Curriculum unit
Hidden Figures: Black Science & Invention
The Black scientists, doctors, and inventors who shaped the modern world, and were too often written out of it.
Students identify major Black contributions to science, medicine, and invention and explain why so many went unrecognized.
- Lesson 1 · 1 class period
Early scientists and inventors
ObjectivesMeet Black scientists and inventors from Banneker to Garrett Morgan.
MaterialsTimeline entries below; the Black Science theme.
Benjamin Banneker's almanacs, George Washington Carver's agriculture, and Garrett Morgan's inventions.
Teach from these moments- 1792Benjamin Banneker's Almanac
The self-taught astronomer and mathematician publishes his almanac and challenges Thomas Jefferson on racial equality.
- November 20, 1923Garrett Morgan patents the traffic signal
Self-taught inventor Garrett Morgan patents a three-position traffic signal, after earlier inventing a smoke hood that saved lives in a 1916 tunnel disaster.
Discussion questionsWhat did these figures invent or discover? Why were they often uncredited?
- Lesson 2 · 1 class period
Pioneers of medicine
ObjectivesExplore Black breakthroughs in medicine and surgery.
MaterialsTimeline entries below; Daniel Hale Williams; Charles Drew.
Daniel Hale Williams's heart surgery, Charles Drew's blood banks, and Marie Maynard Daly's chemistry.
Teach from these moments- July 9, 1893Daniel Hale Williams Performs First Successful Open-Heart Surgery
Dr. Daniel Hale Williams, a Black surgeon in Chicago, performed what is widely recognized as the first successful open-heart surgery on July 9, 1893, repairing a stab wound to the pericardium of James Cornish, who survived. Williams had founded Provident Hospital in Chicago in 1891, the first interracial hospital in the US and the first to have a Black nursing training program.
- 1940Charles Drew pioneers blood banking
Drew's work on blood plasma storage saves countless lives.
Discussion questionsHow did these advances save lives? What barriers did the doctors face?
- Lesson 3 · 1 class period
Reaching space
ObjectivesFollow Black Americans into the space program.
MaterialsTimeline entries below; Katherine Johnson; Mae Jemison.
Katherine Johnson's spaceflight math and Mae Jemison's journey to orbit.
Teach from these moments- February 20, 1962Katherine Johnson and the flight of Friendship 7
NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson verifies the orbital calculations for John Glenn's spaceflight, one of the "hidden figures" of the space race.
- September 12, 1992Mae Jemison, first Black woman in space
Jemison orbits Earth aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour.
Discussion questionsWhat did it take to be the "first"? Why were these "figures" hidden so long?