One of the greatest gifts we can bestow on our children is the love of reading, and even better whenever their love of books is able to teach them big messages that are important they learn from a very young age. To help celebrate Black History Month, our team at Dr. Noze Best has rounded up some of our favorite children's books that highlight big lessons about Black History in ways that little ones can digest.
The best part? These books are great to read and re-read year-round - not just during the month of February!
Children's Books We Love That Celebrate Black History Month
Here are 10 books, broken down by age group that are wonderful tools to teach and celebrate Black History with your little learner.
Book 1: When We Say Black Lives Matter
Age Group: 6-9 years
About: This book is powerful, painful, and honest celebration of being Black in the world today. This book not only affirms young Black children, but calls on all children to acknowledge the importance of Black lives and the Black Lives Matter movement as a whole.
Purchase here!
Book 2: The Shapes & Colors of We
Age Group: 1-5 years
About: This is an especially great book for younger ones as it emphasizes that being different is okay! Whether we're pear shape or square shape, brown hair or blue hair, what makes us all special is we're all part of the human family. Kids will learn to learn to be respectful of the things that make us different.
Book 3: Little Black Lives Matter
Age Group: 3-6 years
About: Little Black Lives Matter empowers all children, but Black children especially, by affirming that their lives, however little they may yet be, matter. Featuring fifteen great Black heroes of the past and the powerful words they spoke and actions they took, Little Black Lives Matter is a rhyming board book that incorporates memorable quotations and a reminder to little ones that each of these great people once lived a little Black life themselves.
Purchase here!
Book 4: Black is...: Picture Book For Kids Celebrating the Diversity and Beauty of Black Culture & History
Age Group: 3-7 years
About: This poetic picture book is a celebration of the diversity and beauty of Black culture. It uses the metaphor of the color black to represent different aspects of the culture, including the skin color, hair, music, art, fashion, food, history, future, laughter, pride, voice and soul. The poem encourages readers, particularly children, to appreciate and embrace the richness and variety of black culture, and to be proud of their heritage and identity.
Purchase here!
Book 5: Antiracist Baby Picture Book
Age Group: 0-6 years
About: This is a great read, especially for little, little ones who just enjoy looking at pictures. As your kids get older, the book comes with conversation prompts that help reflect on bias in their daily lives.
Purchase here!
Book 6: The ABCs of Black History
Age Group: 2-8 years
About: This is a story of big ideas––P is for Power, S is for Science and Soul. Of significant moments––G is for Great Migration. Of iconic figures––H is for Zora Neale Hurston, X is for Malcom X. It’s an ABC book like no other, and a story of hope and love.
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Book 7: The Other Side
Age Group: 5-9 years
About: This is the story of a little girl named Clover, friendship and Black history. Clover's mom says it isn't safe to cross the fence that segregates their African-American side of town from the white side where Anna lives. But the two girls strike up a friendship, and get around the grown-ups' rules by sitting on top of the fence together.
Purchase here!
Book 8: Goodnight Racism
Age Group: 3-7 years
About: This wonderful book delivers important messages about antiracism, justice, and equality in an easy-to-read format that empowers readers both big and small. Goodnight Racism gives children the language to dream of a better world and is the perfect book to add to their social justice toolkit.
Purchase here!
Book 9: Love Makes a Family
Age Group: 0-3 years
About: This is a great ready for little ones that celebrates diversity! Whether a child has two moms, two dads, one parent, or one of each, this simple preschool read-aloud demonstrates that what's most important in each family's life is the love the family members share.
Purchase here!
Book 10: Our Skin: A First Conversation About Race
Age Group: 1-5 years
About: Developed by experts in the fields of early childhood and activism against injustice, this topic-driven board book offers clear, concrete language and beautiful imagery that young children can grasp and adults can leverage for further discussion.
Purchase here!
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