Books to Read with your Children during Black History Month & Always

February is Black History month, a time to celebrate the achievements of African Americans and learn about both the famous & not-so-well-known people who changed the face of history.

When my girls were younger I tended to always just pick up the books of African American struggles & while those are very important to read & educate my children with, I had an amazing Black momma reach out to me & remind me that I need to also share Black triumphs. There are so many inventions, moments in history, awards, etc by African Americans I had never heard of prior to seeking our book selection for February & am still learning about today

Listen, I am just a white mother in the midwest, in a town of very little diversity, doing my absolute best to do better with my children & to end prejudice. I think it is our job as parents & educators to introduce a variety of literature into our children's lives. But it is also up to us to be sure our black children know where they came from, more than slavery & for our white children to see our kids of color as equals, able to do the same great things they have the opportunity to do & to understand they weren't always treated that way & in some cases, still aren't treated as equals.

So this book selection isn't just about African Americans' struggle, but also strong, amazing Black women & men that are a part of our history. However, I encourage you to diversify your library, not just with the above-mentioned black stories but to just have people of all colors in ordinary, everyday books on your shelves. It's something the past several years I have been working on.

We need to teach our children they have an important role to play in changing the way our world looks at race & they aren't too young to start. We can start right at home & in our classrooms to raise those who share the vision of making the world a better place. I hope this list will help you to teach your children about both, the pain & the great victories of African Americans across History this month & hopefully inspire you to continue to diversify your library always & not just Black History Month, there is no better time to start than now.