosca
Whoosh! by Chris Barton
Counting on Katherine by Helaine Becker
Mae Among the Stars by Roda Ahmed
Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly
Martin’s Big Words by Doreen Rappaport
The Girl With a Mind for Math
The Girl With a Mind for Math by Julia Finley Mosca is the true story of Raye Montague who was an African American woman set on becoming an engineer from a young age. Inspired by touring a German submarine, she set out on her path to becoming an engineer. She had no clue how much sexism and racial inequality she’d be up against, but she stayed determined through the challenges and is now credited as the pioneer who changed the course of ship design.
After reading the story challenge your students to construct a ship that can hold the most cargo.
Whoosh!
Whoosh! by Chris Barton is the story of Lonnie Johnson who was always tinkering with this and that as a small child. He loved to take things apart and put them back together again. This tinkering boy became the inventor of the popular toy we know today as the Super Soaker. Lonnie Johnson holds over 100 patents and pending patents for his many inventions.
After reading the story challenge your students to create their own invention out of recyclables.
Counting on Katherine
Counting on Katherine by Helaine Becker is the story of Katherine Johnson. Katherine loved numbers from a very young age and was one of the first African American women to hold a prominent position within NASA as a mathematician. Not only did she calculate the course of moon landings, she is credited for saving lives due to her contributions to the NASA space race.
After reading the book challenge your students to build their own space capsule.
Mae Among the Stars
Mae Among the Stars by Roda Ahmed is the story of Mae Jemison who dreamed about being among the stars from a very young age. Mae Jemison was the first African American woman in space. Mae never gave up on her dream and her determination paid off.
After reading the story challenge your students to design their own rocket and launch it.
Hidden Figures
Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly tells the true story of Dorothy Vaughn, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden. These four, African American women worked in STEM careers at NASA in the midst of racial discrimination. These women each played a critical part in the NASA space race.
After reading the story challenge your students to code their way to the moon using unplugged coding.
Martin’s Big Words
Martin’s Big Words by Doreen Rappaport teaches about how Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. became a leader in the fight for equal rights. This story teaches students about his life and his dream.
After reading the story challenge your students to write some of Martin’s words on graph paper.
Celebrating Black History Month
Black History Month offers the perfect opportunity to integrate social studies, math, and language arts through hands-on STEM learning in your elementary classroom all while celebrating the contributions of African Americans in STEM.
As teachers, we get to shape how future men and women of all races work together as innovators and entrepreneurs. It's why we celebrate influential STEM heroes of color throughout history who have paved the way for our children and students in the areas of science, technology, space exploration, and more. This month, don’t just teach about Black History, invite students into a story with STEM!
For more STEM ideas, inspiration, and collaboration with other STEM teachers be sure to join our FREE Facebook group Elementary STEM Teachers with Carly and Adam!
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