Education for children does not have to stop just because school is ending. Here are some books for students at every grade level to help them learn at every level of education.
Elementary School
- Our Skin: A First Conversation About Race by Megan Madison and Jessica Ralli
This children’s book offers an introductory explanation of race for kids, featuring engaging text along with additional resources in case the child (or parent) wants to dive further and expand their racial education.
- Bedtime Bonnet by Nancy Redd is a children’s board book that offers a heartwarming depiction of the nighttime hair care routine in a Black household. It’s an uplifting read for your elementary school children who would like a wholesome read right before bed.
3. A Voice Like Yours by Frank Murphy & Kayla Harren offers a guide to understanding activism for young people, explaining how each child has a voice and the importance of utilizing it for what matters most to you.
Middle School
- Braiding Girls by Sherri Winston is a children’s novel about Maggie, her half-sister Callie, and her best friend Daija who start their own hair braiding business while at summer camp. This novel highlights bonding between young Black girls, with them building community as they deal with rivalry from other campers and grief.
5. The Vanquishers by Kalynn Bayron, a sci-fi book for kids written by and consisting of Black main characters. This is a tale about Malika “Boog” Wilson and her friends who have idolized a group of Vampire Hunters called The Vanquishers who they believed wiped out the undead. When a new student goes missing, they are led to believe that there may be a new vampire on the loose.
6. A Good Kind of Trouble by Lisa Moore Ramee is the story of twelve-year-old Shayla, a young girl who finds when she begins wearing an armband in support of Black Lives Matter, which leads to unforeseen divisiveness.
Highschool
7. The Black Girl Survives In This One is anthology young adult novel, featuring fifteen stories positioning Black girls as the Horror “Final GIrl.” This novel is a great upgrade for young people who enjoyed the Goosebumps and Fear Street Series.
8. I Rise by Haitian author Marie Arnold tells the story of Ayomide, a fourteen-year-old girl who begins to take on her mother’s activist role after she is put into a coma after a riot, pushing her into a leadership role while processing her grief and rage.
9. Their Vicious Games by Joelle Wellington is the tale of Adina Walker, a student on scholarship at Edgewater Academy a school for the primarily white and upper class of New England. After a fight, Adina is blacklisted from her Ivy League college options, leading her to participate in the Finish, a contest by Edgewater founding families. Upon arriving there however, it becomes clear to her that there is far more going on than meets the eye.
