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Martin Luther King, Jr. Lesson Plans
- A Play of Dr. King's Life - In this multi-sensory lesson, students research events in Dr. King's life and choose one to write a short play about. They then use props and costumes to act out their play.
- A Speech for the Sneetches - In this lesson, students use Dr. King's speech to help them write their own speech for the characters in Dr. Seuss's book, Sneetches.
- Civil Rights Movement and Voting - Students will develop a timeline that outlines events and key people during the Civil Rights Movement and explain how this movement impacts voting in today's society.
- Discrimination and Acceptance in Student's Lives - The student will be able to list three ways that students today are discriminated against and five ways that they are accepted.
- Eyewitness Accounts of the March on Washington - In this writing activity, students describe what it would have been like to attend the march on Washington and listen to Dr. King's speech.
- How Would the World be Different? - The student will be able to write about the impact Dr. King had on society and what it would be like if he had not lived.
- "I Have a Dream" Mural - Students use Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech as a jumping off point for creating a mural showing the dreams they have for the students in their school.
- "I Have a Dream" Shown in Pictures - In this lesson, students demonstrate their understanding of Dr. King's dreams by drawing a picture representing one of them.
- Martin Luther King & Jim Crow Laws - They will have an understanding of how Martin Luther King Jr influenced the resistance to these unfair laws.
- Martin Luther King Jr. - Gain understanding of reason for peace march and message behind the "I have a Dream" speech.
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - The goal is for students to be able to have gained the knowledge of the Civil Right's Movement and the key players.
- Modern Day Civil Rights Activists - The student will be able to name some modern day activists who are promoting civil rights around the world.
- Segregated Pencil Sharpeners - Children learn about segregation in this activity using two different colored pencils and a manual and electric pencil sharpener.
- What's on the Inside? - Students examine various types of apple's to help them understand how even though people look different on the outside; they are the same on the inside.
More Lesson Plans From Other Sites
- Celebrating MLK Day Mini-Unit
- Evaluating Web Sites for Bias- Students use a checklist to evaluate Web content about Martin Luther King Jr. for bias.
- Happy Birthday, MLK!- "Activities across the grades for learning about the life of the famous civil rights leader!"
- I Have a Dream...- Students will gain an understanding of the dream of Martin Luther King, Jr. They will think about our own dreams to make the world a better place.
- Influencing Others in Our World- Students will study the lives of individuals who have positively influenced the world in which they lived.
- Let Freedom Ring: The Life & Legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr.- Visualize the historic moment of Martin Luther King's stirring "I Have a Dream" speech through text and photographs. See the crowds, hear the words, and let King's powerful imagery awaken your students' thirst for justice in the world today.
- Mapping Martin Luther King Jr.- Students explore places that were important in the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X: A Common Solution?- In what areas did Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X's ideas converge?
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day- Explain how investment in human capital and willingness to seek new economic opportunities produced economic improvement for African-Americans.
- Martin Luther King Jr.: A Clothesline Timeline- Students create a clothesline timeline depicting events in the life of Martin Luther King Jr.
- Martin Luther King Jr.: A Fact or Opinion Activity- A brief biography of Martin Luther King Jr. reinforces students' understanding of the difference between fact and opinion.
- Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Power of Nonviolence- This lesson introduces students to Martin Luther King, Jr.'s philosophy of nonviolence and the teachings of Mohandas K. Gandhi that influenced King's views.
- Martin Luther King: Civil Rights Leader- Students will review Dr. King's life.
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Receives the Nobel Peace Prize- This reading comprehension lesson takes students back to the moment when Martin Luther King, Jr. received the Nobel Peace Prize.
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Timeline- In the back of the book was a timeline of the major events in his life.
- My Dream of Martin Luther King- "Now in Dragonfly - from the acclaimed creator of the Caldecott Honor Book Tar Beach comes a personal and captivating portrait of the life of Martin Luther King, Jr."
- Ordinary People, Ordinary Places: The Civil Rights Movement- Identify several of the defining events of the Civil Rights Movement, the people who participated in them, and the historic places where these events occurred.
- The Life and Death of Martin Luther King, Jr.- "On April 4, 1968, a shot rang out in Memphis, Tennessee, killing the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The leader of the civil rights movement was dead, felled by an assassin's bullet. Who was Martin Luther King, and why do we remember him?"
- Top 10 Tips for Incorporating Martin Luther King Jr. Themes in Your Classroom- In many classrooms, Black History month begins with an insightful look into the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. This influential American had a major impact on the country and civil rights. There are several ways you can incorporate Martin Luther King Jr. themes into your classroom.
- Write Your Own "I Have a Dream" Speech- Students use a fill-in-the-blanks work sheet to write speeches that imitate the form and content of Dr. King's famous "I Have a Dream" speech.
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