The first phase of my curriculum unit is designed to enhance students' understanding of what took place in our history during the time of the Civil Rights movement. In order for the following lessons to make the most sense, practically speaking, I think it is necessary to mention that they will take place during our Reading Workshop (1 hr), Writing Workshop (45mins – 1 hr), and/or 'Plugged Into Reading' (45 mins.) time. The 'Plugged Into Reading' time can consist of a whole class reading of a core novel or informational text and transition into small group readings of different texts. When our central study is fictional text, these small groups are referred to as Literature Circles and when our focus is on non-fiction text, they are referred to as Power Strategy Groups. It is also important to note that by now in the school year, the children have studied the elements of fictional text, been instructed on and utilized fictional reading strategies like predicting, inferring, summarizing and characterization. Similarly, in writing, the children have engaged in the narrative writing process from the pre-writing stage through to the publication of their own narratives, complete with an entertaining beginning, elaborate middle and extended ending.
At this point in the year, the reading of non-fiction text is being highlighted in the curriculum during Reading Workshop and 'Plugged Into Reading' time through the instruction and practice of the eight power strategies of reading and written response to informational text: Monitoring Understanding, Identifying Text Structures, Identifying Text Features, Previewing Text, Asking Questions, Note taking and Specialized Vocabulary. The children are practicing these power strategies within whole-class lessons, small-group readings and exercises as well as during independent reading time. Through this structure, I will incorporate some of the biographical texts surrounding Martine Luther King's life as mini-lesson material for whole class lessons during Reading Workshop. Some of the historical fiction and non-fictional texts, which take place during the Civil Rights movement, will be used during our 'Power Strategy Group' time wherein small group readings and activities are completed. The remaining texts of either genre will be offered to the children as independent reading during Reading Workshop. In an effort to make the lesson material come alive further, I will use multi media. The lesson sequence will be as follows:
Day 1: Activating Prior Knowledge and Asking Questions
Reading Workshop:
Through the use of a KWL graphic organizer, I will elicit the children's background knowledge about Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement. I will then read aloud Doreen Rappaport's illustrative short biographical account,
Martin's Big Words, The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
As
the story is being read we will refer back to the K portion of the KWL chart to confirm correct statements and modify misconceptions. Once the story is read, we will jot down questions we still have and areas we want to learn more about under the W section of the chart.
Writing Workshop:
The children will select 3-5 questions from the KWL chart, which they personally are interested in knowing more about. The children will write down as much information under each question as they are able as a form of prediction and activating prior-knowledge. As their research develops they will be able to either confirm or modify their understanding of this historical time period as they go along.
Plugged Into Reading:
Begin reading chapters 1-2 of the biography
Dare to Dream, Coretta Scott King and the Civil Right's Movement
as a whole class read and practice activating prior knowledge and asking questions as a follow up to the reading workshop lesson.
Day 2: Point of View
Reading Workshop:
The class will watch
March On! The Day My Brother Martin Changed the World
, a read-along DVD of a story written by MLK's sister, Christine King Farris, which recounts the day when he delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech. They will then view an actual interview with her wherein she speaks to these events. The children will continue to confirm or modify their understanding by way of a lesson on point of view. We will look at what it means to hold a certain point of view or perspective as a result of our circumstances, experiences and opinions.
Writing Workshop:
The children will write a letter to Christine King Farris and in it include their opinions, thoughts and questions surrounding her relationship to MLK and his life.
Plugged Into Reading:
We will continue reading chapters 3-4 of
Dare to Dream
and take note of the author's perspective, comparing it to that of Christine King Farris.
Day 3: Previewing the Text and Text Features
Reading Workshop:
I will model how to preview a non-fiction text such that all of the text-features are utilized using Leslie J, Holland's
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s I Have a Dream Speech in Translation, What It Really Means.
The table of contents, bold-faced words, diagrams, photographs and captions, headings and subheadings, the glossary and index will all be identified and their purposes reviewed.
Writing Workshop:
The children will revise and edit their letters to Christine King Farris and share them aloud to a classmate.
Plugged Into Reading:
We will continue reading chapters 5-6 of
Dare to Dream
to determine which text features assist us in understanding the book.
Day 4: Monitoring Understanding
Reading Workshop:
The children will be instructed on the importance of monitoring one's understanding while reading in order to both learn from and enjoy the reading. Steps for checking for understanding will be given. I will then model a close read of chapter one of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s I Have a Dream Speech in Translation, What It Really Means
, utilizing the text features to assist us in monitoring our understanding of MLK's famous speech. The children will then read chapter two independently, making sure to use the text-features to assist them in their understanding. As an exit slip, they will jot down one of the text features they used and how it helped them to understand what they were reading. (See Lesson Plan 1)
Writing Workshop:
The children will begin to write their own 'I Have a Dream Speeches' in which they state and explain in detail what their dream is and why it is so important to them. They will begin this activity by first brainstorming what their various dreams are and then narrowing it down to the most important one. Once they have chosen which dream they will use, they can begin to write their speech to the class.
Plugged Into Reading:
We will continue reading chapter 7-8 of
Dare to Dream
, practicing the power strategy of monitoring our comprehension.
Day 5: Monitoring Understanding and Specialized Vocabulary
Reading Workshop:
We will begin by discussing what specialized vocabulary's function is within non-fiction text and then begin to identify specialized vocabulary within
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s I Have a Dream Speech in Translation, What It Really Means
as a way to bolster robust vocabulary use and increase their children's understanding of the text. We will begin to create a word wall for all specialized vocabulary words which refer to our topic of study. As an exit slip, each child will then work with a partner to draw a picture or symbol, which represents the specialized vocabulary word visually and allows visual learners to grasp its usage much more readily.
Writing Workshop:
The students will continue working on their own 'I Have a Dream' speeches by way of editing and revising, conferring with the teacher or typing them out for publication.
Plugged Into Reading: Having completed the biography,
Dare to Dream
, the children will be authentically assessed through the choice of creating a time-line of Coretta Scott King's life, a biographical mobile whereon certain articles from her life would hang to represent their significance to MLK and the Civil Rights Movement or biographical poster which highlighted the important events in her life. The completion of these projects can extend to homework as a way to bridge the lesson material from school to home. The children will present their reports as a way to strengthen their oral language and share their learning with each other.
For three to four more weeks, during the reading workshop time, a gradual release of responsibility and choice will be given to the children during their 45 minute sustained independent reading time, wherein their study of this time period will include a variety of fictional and non-fiction texts like
Martin Luther King Jr. and the March on Washington
by Frances Ruffin,
Martin Luther King: The Life of a Civil Rights Leader
by Gary Jeffrey,
Child of the Civil Rights Movement
by Paula Shelton,
The Civil Rights Movement for Kids
by Mary Turck,
If You Lived at the Time of Martin Luther King
by Ellen Levine,
10 Days Martin Luther King Jr.
by David Colbert,
The Story of Ruby Bridges
by Robert Coles,
The Day Martin Luther King Died
by Veronica Enix,
White Water
by Michael Brandy and Eric Stein,
Rosa
by Nikki Giovanni, and many more books which will require them to use these active reading strategies discussed above as a means to build their understanding of this time period. As an exit slip, the children will be expected to choose one of their favorite selections and write a book talk card about it , which can become a tool in our library for future readers of these texts. The Plugged Into Reading time will shift from the whole class reading of a non-fiction text to a small group reading of a novel so as to re-introduce fictional approaches to instruction. Students will be grouped heterogeneously into Literature Circles of 4-5 children to do a close reading of either
One Crazy Summer
by Rita Williams-Garcia or
The Watsons Go To Birmingham— 1963
by Christopher Paul Curtis. However, before said readings, I will present my students with Dudley Randall's poem,
Ballad of Birmingham
coupled with Joan Baez's song,
Birmingham Sunday
as a way to give artful multi-media context on the tragedy of 1963 in Birmingham. The Children will then choose between each book based on interest. They will engage in activities, which tap into fictional responses to literary text. The writing mini-lessons will begin to utilize Primary Sources from Karen Baiker's
Primary Sources Teaching Kit, Civil Rights
and I will make use of authentic documents, posters, speeches, photographs, Legal Papers and Political Cartoons to make the history come to life. The Plugged-Into Reading Literature Circles and writing mini-lesson sequence of these primary sources will be as follows:
Day 1: Civil Rights Timeline
We will discuss the relevance and importance of using primary sources and then look over the Civil Rights Time Line together. We will use our existing KWL chart to jot down new prior-knowledge we have acquired as well as new questions we have surrounding this topic. (Baiker, page 6)
Plugged Into Reading:
Begin reading the novels,
The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963,
chap. 1-5 or
One Crazy Summer
, chap. 1-10, to determine how historical fiction can be an effective way to learn about this poignant time period. (See Annotated Bibliography)
Day 2: The 15
t h
Amendment Document—1870
We will discuss the background information behind this document and then I will read aloud the document (Baiker, page 20) to the students. We will discuss what the document means in our own words and then I will distribute copies of 'Evaluate That Document' graphic organizer (Baiker, page 19). The students will answer questions about the document as well as pose questions they are wondering about it.
Plugged Into Reading:
We will continue reading
The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963
, chaps. 6-10 or
One Crazy Summer
, chap. 11-21 with a focus on the historical setting and the author's use of characterization.
Day 3: The Ku Klux Klan
I will give the children background information regarding the Ku Klux Klan and we will then analyze Thomas Nast's political cartoon in
Harper's Weekly
, the Ku Klux Klan and the White League join forces to oppress freed slaves. The children will again use 'Evaluate That Document' to orally discuss its purpose and point of view. The children will then be asked to use a Venn Diagram to compare this act of terrorism to contemporary forms of terrorism. We will then attempt to define terrorism.
Plugged Into Reading:
We will continue reading
The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963
, chaps 10 -15 or
One Crazy Summer,
chap 22 – 33 to focus on elements of plot within each novel (conflict, rising action, climax and resolution).
Day 4: Jim Crow Laws
We will discuss the background information regarding the Jim Crow Laws and I have the children read the majority opinion upholding Jim Crow Laws in
Plessy vs. Ferguson
(Baiker, page 21)
.
The students will then view photographs, which depict signs segregating African Americans and White Americans within public places (page 22). The students will view photographs of two different schools (page 23) and compare and contrast what a school for white children looked like outwardly as compared to the school for African American children. The students will then write a short commentary of how they feel the educational experience would have been different. For a fictional approach, I will ask the children to write a diary entry from the point of view of either a white or black student attending one of the schools depicted.
Plugged Into Reading:
Upon finishing
The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963
and
One Crazy Summer
, the children will be authentically assessed on the stories by creating a story quilt. Pairs of students will be assigned a chapter to illustrate a quilt square for, which depicts the most important event or main idea of that section of text. Children will first engage in rereading their assigned chapter and then drafting the main idea with a quick sketch on a graphic organizer. Children will be paired heterogeneously so that those who are stronger readers can read aloud the chapter to their partners.
Day 5: Jackie Robinson
We will discuss how, during the time of Jackie Robinson, the Civil Rights Movement began to take off and yet a great deal of racism still existed. We will discuss lynching and then analyze a threatening letter sent to Jackie Robinson after he was accepted into Major League Baseball. The students will write a short essay on how far they feel they would go for the dream they discussed in their 'I Have a Dream' speech.
Plugged Into Reading:
The children will continue working on their story quilt of
The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963
and
One Crazy Summer
, once they have conferred with the teacher, they will begin to draw the actual picture and caption onto a piece of fabric using fabric markers. (For the remaining 1-2 weeks of section one of this unit, these small groups will switch novels such that the end will represent all chapters represented from each novel. It may require certain groups to create story quilt squares for more than one chapter.)
