Need resources to help celebrate Black History Month?
MEA Has Compiled Resources For Integrating African-American Culture & History into Your Curriculum
Read Across America Recommended Books
Practice Empathy
Books can help students build their capacity to understand and acknowledge the feelings of others. Deepen students’ understanding with titles that show how empathy builds connections and community.
Portland Public Library Book List
Explore the Portland Public Library’s “Black Voices” book list
Lesson Plans
To help you integrate Black History Month into your classroom, we offer a selection of lesson plans that cover a variety subjects and that can be adapted to fit multiple grade levels.
Slavery in Maine Lesson Plans (6-12)
Explore Maine history through local historic images, documents, and artifacts. This lesson plan intended for grades 6-12 examines how Maine was connected to slavery in different ways.
Malaga Island
By 1912 the State of Maine had evicted the mixed-race community of about forty people, committing eight to the Maine School for Feeble Minded. By the end of 1912, all visible traces of the community disappeared. Explore the Maine State Museum’s Lesson Plans on Malaga Island.
Maine-Based Books
Limbo, From African Slave to Honored Grave
By Robin Taylor-Chiarello
Limbo is a children’s book that illustrates the journey of a slave man living in Maine during the 18th century on his quest to freedom.
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Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy
By Gary D. Schmidt
Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy is a historical novel about the unlikely friendship between Turner Buckminster, a minister’s son, and Lizzie Bright Griffin, an African American girl from a nearby island, set against the backdrop of racial tensions in early 20th-century Maine. Their bond challenges societal norms and highlights themes of courage, injustice, and the power of human connection.
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Freedom Over Me: Eleven Slaves, Their Lives and Dreams Brought to Life
By: Ashley Bryan
Using original slave auction and plantation estate documents, contrasts the monetary value of a slave with the priceless value of life experiences and dreams that a slave owner could never take away.
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By: Lea Wait
Fourteen-year-old Joe Wood, growing up in Maine during the Civil War, tries to protect his friends, including finding his friend Owen, a young African American boy who has gone missing.