February is Black History Month - a time to celebrate the achievements of African Americans. For many years in America, history books and the media only pointed out the achievements of white people. Because black people were considered inferior, they were not honored for their successes (Except occasionally in athletics and music). Black History Month was created to focus our attention on these accomplishments so that when we think of great Americans, we consider all Americans, not just whites. 

Each student chose a black person who has made great contributions to our country or the world.  They read biographies about the person and wrote their own biography for this web page. We learned that a biography is a written account of a person’s life. It is often fascinating to read about not only the person’s triumphs but also their life story and challenges along the way. The students learned how to use the internet to do research and collect photographs and other media that portray the life and accomplishments of their Black History Character. After using their research to write a biography and illustrate their character's achievements, the students learned how to post their biographies, photographs and illustrations to a website using a student-friendly content management system. 

Each day, in February, one student reported on the person he/she selected to our class.  Some students dressed like the person for their reports, some created a timeline of the person's life, some created a diarama of an important event in the person's life.  All the students prepared wonderful presentations and we learned a great deal.