Last week, in preparation for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the students engaged in an in-depth study of Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement. Our goal was to understand this time period, not just intellectually, but to get a feel for the tone/mood/emotions of the time period. We also looked at the lasting impact those brave leaders had on our world and ways our own small actions can make a big difference.
WHOLE GROUP READING:
During whole group, we read these two books, focusing especially on the primary sources (photos) from the era to try to understand what it was like in our country during those days. This prompted some really insightful discussions about prejudices that continue to affect our lives today related to race, gender, money, clothes, and even learning styles. Many students couldn't believe that people were treated so unfairly just 50 years ago, while others spoke very honestly about mistreatment they have experienced or witnessed in their own lives.
INDEPENDENT READING:
Each morning, the students read one of these three books for during morning work in order to build background knowledge about MLK's life and the ways in which people remember and celebrate his life today!
READING GROUPS:
Reading groups were my absolute favorite part of the week! I found an activity on TpT called "Dissecting the Dream." This assignment was recommended for 7th-12th graders but I knew that with some support and modifications, the students could handle it. Each group had a slightly different assignment but the general gist was that each group was to read one section of Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech, break it apart for understanding, discuss the information within it, give the section a title, and then answer some general questions about how that section of his speech contributed to his overall message. I was BLOWN AWAY by the passion with which the students approached this difficult text!
I was sitting with one group as they discussed this section of Dr. King's speech:
There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating: "For Whites Only." We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream.
There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating: "For Whites Only." We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream.
One student made the most insightful statement of the week:
I wish we could go back in time and see what it was really like. It is easy for us to sit right here and talk about what we would have done or what we would have stood up for. But we grew up in this time, with different families, and being taught different things. Who knows what we would have really done in those situations."
What amazing perspective for an 8-year-old to have! This led to a discussion about how we often judge the way someone is acting or handles a situation through the lens of our own life-story but don't consider all the ways in which they been affected differently than we have. Whew! Deep stuff!
WRITING/ CREATING:
During Reach Time, the students were each assigned a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King. They were asked to write their own speech about their quote in which they:
- Explained the meaning of the quote.
- Connected the quote to MLK's life or the Civil Rights Movement.
- Discussed how the quote could be applied to the student's own life.
Check out the video! (These students likenesses were posted on YouTube with special parental consent for this particular project.)
ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES:
Mrs. Amy Vagnier, Director of Curriculum and Instruction and iReach Coordinator for Maryville City Schools, read the picture book version of MLK's famous speech to the class. Thank you, Mrs. Vagnier! We were completely inspired by your passionate reading! And thank you, Mrs. Rice, for the idea to invite her!
During indoor recess on Friday, we watched Our Friend, Martin with Mrs. Best's class. This is an excellent movie combining real-life footage of the Civil Rights Movement with a fictional story of teens who travel back in time and realize what life could have been like without the influence of MLK.
Our wonderful room mom, Ms. Katy, invited the class to join our community's MLK March on our day off! What a very neat and inspiring culminating activity!