In this post we feature board games among other fun activities from black owned brands. These help keep black history alive all year long. This post was inspired by Olmec Toys which was founded in 1985 by Yla Eason. The seed for Olmec Toys was planted when the founder’s young son expressed that because he was black, he could not be a super hero. Subsequently, Olmec Toys developed a variety of representative super hero action figures (e.g., Sun Man), and a memory matching game “Black By Design,” which featured inventions by African Americans. Since then, a multitude of games and dolls have been developed that reflect African Americans and black culture.
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- Brown Toy Box on Amazon (advertisement) has constructor sets such that children can build replicas of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Children learn about architecture as they construct the replicas, and receive factual information regarding each HBCU.
- Disrupt The Cycle (advertisement) has black history activities that include flashcards, a scavenger hunt, and a maze activity to help Bessie Coleman land her plane. Many activities are downloadable.
- Franki and Myrhh (advertisement) offer a wooden black history memory game.
- It’s A Black Thang (advertisement) has a variety of board games such as Blackboard that highlights various experiences of African Americans.
- Melanin Design Co. (advertisement) has an extensive selection of “Black Jeoparody” games as digital downloads. Themes include HBCUs, Juneteenth, Kwanzaa, and Black Girl Magic.
- Play Black Wall Street (advertisement) has black history board games centered around the legacy and ideals of Black Wall Street. You will get plenty of use out of this game and learn a lot at the same time. Use our link, or the code SHOPWITHLESLIE for a 10% discount.
- The Print Socialite (advertisement) has a variety of downloadable games (e.g., matching, word scramble, and search) that pertain to black history.
- The Sweetberry Company (advertisement) has several black history games as digital downloads such as black history bingo, and black history invention riddles.
- Fam Foolery has a trap snatch game, black history 365 edition for a fun way to review historical references to black excellence. A similar game is available on Amazon (advertisement).
In reviewing these games and activities, I hope you find one or more that work for you.
Happy Black History Month! Learn black history 365!
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To learn more about Olmec Toys, check out the following.
- “Olmec Toys.”
- “Professor’s pioneering Black superhero is reintroduced by Mattel.” 14 September, 2021. https://www.business.rutgers.edu/news/professors-pioneering-black-superhero-reintroduced-mattel