Black

History
Month
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 Black History Month:
Table of Contents
Page Number Description

4 Choice Board

5 List of Notable Black Leaders

6 Option #1: Newspaper

8 Option #2: Board Game

10 Option #3: Biography Book Jacket

12 Option #4: Awards Ceremony

14 Teacher’s Note

15 Brainstorm Web

16 Paragraph Graphic Organizer

17 Editing and Revision Checklist

18 Rubric

20 Newspaper Templates
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27 Board Game Templates

41 Book Jacket Template

43 Awards Templates
Name:
Black History Month:
Choice Board
In order to demonstrate your knowledge, select one of the projects from the choice board to
complete. On the next page, you will select a Black leader to focus on for your Black History Month
project.

Option #1 Option #2
Digital or Print Newspaper Board Game
Be an investigative journalist. Create an engaging game.

Option #3 Option #4
Biography Book Jacket Awards Ceremony
Design a biography book jacket. Plan an awards ceremony.

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Name:
List of Black Leaders
From the following list, select a leader to focus on for your research and choice project.

✩Jackie Robinson ✩ Frederick Douglass

○ Baseball player ○ Abolitionist

✩ Rosa Parks ✩ Bessie Coleman

○ Civil Rights Activist ○ Aviator

✩ Martin Luther King, Jr. ✩ Aretha Franklin

○ Civil Rights Activist ○ Singer

✩ Jesse Owens ✩ Ida B. Wells

○ Track and field athlete ○ Civil Rights Activist

✩ W.E.B. Du Bois ✩ Katherine Johnson

○ Civil Rights Activist ○ Mathematician

✩ George Washington Carver ✩ Mae C. Jemison

○ Inventor ○ Astronaut

✩ Harriet Tubman ✩ Daniel Hale Williams

○ Abolitionist ○ Surgeon

✩ Ruby Bridges ✩ Garret Morgan

○ Civil Rights Activist ○ Inventor

✩ Barack Obama ✩ Madam CJ Walker

○ President ○ Entrepreneur

✩ Michelle Obama ✩ Major Taylor

○ First Lady ○ Cyclist

✩ Oprah Winfrey ✩ Alice Ball

○ Talk Show Host ○ Chemist

✩ Booker T. Washington ✩ Sarah Boone

○ Educator ○ Inventor

✩ Thurgood Marshall ✩ Jackie Joyner-Kersee

○ Justice of the Supreme Court ○ Track and Field Athlete
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✩ Sojourner Truth ✩ Langston Hughes

○ Abolitionist ○ Poet

✩ Arthur Ashe ✩ Alexander Miles

○ Tennis Player ○ Inventor
 Option #1:
Newspaper
A newspaper is an important media source that informs the
general public of various current issues. As a journalist, your
task is to capture the major life events, experiences, successes,
and challenges of the selected notable leader.

While there is room for creativity and an opportunity for

originality, be sure that the information that you include is based
on historical evidence. Your responses should show that you
have an in-depth understanding of the content.

Please include the following sections in your newspaper.

Newspaper Section Explanation

Original and creative title Examples: Boston Globe, New York Times

New Story #1: For the news story, write about one or two major life
A news story is a factual summary of events of the notable leader.
an event.
Be sure to develop the topics with relevant facts and
details. Include a headline and an image that relates to
the news story.

Interview: Imagine that you are able to interview the notable

An interview allows the reader to get to
know more detailed information about
a particular topic by asking questions
and listening to responses from a
person who is an expert.
leader. Ask him or her about any challenges or
successes in his or her lifetime. Then, using evidence as
a guide, write the responses that the leader may have
actually stated.
While you have the opportunity to use your imagination
and be creative, be sure to base the information on
historical evidence.
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Write five questions (1 – 2 sentences each) and five

answers (3 – 4 sentences each).
 Option #1 (Continued):
Newspaper
Newspaper Section (continued)
Opinion Piece:
An opinion piece includes the views
and beliefs that a person or a group has
about a particular subject matter.
Advertisement:
The purpose of an advertisement is to
convince consumers to purchase an
item or a service.
Advice Column:
This is a column in which a person
writes seeking advice about a problem
and an advice columnist responds with
a solution.
Explanation (continued)
Assuming the role of the notable leader share an opinion
that you have about an issue that you dealt with, a
challenge that you overcame, a life experience, or an
accomplishment.
Write at least five sentences in your response.
Consider a a product or service that would be of great
benefit to the notable leader. Persuade the readers of the
newspaper to purchase the item or buy the service. Feel
free to be an inventor and create something that would
benefit people.
Write at least four sentences describing the purpose of
the item or service. Include an image that represents the
item or service.
As a member of the general population, write a letter to
the notable leader seeking advice about a problem.
Using evidence as a guide, write the solution that the
notable figure may write in his or her response.
Write at least two sentences seeking advice describing
the problem and at least four sentences responding with
a solution.
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 Option #2:
Board Game

You are a game designer and your task is to create a board game that gives players the opportunity to
demonstrate their knowledge about a notable leader. Follow the steps below.

Step 1: Create the rules and directions for the game.

As much as possible, try to keep the rules simple so that new players will catch on quickly and will
have a fun playing experience.

Here are some concepts to keep in mind when creating the rules:
1) What is the goal of the game?
2) What determines who wins the game?
3) How many players can play?
4) What pieces are required for the board game? Dice, cards, etc.

You must write out the rules and they should contain the following parts.

Goal of the game Pieces included Preparation

Beginning the game Playing the game Keeping score

Use the space below to write your ideas about the game rules.

________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________
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________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________
 Option #2 (Continued):
Board Game
Step 2: Create the required pieces needed for the game.

1) Create by hand at least three markers for players.

2) Create at least 25 cards that contain questions or direction.

✩Examples of questions: Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech
in front of which historical monument?
✩Examples of directions: Barack Obama became the first African American president.
Move ahead two spaces.
✩For your questions and directions cards, include information on the
following topics.

❑ Life events and experiences

❑ Successes and accomplishments

❑ Challenges that he or she overcame

Step 3: Sketch a rough draft of your board design.

Choose any creative and organized layout that makes sense for your game. In the space below,
brainstorm the layout of your rough draft board design.

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Step 4: Create the final copy of the board game on large paper.

Decorate the board with colorful illustrations and designs. Feel free to use markers, colored pencils,
construction paper, craft paper, or other materials. Make your board design as colorful and visually
appealing as possible to capture the interest of the players.
 Option #3:
Biography Book Jacket
One of the best ways to learn about famous leaders is by reading
a biography about them. A biography is a book about
someone’s life written by another person. You can learn about a
person’s family life, values, goals, accomplishments, and
shortcomings. Your task is to create a book jacket for the
biography of the selected leader in honor of Black History
Month. A book jacket includes the front cover, spine, and back
cover. While there is room for creativity and an opportunity for
originality, be sure that the information that you include is based
on historical evidence. Your responses should show that you
have an in-depth understanding of the content.
Include the following parts to your book jacket.

Front Cover:

❑ 1. Title of Book
✓ Come up with a unique and creative title for the biography.

❑ 2. Cover Designer
✓ This is you. Include your first and last name.

❑ 3. Illustration / Image
✓ Make the cover visually appealing and interesting to look at. Draw a colorful and detailed
illustration that represents something about the selected leader.

❑ 4. Design
✓Many book covers include a design or border in addition to an illustration. People often
first pick a book off the shelf if they are drawn to the cover.

Spine:

❑ 5. Title of Book

❑ 6. Cover Designer (remember, that’s you.)

❑ 7. Design / Border

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 Option #3 (Continued):
Biography Book Jacket
Back Cover:

❑ 8. Write a paragraph about the selected leader that contains the following topics:
✓ Life events and experiences
✓Accomplishments
✓ Challenges that were overcome

❑ 9. Book Review
✓ Write a two-sentence book review.
✓ Example: “This book is packed full of gripping suspense and fascinating information. It is
an exciting page-turning read.”

❑ 10. Bar Code

✓ Set your book at the price that you think is appropriate.

❑ 11. Design or Illustration

✓ Create a design or draw an illustration that captures something that you wrote about in your
paragraph.

► ► ► ► ► ► ►

On the clip art below, design the layout of the book jacket.

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 Option #4:
Awards Ceremony

It’s time to celebrate and honor the accomplishments of your selected

leader. As the event manager, your task is to plan an awards
ceremony for the leader. The awards ceremony includes the
presentation of the trophies, ribbons, and/or other decorative objects
to represent each achievements of the leader. Additionally, the
ceremony includes a speech describing the leader’s accomplishments.

Include the following parts for your awards ceremony.

❑ Select the three accomplishments

✓ Select three accomplishments or successes of the leader to focus on for the awards ceremony.
Write your ideas in the space provided.

Accomplishment #1: _______________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

Accomplishment #2: _______________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

Accomplishment #3: _______________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

❑ Create three awards.

✓ Create three awards to distribute to the leader on the day of the awards ceremony. Each award
should represent a different achievement or accomplishment of the leader. Examples of awards
include trophies, ribbons, statuettes, certificates, plaques, or other decorative objects. On each
award, write the name of the selected leader as well as a brief statement briefly describing the
accomplishment. On the next page, plan the design of the awards.

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 Option #4 (Continued):
Awards Ceremony

Use the spaces below to design the three awards.

Award #1 Award #2

Award #3

❑ Write a detailed and informative speech.

✓ Write three paragraphs each representing an accomplishment of the selected leader. Congratulate
the leader on his or her word work, commitment, and success. Explain all aspects of the
accomplishments, including background information, purpose, description, and impact. Be sure to
base the information on evidence. Use exciting and passionate language to emphasize the successes
of the leader and to capture the attention of the audience.

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 Black History Month
Choice Board

Teacher’s Note

The following pages include supplementary materials to assist students in completing

their choice board projects.

Included are:

✓ Brainstorm Web (P. 15)

✓ Paragraph Graphic Organizer (P. 16)

✓ Editing and Revision Checklist (P. 17)

✓ Rubric (P. 18)

✓ Option #1: Newspaper Templates (P. 20 – 25)

✓ Option #2: Board Game Templates (P. 27 – 39)

✓ Option #3: Book Jacket Template (P. 41)

✓ Option #4: Awards Template (P. 43 - 45)

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Brainstorm Web

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 Paragraph Graphic Organizer

Topic Sentence(s): _________________________________

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

Evidence/Explanation #1 Evidence/Explanation #2 Evidence/Explanation #3

_________________________ _________________________ _________________________

_________________________ _________________________ _________________________

_________________________ _________________________ _________________________

_________________________ _________________________ _________________________

_________________________ _________________________ _________________________

Concluding Sentence(s): ____________________________

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

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 Editing and Revision Checklist

Directions: As you carefully read through your work, ask yourself the following questions. If you
answered ‘no’ for any of them, please correct your work.

Evidence & Explanation

1) Do you include rich and specific details? Yes or No

2) Do you explain everything fully and completely? Yes or No

3) Does your writing show that you have an in-depth understanding of the topic? Yes or No

4) Do you write in your own words? Yes or No

Images

5) Are your images exceptionally detailed, colorful, and relevant? Yes or No

Conventions

6) Do you have correct spelling and capitalization? Yes or No

7) Do you have correct punctuation and grammar? Yes or No

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 Rubric: Choice Board

A B C D

Written Includes significant Includes effective Includes relevant Includes limited

Evidence evidence that is evidence that is evidence that is evidence that
fully developed and mostly developed occasionally needs to be more
completely and explained. developed and fully developed
explained. explained. and explained.

Word Words explain the Words are Some words are Many words are
Choice topic in an adequate and vague and not vague and not
interesting and correct. specific. specific.
sophisticated way.

Spelling & 0 – 1 errors in 2 – 3 errors in 4 – 5 errors in 6+ errors in

Grammar spelling, spelling, spelling, spelling,
punctuation, punctuation, punctuation, punctuation,
capitalization and capitalization and capitalization and capitalization and
grammar. grammar. grammar. grammar.

Visuals: Illustrations, Illustrations, Illustrations, Little to no color,

Illustrations, images, designs, images, designs images, designs, detail or effort for
images, and layout are and layout are and layout can the illustrations,
designs, and exceptionally very colorful, have more color, images, designs,
layout. detailed, colorful detailed and detail and can or layout.
and represent the represent the ideas represent the ideas
ideas in a superior in an effective better.
way. way.

Grade: __________

Comments:
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 Black History Month:
Choice Board

Supplementary Materials for

Option #1: Newspaper

Pages 20 – 25 contain newspaper templates.

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 Black History Month:
Choice Board

Supplementary Materials for Option #2:

Board Game

Pages 27 - 39 contain board game templates.

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Name:

Title of Board Game: _________________

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Name:

Title of Board Game: _________________

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Name:

Title of Board Game: _________________

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Name:

Title of Board Game: _________________

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Name:

Title of Board Game: _________________

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Name:

Title of Board Game: _________________

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Name:

Game Cards

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Name:

Game Cards

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Name:

Spinner

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Name:

Spinner

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Name:

Game Pieces

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Name:

Dice

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Name:

Game Money

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 Black History Month:
Choice Board

Supplementary Materials for Option #3:

Biography Book Jacket

Page 41 contains the book jacket template.

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 Becky’s Social Studies Center

Graphics by Adventures of a Techie Bookworm

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Adventures-Of-A-Techie-Bookworm
 Black History Month:
Choice Board

Supplementary Materials for Option #4:

Awards Ceremony

Page 43 - 45 contains the awards template.

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