February 2022
Every year when Black History Month comes around, I see two calls go out: one asking us to not focus only on the struggle of Black people, or the same handful of Black historical figures, and another to highlight stories of Black people throughout the year. To support those participating in #ClassroomBookADay who desire high-quality books to read aloud, I’m curating a list that focuses on celebrating Black joy and honoring Black excellence.
It’s important to balance perspectives and ensure that students are not only exposed to stories about Black struggle, protest, or enslavement. We have an opportunity to choose to read aloud books that present a counternarrative – one that affirms and celebrates not only the contributions of Black people to our society historically but also the everyday magic and joy of those communities.
Black communities have historically been marginalized and underrepresented in curriculum and children’s literature. And in a time when there is pushback on representation, we must make intentional choices to share the kinds of stories that show kids that ALL kids should be valued in our society. Not to try to say one race or skin color is better or worse than another, but that all people should be welcomed, embraced, and included in our communities, inside and outside our schools.
As you consider which stories with Black representation you’ll share during February for Black History Month, as well as all year long, please ensure you are also auditing the type of representation these books show your students. What is the balance of the entire month or year’s worth of selections? Because we show what we value in the choices we make in use of time and curriculum choices in our classrooms. What are your choices saying to your students? February is a great time to do a mini audit for yourself and see if the choices you’re making align with your values and the values we should be teaching to the kids we serve.
Another key point to consider is who creates the books we share. As shown with the data the CCBC reports on children’s literature published each year, books about Black people make up a small percentage of the total books published, even though they make up the highest percentage of any of the subcategories. And of that percentage, approximately half are written or illustrated by Black creators. When considering authenticity and that cultures and races are not a monolith, it is imperative to look at who is creating the stories that we share, especially when representing communities who have been marginalized historically. I hope these titles showcasing Black joy and excellence will be a good starting point for you to share with the young people in your life.
Below are a couple of infographics that provide more context for this topic specifically, and more generally, the need for diverse collections of inclusive books. There is data on books by and about Black, Indigenous, and People of Color published for children and teens compiled by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center, School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison. You can learn more, and see historical and recent data, at their webpage: CCBC Diversity Statistics. As of 2019, the CCBC separates Pacific Islander from Asian, and in 2020, they added an additional category for Arab representation.
A few other posts I’ve shared in recent years with more book recommendations around this topic:
*100 Picture Books Including Black People and Communities & Why You Need Them (May/June 2020)
*Updated – Honoring Black Lives: A Virtual Picture Book Library (June 2020/January 2022)
*Is it offensive to say Black? Conversations We Can’t Avoid in the Classroom (February 2018)
Follett Classroom partnered with me to spread the #ClassroomBookADay message. As part of this collaboration, my themed picture book recommendation lists are housed in Titlewave, which is one of my favorite free databases for looking up all things related to book information! Don’t have your free account? Grab it today.
Black Joy & Excellence Picture Books | February 2022
Show the World! (April)
The Legend of Gravity
The Me I Choose to Be
The Year We Learned to Fly
Looking for a Jumbie
M is for Melanin
My Rainy Day Rocket Ship
Black is a Rainbow Color
I Am Smart, I Am Blessed, I Can Do Anything!
Curls & Glow & Bloom
My Rainbow
I Got the School Spirit
I Can Write the World
Magic Like That
Soul Food Sunday
More Than Just a Game
The King of Kindergarten & The Queen of Kindergarten (May)
Dream Street
Hey You!: An Empowering Celebration of Growing Up Black
Dream Builder
