ON THIS DAY...IN BLACK HISTORY!

"On This Day in Black History" brings you a daily dose of black history facts for every month, because black history is year-round, just like any other part of world history. The goal is to shine a light on special individuals, events, and moments in black history, especially those that often get overlooked. It's a daily reminder that the richness of black history is

something to be celebrated every single day.

important things to know!

• All facts have been verified by at least three different credible sources.

We all know that not everything on the internet is true. The requirement I set for every fact is that I should be able to find it on at least three sites, including publications, city archives, or direct source sites related to the fact. For instance, if it's a fact about an astronaut, I made sure I could verify it on NASA.gov. If I couldn't confirm it based on my requirement, I excluded the fact.

• Birthdays and Death dates are not included.

Each fact represents an actual event. I aim to maximize learning with each fact, ensuring that they include an actual event or action. This way, students can not only learn about the initial fact but also have the opportunity to extend their learning by learning more details about the person or the occurrence.

• There are a variety of topics included!

The goal is to make students curious for more information. Learning opportunities are extensive for each fact. Enough information is provided, with the opportunity for additional learning if students are given time to "research" (please see my "Tell Us Something We Don't Know" routine below). It also provides the opportunity for specific questions to direct students' thinking.

"On This Day...In Black History" shares a Black History fact every day. I thought of this for my students to practice Parts of Speech daily in a quick and repetitive way. I'm all about embedded learning—finding ways for my students to learn something new and relevant while practicing other things. Instead of using random sentences about nothing, I went for Black History-related facts. It just made sense to create a fact relevant to the day because I wanted my students to practice every day.

Each set includes:

• A PDF set of the graphic organizer sheet with each fact - The graphic organizer is a modified K-W-L (Know, Wonder, Learned). This is the most convenient option for printing off the set and giving students a copy for a monthly journal/folder.

• A PPT of the graphic organizer sheet with each fact - The graphic organizer is a modified K-W-L (Know, Wonder, Learned). This is the most convenient option if you use Microsoft or Teams Classroom or personal use. For my students, I assign the Powerpoint as an assignment. Each day they are able to go in and fill out their organizer for that day without submission. If I want to check, I'm able to go in every day and look at what they've done.

• A Google Slides version of the graphic organizer sheet with each fact - The graphic organizer is a modified K-W-L (Know, Wonder, Learned). This is the most convenient option if you use Google Classroom.

• An image of each Graphic Organizer Sheet if only individual dates/sheets are used and embedded into a different platform or presentation, assigned, or printed.

• Square image in color - This is the convenient option for embedding the post on a Morning Slide, presentation, site, etc. It is also the most convenient for quick referencing.

WHY?

It's self-explanatory, but I'll elaborate. Black History is a full 365 days, not just 28 days a year. Often, when Black History is taught, it's general and covers those well-known names, essentially reteaching what students have learned in previous years. There are numerous Black activists, inventors, scientists, and more who did remarkable things, many of which students aren't aware of. When I created these, I deliberately avoided birthdays and/or death dates. I wanted to ensure that each date offers a real fact about something that happened, giving students the chance to broaden their learning on various topics.

HOW?

The beauty of using "On This Day" is that it can always fit in and go as deep as you choose. As I mentioned, I initially created these for my students to practice Parts of Speech and sentence structure with relevant sentences. However, it has achieved much more.

At the very least, I post "On This Day" on our Welcome Screen, and my students incorporate it into their pre-lesson routine to "mark it up."

Most days, I post the fact and have students write one question they have about it. IT HAS BEEN THE BEST THING! From there, I have several options:

• I can answer my students' questions in that moment and provide additional information.

• I can save my students' questions and incorporate readings or activities about the situation at a later date.

• I can encourage my students to find out the answer to their question when they have time. In my class, I have a routine I call "Tell Us Something We Don't Know!" In this routine, my students understand that other people might know the information they found. However, it motivates them to research and read to really try to find an interesting fact. The goal is for it to be something that I've never told or taught them. On certain days, I restrict the topic they're telling about. This is a perfect extension to "On This Day" facts. I tell them to tell me more about a specific fact or any fact that week.

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