Sesame Street Resources for Celebrating Black History Month

February is a month-long opportunity to take some time to be intentional about celebrating and honoring Black and African American culture and history. 

Sesame Street recently shared several resources filled with ideas and activities to celebrate diversity and facilitate conversations about race with young children. All are designed to foster a healthy sense of identity and belonging during a child’s early years.

• Elijah Explains Race to His Son, Wes, and Elmo. In this 3-minute video, Elmo notices that some autumn leaves match his red fur, and some match his friend Wes’s brown skin. Wes’s dad explains that melanin is something everyone has in their bodies that gives us our skin, eye, and hair color.
• The Wiggle-Jiggle Game. This is a “getting-to-know-you” game that helps kids appreciate similarities and differences. For example, “wiggle and jiggle if you like peppers on your pizza,” or “wiggle and jiggle if you’ve felt angry today!”
• Outside, Inside. This digital storybook celebrates everyone’s similarities and differences. Use this book to spark conversation with little ones in your care. You might share the idea that we are all one race—the human race! 
• Let’s Celebrate Black History Song! Sesame Street characters celebrate all the different ways that our Black and African American families, friends, and neighbors have changed the world.