African Americans

Inventor Garrett Morgan: Champion of Safety!

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Malik came home from school with heaps of homework to do, but he knew the first task he should work on was his assignment for Black History Month. He had to choose and research an African American inventor to write an essay about but had no idea where to start. Writing reports wasn't Malik's favorite thing to do. Still, he thought if he started right away and found someone unique and exciting to learn about, it might help him write a better report.

How Do You Spell Unfair?

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This is “How Do You Spell Unfair?” Written by Carole Boston Weatherford and illustrated by Frank Morrison A First Partners’ Book Club pick and a Santa Clara City Library adaptation and recording, read by Mimi Nguyen – we hope you enjoy MacNolia Cox was no ordinary kid. Her idea of fun was reading the dictionary. From A to Z, she learned words’ meanings and spellings. She loved to read, study, and spell. In 1936, the eighth grader won her school spelling bee.

Doctor Mae Jemison Orbiting the Earth

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"Six, five, four…" the main engines of the space shuttle Endeavour started with a deafening roar and the shuttle began to shake and vibrate. "Three, two, one…" the astronauts aboard the Endeavour, resting on their backs with their feet above their heads with hope and excitement! "Zero, blast off!" The space shuttle Endeavour soared upward with such a great force that Dr. Mae Jemison was pushed back into her seat so she couldn't move or speak.