Students in DVE, TV 1 and TV 2 will be creating feature pieces for our upcoming episodes. They will be informative one-minute bios of famous African-Americans in history and their accomplishments.
The Media Center is going to focus on Black poets and poetry. There is a huge interest and demand for poetry books lately! I will have a book display with links to online sources. Also, posts on Schoology. Other programming and activities are in the works!
In the Social Studies Department, there are various activities during Black History Month and infused throughout the year. I have attached some resources and projects for Black History Month and listed some current lessons and topics. This is just a brief list as Black History is American History and as such infused throughout the academic year in social studies classes.
African American History Presentations to be held at Piscataway high school by Bill Davis of Baba’s Legacy. Bill is a Piscataway father and the Davis children are PHS alumni. He will present to various grade levels in social studies classes on the African American Experience Feb. 28th and return with his team on May to explore Black contributions to American art and culture.
Bill Davis is the President & CEO of Babas Legacy LLC, a diasporic educator, author, educator, trainer and public speaker with over 40 years of experience in education in corporate and community settings. Bill has worked at Rutgers University and NYU among other institutions and his work has been manifested by assisting schools build inclusive environments for students and staff that are committed to equity. He has partnered with various organizations for diversity and inclusion training and community uplift efforts including clients such as Nike, GlaxoSmithKline, as well as county and state government offices.
US2 Honors: African Americans during WWII and the importance of the Tuskegee Airmen via the film Red Tails and primary documents.
US1 working on the Abolition movement.
AP Government unit on Civil Rights Supreme Court cases and did a close read of Letter from a Birmingham Jail for MLK Day.
Honors World Cultures viewed this site for warm up videos during Black History Month: https://blackhistoryintwominutes.com/ and is doing a DBQ on African resistance to imperialism.
Honors USI that we will be doing next month, primarily related to slavery and the abolitionist movement portions of Period 4.
AP United States History Civil Rights and Social Movements project for Black History Month.
US History II: C-Span in the Classroom on the Tulsa Race Massacre, with a visit from Mr. Viney, whose spoke about his family’s experiences as they were caught up in this historic event.
These sites are being used to introduce BHM topics via virtual tours of their available resources/exhibits (along w/ create reflection writing pieces).
The National Museum of African American History and Culture https://nmaahc.si.edu/
National Archives - African American Heritage https://www.archives.gov/research/african-americans/individuals
Mighty Times: The Children's March', an Academy Award winning documentary created by the Southern Poverty Law Center that chronicles how children fought against, and helped draw national attention to, the discrimination and injustice suffered under Jim Crow in Birmingham, Alabama. Following the viewing is a class discussion (and writing piece) where students explained if they thought they would or wouldn't have participated in the original march (w/ potential immediate and long-term consequences or repercussions of their choice), along with identifying social injustices that exist today which they would (or have already) peacefully protested.
See below for information about VPA’s work and commitment to celebrating and learning about Black Artists, Black History, and providing room for student voice and experience in all aspects of our curriculum. In the Visual and Performing Arts Department at PHS (and K-12) we are continuing our curricular commitment to exploring the works, history, and techniques of artists and performers from varied cultures, time periods, and communities.
Curricular and Extra-Curricular Programming
Students are engaging in the following:
Exploring the work of local Black artists/performers
Performing and experiencing works from Black artists, composers, and performers
Studying the artwork and techniques of Black visual artists and graphic designers
Cultivating self - expression and student voice through these explorations
Examining social justice and equity issues such as the Black Lives Matter movement and civil rights movements through art and student-created performances/artworks
Allowing room in the classroom structure for student-led exploration and student-introduced content.
Resources
Resources are provided every Friday to the whole team through our department weekly newsletter - and the work of the whole department is spotlighted and shared for inspiration and ideas. Throughout February - Black History resources and focus on artists, musicians, dancers, and actors/actresses will be shared with the whole team for classroom exploration.