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Black History + Math

This elementary teacher combines social studies lessons with elementary math practice

February 2019
Headshot of a woman By Victoria J. Dixon, 5th grade math teacher

Victoria J. Dixon

Make math lessons fun with a project that combines Black History Month and elementary math review. 

As a teacher, it seems like there’s never enough time to cover curriculum content and still get to relevant research projects.  That’s why I love using content as a review or check for mastery.

One year my students begged me to do a black history research project. But since we were departmentalized and I only taught math, I had to be creative in terms of how to include research. Thus, the Black History Timeline project was born!

Here’s how I developed an elementary math lesson that any teacher can use.

Create a life-sized Black History Month timeline

In this group activity, students work in teams of three or four. Each team is given a long strip of paper (at least 4 meters), several meter sticks, markers, and some events.

First, students create a number line using the meter stick (1 meter = 1 whole). They label the decimeters, which represent tenths, and centimeters, which represent hundredths. Whole numbers are prominently marked. The total length is about 4 ½ meters.

Then, students add events to their number line timeline. I give each group at most 20 events that have words, a photo, and a rational number or a mathematical expression that can be placed on a number line when evaluated.

I modeled several events for the students and then placed the items on the timeline. If students needed additional reinforcement, I could use materials like Scholastic DynaMath's fluency activities, which reinforce fraction and decimal math skills.

Elementary students practice math while learning about black history

Relate 4th grade math skills to a historical timeline

After events have been placed, I tell students that 0 represents the year 1600, 1 represents the year 1700, and so forth. Then they label the actual year of each event (for example 0.19 = 1619).

For 4th graders, I focus on decimals to the hundredths place. But in the past I have also included decimal addition and subtraction, expanded form with decimals, and fraction multiplication. I want my students to be able to evaluate or simplify the expression and then place the event on the number line correctly.   

At the end, students decorate their timeline and, as a team, they read through the events to determine which event was most significant. Then they explain their point of view in a written reflection. 

Use videos and Scholastic DynaMath articles to provide context for black history events

Over the years, I have fine-tuned the project. I now put multiple teams on the same timeline, but they each work on different time frames.

For example, I have one group focus on events during slavery and the Civil War. Another team will focus on the civil rights movement, and a third team may focus on the time following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

I also recommend sharing stories and videos at the start of the project. This provides students with context to understand the events, and it explains what life was like for people of color.

Some suggested events to include are:

  • 1619: First slave ship comes to America.
  • 1773: Phillis Wheatley’s book of poetry is published.
  • 1776: Independence Day
  • 1845: Frederick Douglass writes Narratives of the Life of Frederick Douglass.
  • 1852: Harriet Beecher Stowe writes Uncle Tom’s Cabin.
  • 1861: The Civil War begins
  • 1924: Harlem Renaissance
  • 1947: Jackie Robinson integrates major league baseball.
  • 1954: Brown v. Board of Education
  • 1955: Montgomery Bus Boycott
  • 1960: Lunch counter sit-ins
  • 1963: Dr. King gives his “I Have A Dream” speech.
  • 1979: Robert Johnson starts Black Entertainment Television (BET)
  • 2001: General Colin Powell appointed Secretary of State
  • 2008: President Barack Obama elected
  • 2011: Oprah Winfrey starts her own network

How do you incorporate Black History Month into your teaching? Email our team at Scholastic and let us know!

Want more elementary math education tips and news? Check out Scholastic's archive.

Victoria J. Dixon is a 5th grade math teacher in Texas, with experience teaching grades 3 through 6. She loves math and works to make student learning relevant, engaging, and meaningful.

She’s written previous blog posts for Scholastic about her teaching strategies, a math lesson related to a Scholastic DynaMath article about Nike , a math book writing project, and a multiplication lesson related to ice cream.

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