Black History Month 2025 Teaching Resources
Get ready for Black History Month 2025 with hundreds of printables, worksheets, digital activities and more ways to bring the stories of Black Americans alive in your classroom this February.
This collection of Black History teaching resources was created by the teacher team at Teach Starter, with printable and digital options that have been designed to meet Common Core and state standards. The majority include editable options so you can easily differentiate them for your students, and each one has been reviewed by a member of our teaching team to ensure they're classroom-ready — so you can save time on your lesson planning.
Teaching about Black History for the first time this February, or simply looking for fresh ideas to bring this topic to life in the classroom? Explore some tips from our teachers, including a look at the theme for the 98th celebration of Black History in the US and some important historical information about the month to anwer students' questions.
When Is Black History Month?
Black History Month is officially marked in February every year. In 2025, the month will be marked from February 1 to February 28.
What Is the Theme for Black History Month 2025?
Each year, the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History (ASALH) chooses the theme for Black History Month. In 2025, that theme is African Americans and Labor because — as the ASALH explains:
"The theme, 'African Americans and Labor,' intends to encourage broad reflections on intersections between Black people's work and their workplaces in all their iterations and key moments, themes, and evets in Black history and culture across time and space and throughout the U.S., Africa, and the Diaspora."
Black History Month Activity Ideas for Teachers
Some ideas to approach the theme in the classroom this year include:
- Discuss the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s and the ways in which it continues today.
- Host an African American read-in event. Join schools around the US on February 20 by reading books and texts written by Black authors in the classroom, exploring the 2025 theme of "labor" through the lens of important Black writers.
- Focus biography projects on Black Americans. Give your students a list of notable Black Americans who have resisted oppression. Students can fill out biography cubes with details about these history-changing figures.
- Set up an interactive bulletin board for students to uncover new facts about Black Americans who have been activists and changemakers throughout American history.
- Create a labor rights timeline. To incorporate the theme for 2025, work as a class to construct a timeline of African American labor history, including items like enslaved labor and resistance, reconstruction-era labor opportunities. The Civil Rights Movement and its labor connections, and modern labor movements.
- Explore the poetry of Black Americans. From protests against slavery through spirituals to the use of powerful spoken word poetry today, oral poems have long been a means of resistance for Black Americans. Turn your ELA lessons to Black poets and the oral tradition this month.
Who Started Black History Month?
If you're looking to teach students the background of Black History Month itself, you'll need to start with Carter G. Woodson.
Known as the father of Black History Month, Woodson was a historian and author whose establishment of Negro History Week in 1926 paved the way for the federal declaration of February as Black History Month some 50 years later.
The founder of the ASALH — which today determines the theme for each Black History Month — Woodsen never meant for the study of Black history to be limited to just a week, or even just a month.
Woodsen’s work until his death in 1950 and the work of the ASALH since has been to promote the “year-round and year-after-year study of African American history.”
When Did Black History Month Start?
Although Woodson laid the groundwork in the 1920s, Black History Month would not officially start until 1976 when President Gerald Ford became the first president to declare February as Black History Month.
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Read Along Pocket Chart Cards – Black History Month
Use this set of Black History Month text and image pocket chart cards for reading and history lessons.
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Innovative Inventors - Comprehension Worksheet
Meet famous Black History Month figures with this informational text and comprehension questions activity.
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Black History Profile: Kamala Harris - Comprehension Worksheet
Review our profile on Vice President Kamala Harris and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
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Shirley Chisholm and Carol Moseley Braun Cut and Sort Worksheet
Compare and contrast the lives of two influential Black American lawmakers in this cut-and-sort activity.
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A Historic Movement – Teaching Presentation
Introduce students to the people and events of the American civil rights movement with this 17-slide PowerPoint presentation.
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"All About ..." - Informational Writing Template
Practice informative writing with this versatile template.
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Who Is Martin Luther King, Jr? - Shared Reading and Activity
Use this 13-slide PowerPoint as a collaborative reading exercise about Martin Luther King, Jr.
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'Everyone Belongs' Vocabulary Flip-book
Define and discuss vocabulary words associated with diversity and equality using this flip-book writing activity.
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Biography Brochure Template
Help your students organize their thoughts about their biography subject.
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Harriet Tubman and Rosa Parks Cut and Sort Worksheet
Compare and contrast the lives of two influential Black History Month figures in this cut-and-sort activity.
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Rosa Parks Timeline Activity
Craft an illustrated timeline for students to visually explore 6 events in Rosa Parks’s life.
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Who Is Charity Adams Earley? – Shared Reading and Activity
Read along to learn about soldier & activist Charity Adams Earley with this 13-slide PowerPoint presentation.
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MLK Day Task Cards
Challenge students to think about the work of Martin Luther King, Jr. with this set of 13 writing task cards.
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If I Met MLK
Describe your ideal meeting with civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. in this reflective MLK writing activity.
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MLK Character Traits Graphic Organizer
Use our graphic organizer with your students when studying Martin Luther King, Jr.’s notable mental and moral qualities.
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MLK Cut and Color Worksheet
Celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. and the ideals he fought for with this cut and color MLK worksheet for early elementary students.
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Biography Flipbook Template
Create a flipbook that clearly illustrates the most significant aspects of a biography subject.
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MLK Day Crossword
Identify and write vocabulary words relating to civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. in our MLK crossword puzzle.
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Martin Luther King, Jr. Timeline
Craft an illustrated timeline for students to visually explore the major events in Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life.
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Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Fakebook Worksheet
Design a social media profile for civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr. in this creative writing activity.
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"I Have a Dream" Writing Prompt Page
Observe MLK Day by encouraging students to think about their “dream” for the future by writing it as a speech.
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Inspirational Woman Profile: Dr. Mae Jemison – Comprehension Worksheet
Review our profile on the first Black woman astronaut and answer questions to reinforce understanding.
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Who Is Harriet Tubman? – Shared Reading and Activity
Learn about Harriet Tubman and her work in the abolitionist movement with this 15-slide read-along PowerPoint presentation.
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Who Is Rosa Parks? – Shared Reading and Activity
Learn about and discuss activist Rosa Parks and the Montgomery bus boycott with this 15-slide read-along PowerPoint presentation.