History · KS1 & KS2 📅 Black History Month · October

Black History brought to life

VR-enhanced Black History workshops for primary schools. Pupils stand alongside Rosa Parks on the Montgomery bus, walk with Mary Seacole through the Crimean War, and discover Mary Jackson’s pioneering NASA career. Perfect for Black History Month in October — and the whole curriculum year round.

1,800+
School visits across the UK
383,000+
Students inspired
EYFS–Y6
Fully adaptable
Pupils exploring Black History through immersive VR in a primary school workshop

Duration

Half or full day
👥

Class Size

Up to 32
📚

Suitable For

EYFS – Year 6
🕸

What’s Included

Everything

Built for the moments that matter

October is the month every primary school marks Black History — but Black history matters all year. Our workshop adapts to whichever calendar moment you’re building around.

📅 October 2026 & 2027

Black History Month UK

The UK’s flagship celebration of Black contribution to British history and culture — marked across schools every October since 1987. Each year has a different theme (recent years: Saluting our Sisters, Reclaiming Narratives, Standing Firm in Power and Pride). Our workshops adapt to fit.

  • Rosa Parks & the Montgomery Bus Boycott — the moment that started the Civil Rights Movement
  • Mary Seacole’s Caribbean — her journey to the Crimean War
  • Class kindness chain — a visible whole-school display tied to the year’s theme
📅 22 June

Windrush Day

Marks the 1948 arrival of HMT Empire Windrush at Tilbury Docks — the moment that began modern multicultural Britain. A natural pairing with summer-term local history work and PSHE diversity teaching.

  • The Windrush story — age-appropriate from EYFS storytelling to KS2 source work
  • Local heritage maps — pupils trace the contributions of Caribbean families in their own town
  • Civil Rights Movement VR — for KS2, alongside Windrush Day
📅 Year-round

PSHE Diversity & Equality Duty

Schools have a Public Sector Equality Duty under the Equality Act 2010 to advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between groups. PSHE Health & RSHE teaching includes respect for difference. Our workshop is built to evidence both.

  • Mary Jackson at NASA — pioneering Black female engineer, STEM aspirations
  • Identity & belonging — KS1-appropriate discussions of family and heritage
  • Speaking up about unfairness — ABA-aligned anti-discrimination content

Bring history to life — with the right depth for every year group

Spark2’s Black History workshop uses immersive VR experiences, real replica artefacts, and drama-based investigation to bring four pivotal stories to life. Pupils don’t just hear about Rosa Parks — they sit alongside her on the bus. They don’t just read about Mary Seacole — they walk through the Caribbean she left behind, and the field hospital she ran.

Every session is adapted to the year group. EYFS and Year 1 explore the stories through age-appropriate storytelling and creative play. Year 2 and 3 use simplified VR experiences and craft activities. Year 4 and 5 work with primary historical sources and 360-degree panoramas. Year 6 develop their own arguments about historical significance and the long arc of the Civil Rights Movement.

Perfect for Black History Month (October), Windrush Day (22 June), or as a curriculum-anchored history day any time of year.

🏛 Curriculum & Equality Act 2010

Built for the curriculum and the equality duty

The National Curriculum names Mary Seacole as a significant individual to study. The Equality Act 2010 places a Public Sector Equality Duty on schools. Our workshop maps to both — with the audit trail headteachers and governors need.

EYFS & Year 1
Stories of kindness & courage
Year 2 & 3
Significant individuals & replica artefacts
Year 4 & 5
Historical sources & VR panoramas
Year 6
Civil Rights & historical significance

Four immersive stories. One unforgettable day.

Your facilitator selects the right depth and pacing for the year groups in the room. Every activity is hands-on, every story is anchored to a real person who changed history.

1

Rosa Parks & the Montgomery Bus

VR brings pupils onto the bus on December 1st, 1955. They see the segregated seating, hear the driver’s demand, and witness the quiet refusal that launched the Civil Rights Movement. Followed by hands-on activities exploring why one act of defiance changed the law.

VR Experience
2

Civil Rights Movement Panorama

A 360-degree VR walkthrough of the key moments — the Greensboro sit-ins, the Freedom Riders, the March on Washington. KS2 pupils investigate the people, the slogans, and the strategies that made the movement work. Source-based questioning aligned to the National Curriculum.

VR Experience
3

Mary Seacole’s Caribbean

VR takes pupils to a Caribbean island setting that illustrates Mary Seacole’s upbringing in Jamaica. They follow her journey to the Crimean War, the British Hotel she built, and the wounded soldiers she nursed back to health. A named curriculum figure brought fully to life.

VR Experience
4

Mary Jackson at NASA

The pioneering Black female engineer who fought the courts for the right to study and went on to help launch America’s first astronauts. Pupils explore the International Space Station and meet the woman whose calculations got the rockets up. STEM aspirations rooted in a real story.

VR Experience

What pupils take away

Every session is designed around measurable outcomes that align with the National Curriculum, RSHE/PSHE framework, and the school’s Equality Act duty.

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Knowledge of significant individuals

Pupils know who Rosa Parks, Mary Seacole and Mary Jackson were, when they lived, and why their contributions matter.

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Understanding of major events

Pupils understand the Civil Rights Movement, the Crimean War context, and the Space Race — with age-appropriate depth.

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Respect for cultural contribution

Pupils recognise the cultural, scientific and social contributions of Black communities — and the unfinished work of equality.

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Vocabulary for talking about fairness

Pupils have age-appropriate language for talking about prejudice, fairness and standing up for others — ABA-aligned.

The VR experiences made Black History real for our pupils in a way no textbook ever could. Weeks later, our Year 6s are still talking about ‘sitting on the bus with Rosa Parks’. That’s the test of a workshop that lands.
History Lead
Primary School, Birmingham

Simple, transparent pricing

We bring everything — facilitator, VR headsets, replica artefacts, activity kits and resource packs. No hidden costs, no extras.

Half Day

Up to 4 sessions
£599
+VAT
Up to 128 students · £4.68 per student
  • 45–50 min sessions
  • Up to 32 students per session
  • EYFS – Year 6 adaptable
  • All VR equipment & replicas included
  • Dedicated facilitator

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📅 Ready to book?

Bring Black History to your school

Pick your dates and we’ll match you with the perfect facilitator. October dates fill fast for Black History Month — book early.

Book This Workshop →
⭐ Trusted by 1,800+ UK primary schools · Rated 9.3/10

Have a question before you book?
Email us at hi@spark2.org — we reply within one working day.