RILINK Schools: African American Biographies: Home

Databases - Collections of Articles

After you search for your subject's name, you can get help with your "Sources" page by selecting an article link and then clicking on "Cite" from the right-hand menu.

World Book Student Biography Center

Search for your person's name. Click on the green link to open up the article on your topic. Use the outline at the left to navigate to a specific section or to help you create a citation for your "Sources" page.

EBSCOhost Biography Collection Complete

Search for your African American's name, then click "Full Text" and the green "Update" button on the left. You may also want to limit your search by choosing appropriate subjects from the menu at the left. After you open an article, you can click "Cite" on the right to help you create your "Sources" page.

*****If the link does not work, go to AskRI.org and click on the appropriate resource.*****

Reliable Websites

Bio.com - Black History
Discover a wealth of information about African-Americans and their contributions to the world at this award-winning web site. Visit the interactive timeline and celebrate the historical icons of America's black community. Each event is documented with a photograph, a list of Fast Facts, and a short quiz. There are links to the biographies of 200 notable African-Americans from all walks of life. A comprehensive section about Martin Luther King, Jr. is also featured, along with complete video footage of Dr. King's I Have a Dream speech.
Enchanted Learning - Bios of African Americans
Enchanted Learning provides several biographies of famous African Americans.
Encyclopedia of Prominent African Americans
Use this encyclopedia to read and learn about the contributions of African-Americans throughout history. Make sure to check out the "Related Resources" section at the bottom of each article.
Gale Cengage African American Biographies
Free access to biographies for Black History Month.
InfoPlease - African American Biographies
This is a great website with an ABC listing of numerous famous African Americans
Find the Face (PBS Game)
Many African American people are well known for their contributions to our country. PBS has a game for you that will test what you know about these important people. You will need Flash on your computer to play the game and it also can be printed. Choose a level from one to four and then begin. You will see images of African American heroes. Match their images to the image of what they are known for. When you are correct, you will get a little biography about the person.

Credits

The descriptions on this page are provided by the Follett Catalog Software Company.

Useful Books

You will find most of the books you need in the Biography section of the library (under the clock!). The Biography section is organized in ABC order by subjects last name. So if you were assigned Barack Obama, you would look in the "O" portion of the shelves.

Extraordinary Black Americans from Colonial to Contemporary Times by Susan Altman
Call Number: 920 ALT
This outstanding series of short, easy-to-read biographies and historical events is designed to acquaint children of all races with the accomplishments of extraordinary people. Famous and not-so-famous women and men are recognized for their achievements in education, politics, science, medicine, exploration, music, literature, and sports. Major historical events are also covered as young readers see how these events have helped shape society as we know it today.
Great African Americans in the Arts by Carlotta Hacker
Call Number: 920 HAC
Up-to-date profiles on; • Alvin Ailey, Choreographer • Debbie Allen, Dancer • Marian Anderson, Opera Singer • Clementine Hunter, Folk Artist • Henry Ossawa Tanner, Painter • Gordon Parks, Film Director • Ntozake Shange, Playwright • PLUS 6 additional 2-page biographies
Who's Who African American History by John Bowman
Call Number: 920 WHO
Contains biographical profiles of approximately 400 African-American men and women from throughout history who have becomes leaders in their chosen fields, arranged alphabetically and including photographs.

African American Heroes Report Criteria

Research the famous person via magazines, newspapers, encyclopedias, world-wide-web, etc.

You will be researching for the following topics:

1. Early years of life

2. Character Traits

3. Significant (important ) Events in Life/ What makes the person a hero

4. Contributions to USA

Use the web to organize your research into the above categories.

Create 4 well-formed paragraphs with your information

Include an introduction (beginning paragraph) and a conclusion (an ending paragraph)

Include a “Source” page for your sources (for web information please include entire web address, for a book or article, include title and author)

Draw a portrait of your famous person on the left side of the paper provided, using the Postage Stamp criteria.