It has been a month of learning, more than ever before, at Florence Elementary in Mesquite ISD.
“This was the first time we have done this project,” Social Studies Coordinator Daniel Norwood said. “During Black History Month, several school shad door-decorating contests, living history museums, student research projects and even programs.”
The learning didn’t stop with the video they posted to YouTube.
The kids learned about non-traditional and new historical figures, not just famous ones like Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks. While those people are important, people hear about them often. Mesquite ISD wanted to ensure this year, these kids learned about some of the unsung heroes of Black History.
Students at Galloway Elementary built an MLK mosaic out of Rubik's cubes. They used 208 cubes in all.
"The K-12 TEKS have included a number of notable individuals, some of them multiple times, in various grade levels. Individuals such as the AME church founder Richard Allen, George Washington Carver, W.E.B. Dubois, Sojourner Truth, Thurgood Marshall, Benjamin Banneker, Phyllis Wheatley, illustrator Kadir Nelson, entrepreneur Wallace Amos, Barbara Jordan, first African-American Justice of the Texas Supreme Court Wallace Jefferson, aviator Bessie Coleman, Sec. of State Colin Powell, Martin Luther King, and others have been required within the social studies curriculum from grades K-5. The upper grade level TEKS include a number of other notable African-Americans and world leaders who have helped shape global history,” Norwood said.
“In addition to classroom instruction, our secondary students have the opportunity to participate in the National History Day (NHD) competition. They conduct research on a topic of their choice according to the NHD theme and can create an exhibit, performance, documentary, website, or draft a research paper.”
