• Black heritage month is the perfect time to focus your class's attention on the contributions of African Americans and the stories of struggle and triumph that have been woven into the fabric of our nation. A wonderful way to help students appreciate this history is to create posters that highlight specific individuals and events. Creating a poster to showcase some of these moments will require the use of a graphics program.
  
  

Famous Figures

• Think about creating a montage of images for your poster which are accompanied by important quotes from each individual or even a line or two about who they were and what they did. Using this this type of poster as a teaching aid can truly cause your students to get involved in asking questions and wanting to learn more. From Harriet Tubman to Fredrick Douglass to Martin Luther King, Jr. to Maya Angelou (to name a few) there are so many individuals who have had a hand in shaping the history and perspective of our nation. It would be a good idea to include both men and women from various periods to incorporate in your poster's design.
  
  

Events that Reshaped a Nation

• Designing a black heritage poster that focuses on significant historical events or movements is an excellent approach to take. You could include images and written content that focuses on the Underground Railroad, the Civil War, the Emancipation Proclamation, the effects of Jim Crow and the importance of the Civil Rights Movement. By highlighting these events you will be able to show students how these struggles to gain equal rights helped to make all Americans more free. There are many images in the public domain that could be used for this type of poster.
  
  

Cultural Contributations

• Creating a poster that showcases the contributions African Americans have made to the United States over time can make the perfect poster to catch the interests of students and draw them in to a discussion of African American history as well as the history of the nation. You could include images of foods, architectural features, clothing and even stories and concepts that have become apart of the American lexicon. You may even create a poster that shows rows of items and then asks the question: "Which of these items or ideas was a contribution made by African Americans?"