Children of the Civil Rights Movement
A Lesson Plan for Grades 3-5
By: Katie Hickey Snyder
Summer Institute 2010
Unit:
Civil Rights
Abstract: Teacher reads aloud the picture
book, Child of the Civil Rights Movement by Paula Young Shelton and
Raul Colon. Students will then read several online narratives from other “children
of the Civil Rights Movement”. The activity cumulates with students taking the
role of one of the children on the Civil Rights Movement while writing their
own picture book around an event in which that child might have participated
with their parent.
Essential
Questions/Enduring Understandings: How were the lives of the children
of the Civil Rights Movement affected by their parent’s activism?
Assessment:
A picture book is
created by children depicting a situation in which a child might have
participated in an event with their parent during the Civil Rights Movement.
The following rubric is used to assess the final picture book. http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php?screen=ShowRubric&rubric_id=1929424&
Setting
the Purpose: What leaders of the Civil Rights
Movement can you name? Do you think there were any additional leaders besides
Martin Luther King Jr.? Do you think any of these leaders had families? What do
you think it would be like to grow up as a child of a leader of the Civil
Rights Movement?
Analysis
of local primary source and/or ties to National Primary Source (since the
leaders of the Civil Rights Movement were not local, these primary sources
might be considered more National):
As a whole group, using a Smartboard
or an LCD projector, teacher explores the following online resources involving
memories of children of the Civil Rights movement about their parents. Teachers
should preview these sources to see which parts are directly related to the
memories of their parents, and which parts may be too graphic (as related to
violence) for children in their particular grade level.
http://www.jerryjazzmusician.com/mainHTML.cfm?page=abernathy.html#A
father's advice
(An interview with the daughter of Ralph Abernathy, one of
the featured fathers and Civil Rights Leaders in the book, Child of the
Civil Rights Movement)
http://www.flaimahmy.com/2009/08/27/elisabeth-williams-omilami-humanitarian/
(An interview with the daughter of Hosea Williams another
father featured in the book Child of the Civil Rights Movement)
(An interview with the son of Martin Luther King about his
memories of his father)
Suggested
Procedure:
This can be
broken up into several days of 20-30 minutes as depicted below, or the lesson
can take place over one long day.
Day 1 30 minutes
1.
Teacher
asks the children if they know any leaders of the Civil Rights Movement.
Usually students know the name of Martin Luther King Jr. Ask the children if
they can recall any other leaders of the movement. If not, mention Andrew
Young. Ask children if they think Martin Luther King or Andrew Young had any
children. What do they think it would be like to live as a child of a leader of
the Civil Rights Movement?
2.
Read
aloud and discuss, Child of the Civil Rights Movement by Paula Young
Shelton and Raul Colon.
Day 2 30 minutes
1.
Using
a Smart Board or an LCD projector, look at the other primary source interviews
of children of the other Civil Rights leaders discussed in Young Shelton’s
book.
2.
Individually
or in pairs, ask children to imagine that they are a child of one of the
leaders mentioned in the book. Ask them to connect to one event mentioned
either in the book, or in the interviews with the children as found in the
primary sources.
3.
After
choosing a child of the Civil Rights Movement and an event, children fill out
the following Story Map graphic organizers. This can be done individually or in
pairs.
http://www.educationoasis.com/curriculum/GO/GO_pdf/story_organzier.pdf
Day 3 30-45 minutes
1.
Finally,
using the story map as a guide, students create their own picture book
illustrating a specific event in the life of one of the children of the Civil
Rights leaders featured in the book. This can be done individually or in
pairs. Give children the following
rubric so that they know how they will be graded, prior to them beginning the
writing process.
Day 4 30-45 minutes (Optional)
1.
Students
share out their books in a Read Aloud Celebration.
Annoted
list of materials and resources for the lesson: