African-American History Month National Bird Feeding Month
February 2 Groundhog Day
February 14 Valentine's Day
February 21 Presidents' Day
Day-by-Day
All Month
American Heart Month. Begun in 1963 by Presidential Proclamation, February is American Heart Month. For more information, visit the American Heart Association Web site. Also check out the American Heart Association's Web site for kids. For a healthy heart lesson plan appropriate for grades 6-8, visit Discovery School.
African-American History Month. Celebrated annually since 1926, African-American History Month is the brainchild of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, considered by many to be the "Father of Black History." Woodson chose the second week in February because it marks the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln (2/12) and Frederick Douglass (2/14). It has since become a month-long celebration of the contributions of African-Americans. Be sure to visit the African-American Mosaic, a resource guide from the Library of Congress.
Library Lovers' Month. For more information, as well as activities, resources, and printable bookmarks, visit the Library Support Net.
National Bird Feeding Month. February is one of the most difficult months—nutritionally—for wild birds. In 1994, Congressman John Porter read a resolution in the Congressional Record making February National Bird Feeding Month. In part, the resolution says, "During this month, individuals are encouraged to provide food, water, and shelter to help wild birds survive." Visit The National Bird Feeding Society Web site for ideas and information.
National Children's Dental Health Month. Beginning as a one-day event in 1941, the observance has now been extended to a month-long celebration. For a plethora of resources and activities, visit the American Dental Association Web site.
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Robinson Crusoe Day. Anniversary. On February 1, 1709, a Scottish sailor named Alexander Selkirk was rescued from a deserted Caribbean island where he had been put ashore following an argument with his captain. Selkirk's adventures are the basis of Daniel Defoe's classic Robinson Crusoe.
Langston Hughes. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 1, 1902; Died May 22, 1967. Hughes was an American writer during the Harlem Renaissance. For a biography and list of links, visit the Modern American Poetry Web site. The following are links to lesson plans:
First Session of the Supreme Court. Anniversary. February 1, 1790. The first meeting was held in New York (the nation's temporary capital at the time). Interestingly, the court heard no cases during its first term. Visit the Supreme Court Historical Society's Web site for more information.
Jerry Spinelli. Birthday. Born February 1, 1941. Spinelli is a popular children's book author of such titles as There's a Girl in My Hammerlock, and Crash. He won the Newbery award in 1991 for Maniac Magee. The following are links to activities and lesson plans based on Spinelli's books:
Groundhog Day. The legend is based on an old Scottish couplet: "If Candlemas Day is bright and clear, there'll be two winters in the year." This eventually came to mean: If the groundhog sees his shadow there will be six more weeks of winter. If he does not see his shadow, then spring is just around the corner.
James Joyce. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 2, 1882; Died January 13, 1941. Joyce was an Irish poet and writer. For a profile of Joyce, go here.
Judith Viorst. Birthday. Born February 2, 1931. Viorst is a poet and book author. Popular children's books include: The Tenth Good Thing About Barney and Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.
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Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution Ratification. Anniversary. Ratified February 3, 1879. The amendment states that no citizen will be denied the right to vote on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. (Note: Initially this applied only to males.) Visit EDSITEment for the lesson plan The Emancipation Proclamation: Freedom's First Steps, appropriate for grades 9-12.
Felix Mendelssohn. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 3, 1809; Died November 4, 1847. Mendelssohn was a German composer and conductor.
Joan Lowrey Nixon. Birthday. Born February 3, 1927; Died June 28, 2003. Nixon was a popular and prolific writer for young people. She wrote over 110 books, mostly mysteries. Visit the Web English Teacher for a list of links to activities and lesson plans.
Sixteenth Amendment of the United State Constitution Ratification. Anniversary. Ratified February 3, 1913. The amendment gives Congress the power to "lay and collect" taxes on income. For a lesson plan appropriate for grades 3-5, see Tic Tac Taxes! from EconEdLink.
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Charles A. Lindbergh. Birthday. Born February 4, 1902. Lindbergh was an American pilot who flew non-stop, solo, over the Atlantic Ocean. He left New York on May 20, 1927, and landed in Paris, France, May 21, 1927.
Recommended books:
Flight: The Journey of Charles Lindbergh illustrated by Mike Wimmer. Grades: 2-3. An American Hero: The True Story of Charles A. Lindbergh by Barry Deneberg. Grades: 4-6
Charles A. Lindbergh: A Human Hero by James Cross Giblin. Grades: 4-6
National Consumer Protection Week. February 4-10, 2007. By Presidential Proclamation. Go here for more information.
Rosa Parks. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 4, 1913; Died October 24, 2005. Parks was a civil rights activist. For more information, visit the Rosa Parks Web site.
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National School Counseling Week. February1-5, 2007. For more information, go here.
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Massachusetts Admitted to Union. On this day in 1788, Massachusetts was admitted to the Union as the sixth state. For more information, go here.
Ronald Reagan. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 6, 191; Died June 5, 2004. Reagan served as the 40th President of the United States (1981-1989). For a brief biography, go here.
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Charles Dickens. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 7, 1812; Died June 9, 1870. Dickens was a prominent English novelist of the Victorian era. For biography, criticism, and background links, visit the Web English Teacher.
Children's Authors and Illustrator's Week.February 7-13. For more information, go here.
Sinclair Lewis. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 7, 1885; Died January 10, 1951. Lewis was an American novelist and playwright. Visit the Sinclair Lewis Society Web site for more information.
Sir Thomas More. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 7, 1478; Died July 6, 1535. More was an English author, lawyer, and statesman. Among his works is the book Utopia. Go here for the online text. For general information about More, go here.
Laura Ingalls Wilder. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 7, 1867; Died February 10, 1957. Wilder was an American author. She wrote the Little House on the Prairie book series. For information, activities, and more, visit here.
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Boy Scouts Day. Always celebrated on this day in February. For more information, go here.
Dawes Act Passed. Also known as the General Allotment Act of 1887, it authorized the President of the United States to survey Native American tribal land and divide the area into allotments for individual Native Americans. The Act had disastrous results for Native Americans, forcing them onto small, individual tracts of land, separating them from one another, and opening Native treaty lands to settlement by non-Natives. To read the act, go here.
Jules Verne. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 8, 1828; Died March 24, 1905. Verne was a French author of science fiction. His works include: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea; Journey To The Center Of The Earth; Around the World in Eighty Days. Go here to read a biography.
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William Henry Harrison. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 9, 1773; Died April 4, 1841. Harrison served as the ninth President of the United States (1841). For a brief biography, go here.
10
French and Indian War Ends. Lasting nine years (1754-1763), the war was fought between the French and English. For more information, go here.
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Inventor's Day. By Presidential Proclamation, the day has been celebrated since 1983 in honor of Thomas Alva Edison's birthday. To read the Proclamation, go here.
Thomas Alva Edison. Anniversary of Birth. Born February,1847; Died October 18, 1931. Edison was a prolific inventor, holding over 1,000 patents.
Jane Yolen. Birthday. Born February 11, 1939. Yolen is a popular author of books for children, teens, and adults. Be sure to visit her Web site.
The following are links to activities and lesson plans based on two of Yolen's books:
Judy Blume. Birthday. Born February 12, 1938. Blume is the author of books for children and teens. Be sure to visit her Web site.
Charles Darwin. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 12, 1809; Died April 19, 1882. Darwin was an English naturalist who wrote Origin of Species and The Descent of Man, bringing the theories of natural selection and evolution to the fore. For more information, visit AboutDarwin. You may also want to visit the PBS's Evolution Library. The following are links to articles and lesson plans:
Abraham Lincoln. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 12, 1809; Died April 14, 1865. Lincoln served as the 16th president of the United States (1861-1865). There are numerous books for students available on Lincoln, but one we especially recommend is Lincoln: A Photobiography by Russell Freedman. For a brief biography, go here.
The following are links to Web sites and lesson plans:
Jacqueline Woodson. Birthday. Born February 12, 1963. Woodson is the author of books for children and teens. Visit her Web site.
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Arizona Admitted to Union. On this day in 1912, Arizona became the 48th state in the Union. For more information, go here.
Frederick Douglass. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 14, 1880; Died February 20, 1895. Douglass was an escaped slave who became an abolitionist. Be sure to visit the Library of Congress Web page: The Frederick Douglass Papers. The following are links to lesson plans:
Susan B. Anthony. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 15, 1820; Died March 13, 1906. Anthony was a prominent women's suffrage movement leader. For more information, go here.
Galileo Galilei. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 15, 1564; Died January 8, 1642. Galileo was an Italian physicist and astronomer. Go here for more information. For a lesson plan appropriate for grades 9-12, go here.
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Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Published. The novel, by Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens), is thought by many to be an American classic. It was published on this day in 1884. For a lesson plan appropriate for grades 9-12, go here.
Toni Morrison. Birthday. Born February 18, 1931. Morrison is an American novelist. She won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993 for her body of works. In 1988 she won a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for the novel Beloved.
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Nicolas Copernicus. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 19, 1473; Died May 24, 1543. Copernicus, born in Royal Prussia, was an astronomer and mathematician. His theory that the earth was not the center of the universe gave rise to the Scientific Revolution. For more information, go here. Be sure to visit Discovery School's Stargazers for information on Copernicus and other astronomers.
International Mother Language Day. A United Nations observance.
George Washington's Birthday Observed. Washington was America's first president (1789-1797). Although Washington's actual birth date is February 22, it is observed on the third Monday of February (Presidents' Day).
Presidents' Day. Celebrated on the third Monday of February, Presidents' Day is a United States federal holiday. For a list of resources, go here. For a lesson plan on presidential inaugurations appropriate for grades 3-5, go here.
22
George Washington. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 22, 1732; Died December 14, 1799. Washington was the first President of the United States (1789-1797), serving two terms. For a brief biography, go here. For teacher-created resources appropriate for second grade, go here. For a unit on Washington appropriate for grades 8-12, go here. EDSITEment offers a lesson plan, George Washington: The Living Symbol, appropriate for grades 9-12.
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W.E.B. Du Bois. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 23, 1868; Died August 27, 1963. Du Bois was an American civil rights leader and proponent of Pan Africanism. For a biography, go here.
George Frideric Handel. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 23, 1685; Died April 14, 1759. Handel was a composer in the Baroque era. Born in Germany, he lived most of his life in England. His works include operas, oratorios, and church music. His most famous work is Messiah.
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Wilhelm Grimm. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 24, 1786; Died December 16, 1859. Grimm, a German author and professor, along with his brother, Jacob, published folk- and fairytales. A unit appropriate for early elementary may be found here. Discovery School offers a lesson plan, Brothers Grimm, appropriate for grades K-2.
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Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 25, 1841; Died December 3, 1919. Renoir was a French artist during the Impressionist era. For a biography, go here. Go here to view some of his works.
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Grand Canyon Becomes National Park. The Canyon, cut over millions of years by the Colorado River, became one of nation's first national parks on this day in 1919. For more information, visit the National Park Service's Web site. The following are links to lesson plans:
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 27, 1807; Died March 24, 1882. Longfellow was an American poet perhaps best known for "Paul Revere's Ride." For more information, go here. Visit the Paul Revere House for more information.
National Polar Bear Day.
Uri Shulevitz. Birthday. Born February 27, 1935. Shulevitz is a children's book author and illustrator. He won the Caldecott Medal in 1969 for The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship. For a brief biography, go here.
John Steinbeck. Anniversary of Birth. Born February 27, 1902; Died December 20, 1968. Steinbeck was an American author. Best known for The Grapes of Wrath, Steinbeck won a Pulitzer Prize for the novel. In 1962 he won the Nobel Prize for Literature. For more information, go here.
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Daniel Handler (Lemony Snicket). Birthday. Born February 28, 1970. Handler is the creator of A Series of Unfortunate Events. Be sure to visit Handler's Web site.
Salem Witch Trials Began. In 1692, a witch hunt began in Salem Village and Salem Town, Massachusetts, leading eventually to the executions of 20 individuals. National Geographic offers an interactive site, Salem: Witchcraft Hysteria, appropriate for grades 8-12. EDSITEment offers a lesson plan for grades 9-12 titled: Dramatizing History in Arthur Miller's The Crucible.
Milkweed
Maniac Magee
