As we enter the last week of Black History Month, we want to acknowledge that teachers at Earl Haig have been addressing Black Lives Matter as part of their discussions this month. For families who have the privilege of not experiencing racism, it is especially important to continue these discussions at home and books can be a great part of that effort.
There was a great conversation earlier this month in the Earl Haig Families Facebook group about family resources for Black History Month — here are some of those shared titles (and more!) that are in book collections of fellow EH families:
Kindie/Primary
Sulwe
Ada Twist Scientist
The Day You Began
Don’t Touch My Hair
Dataset series of comics
Science comics
Hair Love
Cleopatra in Space
Ellie Ultra
Jabari Jumps
Zoey and Sassafras
Africville
Viola Desmond will not be Budged
Trailblazers – The Black Pioneers Who Have Shaped Canada (only at Indigo)
Bold Women in Black History
Anti Racist Baby
Junior/Intermediate
What Lane?
The Hate U Give
Slay
Ghost Boys
A Good Kind of Trouble
A Different Booklist and Olds Cool General Store are great spots to find wonderfully curated books and many of the titles above can also be found at the Toronto Public Library.
Send us an email if you have any great book recommendations you think we should share.
In addition to building our own diverse libraries at home, parents and caregivers should always feel comfortable chatting with teachers about what books are being read in class that feature BIPOC kids, queer kids, non binary kids, and disabled kids in regular life. Let’s keep these important conversations going — this month and every month — for the benefit of our whole community.
Happy reading, everyone!
