Sequencing Dr. King's life - 'Everyone can be great!'

Today I asked my students, 'What do you know of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. or how would you describe him?' Some answers from students were: 'He was a leader.' 'He wanted equal rights for every one.' 'He faced his faced his fears so he was brave.' 'He fought for civil rights.' 'He had a dream.' All of these are answers any teacher would normally expect from his or her students. But then there was one student who said, "I don't know who that is." This literally made me pause for a second. I was honestly surprised to hear a student say this; and at first I thought it was a joke- but he was serious. So, I just kindly told him, 'Well, you're about to learn of him today.'

We started off with a read aloud of 'Martin's Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.' by Doreen Rappaport. I enjoy read alouds. My students enjoy read alouds. We definitely had to begin with a read aloud and discuss the text. It was great to hear that some of my students knew some of the events that took place in Dr. King's life, such as when his house was bombed, his 'I Have a Dream' speech or when he was arrested. Not only did we discuss the events of the story, but also Dr. King's quotes within the book and how they even relate to our society today.

After our read aloud, students participated in a scavenger hunt, in groups, to find different events of Dr. King's life. As they found the events, they had to put them in order on their hand out. It was good to see them engaged, to see them work together and learn!

If you want your students to listen to this story, 'Martin's Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.', you can find it on YouTube under the book's title for an online reading.

Hope you enjoy this post! Happy Teaching!