Spend the days leading up to Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, on January 19, with classroom resources focused on Dr. King and texts he wrote. The materials below, pulled from the ReadWriteThink site, range from mini-lessons to complete units and cross all grade levels.
So read on, and celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his work with these activities:
- (Grades K鈥�12)
Students study Martin Luther King Jr.鈥檚 鈥淚 Have a Dream鈥� speech and work in groups to create a mural that depicts Dr. King鈥檚 vision of peace. - (Grades 9鈥�12)
Students explore the ways that powerful and passionate words communicate the concepts of freedom, justice, discrimination, and the American Dream in Martin Luther King, Jr.鈥檚 鈥淚 Have a Dream鈥� speech. - (Grades 6鈥�8)
Nikki Giovanni鈥檚 poem 鈥淭he Funeral of Martin Luther King, Jr.鈥� is paired with Dr. King鈥檚 鈥淚 Have a Dream鈥� speech, taking students on a quest through time to the Civil Rights movement. - (Grades K鈥�12)
Students explore the 鈥淚 Have a Dream鈥� Foundation鈥檚 website and brainstorm ways they can help themselves or others at their school achieve their educational dreams. - (Grades K鈥�2)
This lesson provides ideas for celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr. Day by encouraging students to explore the connections between Dr. King and themselves through journaling and inquiry-based research. - (Grades K鈥�2)
This lesson provides the 鈥渁ction piece鈥� for any study of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In this project, students participate in Dr. King鈥檚 dream by doing 100 acts of kindness. - (Grades 3鈥�5)
Inspired by the book聽Martin鈥檚 Big Words, students explore information on Dr. King to think about his 鈥渂ig鈥� words, then they write about their own 鈥渂ig鈥� words and dreams. - (Grades 9鈥�12)
Students identify the rhetorical strategies in a famous speech and the specific purpose for each chosen device. - (Grades 6鈥�8)
Students analyze stylistic choices and grammar use in authentic writing, focusing on the use of the semicolon in Martin Luther King Jr.鈥檚 鈥淟etter from Birmingham Jail.鈥� - (Grades 9鈥�12)
Students will identify how Martin Luther King Jr.鈥檚 dream of nonviolent conflict-resolution is reinterpreted in modern texts. Homework is differentiated to prompt discussion on how nonviolence is portrayed through characterization and conflict. Students will be formally assessed on a thesis essay that addresses the Six Kingian Principles of Nonviolence.
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