Activities for Two & Three Year Olds for Black History Month

Open a Good Book

• Two and 3-year-old children enjoy listening to a story, and reading stories that focus on Black History Month can introduce basic information. "This Jazz Man," by Karen Ehrhardt, is written in the tone of the classic song "This Old Man," and this song teaches preschoolers about jazz stars such as Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong. "Bright Eyes, Brown Skin," by Cheryl Hudson, tells the story of four preschoolers who learn more about each other by talking about the color of their skin, what clothes they wear and what they like to do. An age-appropriate book that describes the challenges a little black girl goes through to be seen as equal is the book "Amazing Grace," by Mary Hoffman.

Do a Craft

• Distribute paper doll cutouts of people and have the kids color the cutouts in a variety of colors. Tape the cutouts to string to form a garland that can represent friendship, regardless of the color of the skin. Along the same lines, trace the preschoolers' hands on several colors of construction paper. Include colors such as peach, ivory, tan, brown and other colors that represent a skin tone. Cut out a large O-shaped piece of heavy paper and glue the hand prints to it. Speak to the children about how everyone is special no matter the color of their skin. Discuss that Black History Month celebrates the triumphs, inventions and discoveries of African-Americans. Talk about Martin Luther King, Jr.'s dream -- that he wanted people to evaluate others by their character and not by the color of their skin. Distribute blank sheets of paper and tell them that it is always important to dream and to try to make your dreams come true. Encourage the preschoolers to draw what they dream about.

Get Hands-On

• Show preschoolers some items that African-Americans invented. For example, W.H. Richardson invented the baby buggy. Give the children some dolls and toy strollers and encourage them to take their baby dolls for a walk. Lyda O. Newman got a patent for an improved women's hair brush that allowed for easier brushing and cleaning. The 2- and 3-year-old preschoolers can honor this invention by opening a pretend beauty salon that offers services to you or to their stuffed animals and dolls. Introduce J.W. Smith's lawn sprinkler invention by inviting kids to put on their bathing suits and run through the sprinkler. A.L. Cralle invented the ice cream scoop, so use this invention to scoop up an ice cream treat. Tell the kids that it is important to always be grateful to others for things we take for granted and to remember the men and women who invented these items.

Play Games

• Print small copies of photos of several famous African-Americans such as Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Henry T. Sampson and Garrett Morgan. Cut out the pictures and glue them to squares of card stock. Lay the cards face down and play a memory game. As the kids flip the cards, tell them the names of the people they're seeing and one or two age-appropriate contributions each made. For example, Martin Luther King, Jr. was the famous civil rights leader of the 1960s; Rosa Parks stood up for her right to sit in the front of the bus; Henry T. Sampson developed a technology now used in cell phones and Garrett Morgan invented the stop light. You can play "Red Light Green Light" to honor Morgan. Have the children line up on one end of the play area. You stand at the opposite end. Call out "green light," and to tell the kids to start walking toward you. Call out "red light," to tell the kids to stop. If a child doesn't stop, he must go back to start. The first person to reach you is the winner.