Black History Month 2021 ‘Modern Greats’ – Resources

by Dwain Brandy · Published October 5, 2021 · Updated October 6, 2021

October is Black History month and during assemblies at Oasis Academy Media City, we have been focusing on the theme of ‘Modern Greats’ trailblazers making an impact by breaking the glass ceiling for future generations.

Activities

Guest speakers from the North west, including Kemoy Walker MBE, Cristina Taylor CEO of AIM SKY HIGH (ASH)
Workshops focused on Heritage, culture and identity to run throughout the academic year with the Race Trust
The talks from black students in HE/aspirational careers are back on this year through GM Higher. The project aims to bring together current University of Manchester Black students and Black school pupils to critically reflect and share their lived experiences as a Black student gmhigher.ac.uk/events/black-history-trail
With Insight, a course through Christine Kinnear’s ‘With Insight’, that will help students successfully apply to the UK’s leading Universities. Mentored by Black heritage University students they’ll visit Manchester University campus, and get a taste for what they could be working towards.

Next Steps

We will continue to proactively build a school experience and curriculum that supports all children and young people to become people of good character who are active and inclusive. In addition, we will ensure that within our curriculum we are focused on postive representation from Black and Global Majority backgrounds and auditing our current curriculum to ensure that it is not creating or sustaining a culture that stems from colonialism or systems of oppression. See Curriculum update and Anti-racist Audit

Resources

I have included some generic slides that I have used for assemblies this year. Feel free to use, modify and share.

LeadingEquality_BHM-2021 Download

Subject specific resources / links

General

Alt History: Black British History We’re Not Taught in Schools – BBC Stories – YouTube

Discovering the First Black Briton and Race in the Roman Era, with Mary Beard | Black and British – YouTube

The First Black Parliamentarians in our Times – Black History Month 2021

Black History Month website: https://www.blackhistorymonth.org.uk/

English

Booker Prize 2019: Bernardine Evaristo – YouTube

Maya Angelou – Mini Biography – Biography