HOW IT WORKS
In Who’s Who In Black History, students create and play games to learn about the roles that African-Americans have played in American history in fields such as arts and education, science,   politics, the civil rights movement, the military, and sports. They also complete a research project on a significant Black person in history. This project requires the use of a   variety of computer programs and resources. Students take notes from CD-ROM encyclopedias and Internet sites as well as books and encyclopedias from the library. The final reports   they create will be shared with the class.   The activities and lessons for this unit were designed to reach students with learning disabilities, allowing them to work in small groups   while practicing new skills and working one-to-one with teachers. Because of its open-ended structure, students who have varied abilities can engage in the activities and research at different levels. For students with reading and writing problems, a smaller set of research   questions can be developed. Students with greater abilities in reading and writing can   extend their research accordingly.

THE STUDENTS
The fifteen students in my class are eighth graders. The class is a MIS (Modified Instructional Setting) 1, so many students have learning disabilities and/or emotional difficulties. The classroom does have eight computers, and the students also made use of computers in the library. There was no Internet access in my classroom, so we used the library computers to do research on the Internet. Prior to this unit, most of my students had not had formal training in typing, using the Internet, or using CD-ROM encyclopedias.

THE STAFF
I have taught in the MIS 1 program for two years. This year, I am working in a Chancellor’s District School in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. I work with an extremely motivated and energetic staff. Many of my ideas came from worksheets that a colleague of mine gave to me. And although there are no paraprofessionals in the room, I do have the assistance of an ESL teacher who comes in once a day. While we were working on this unit, she held writing conferences with students in my class. Also, the librarian and computer support personnel from Project Smart were very supportive of the project.  

WHAT YOU NEED  
Computers with Internet access are needed along with software such as the Grolier’s Encyclopedia CD-ROM and the ClarisWorks wordprocessing   program. Markers, highlighters, dictionaries, large index cards, and student folders were used to collect and present information,   and to prepare each student’s report. You may want to use some of the handouts that I have prepared, too.  

OVERALL VALUE  
This unit engages students in a variety of activities that challenge them to learn skills in technology,   language arts, history, and math. The students use technology to help them read and comprehend informational material, and produce displays (with tables, charts, and graphs) as well as written and oral reports. Activities and lessons are presented in a clear manner and offer students multiple opportunities for mastery, while allowing them to work at their own pace. At the completion of this unit, students will not only have a variety of skills in using computers, writing reports and analyzing data, they   will have learned about the accomplishments of many Black people in history.