Civil Rights and Martin Luther King Lesson Plan

Submitted by: Allisyn Levy

Grade Levels: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, K-3

In this lesson plan, which is adaptable for grades K-12, students use BrainPOP and/or BrainPOP Jr. resources to gain a deeper understanding of the contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Civil Rights movement. Students create a profile of someone who inspires them and share the profile in creative ways with their peers and the community.

Lesson Plan Common Core State Standards Alignments

Grade: 01

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.1.4

Describe people, places, things, and events with relevant details, expressing ideas and feelings clearly.

Grade: 01

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.1.5

Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions when appropriate to clarify ideas, thoughts, and feelings.

Grade: 01

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.1.6

Produce complete sentences when appropriate to task and situation. (See grade 1 Language standards 1 and 3 here for specific expectations.)

Grade: 11-12

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.4

Present information, findings, and supporting evidence, conveying a clear and distinct perspective, such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning, alternative or opposing perspectives are addressed, and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and a range of formal and informal tasks.

Grade: 11-12

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.5

Make strategic use of digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual, and interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings, reasoning, and evidence and to add interest.

Grade: 11-12

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.6

Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating a command of formal English when indicated or appropriate. (See grades 11–12 Language standards 1 and 3 here for specific expectations.)

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.2.4

Tell a story or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking audibly in coherent sentences.

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.2.5

Create audio recordings of stories or poems; add drawings or other visual displays to stories or recounts of experiences when appropriate to clarify ideas, thoughts, and feelings.

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.2.6

Produce complete sentences when appropriate to task and situation in order to provide requested detail or clarification. (See grade 2 Language standards 1 and 3 here for specific expectations.)

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.3.4

Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace.

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.3.5

Create engaging audio recordings of stories or poems that demonstrate fluid reading at an understandable pace; add visual displays when appropriate to emphasize or enhance certain facts or details.

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.3.6

Speak in complete sentences when appropriate to task and situation in order to provide requested detail or clarification. (See grade 3 Language standards 1 and 3 here for specific expectations.)

Grade: 04

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.4

Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience in an organized manner, using appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details to support main ideas or themes; speak clearly at an understandable pace.

Grade: 04

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.5

Add audio recordings and visual displays to presentations when appropriate to enhance the development of main ideas or themes.

Grade: 04

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.6

Differentiate between contexts that call for formal English (e.g., presenting ideas) and situations where informal discourse is appropriate (e.g., small-group discussion); use formal English when appropriate to task and situation. (See grade 4 Language standards 1 here for specific expectations.)

Grade: 05

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.5.4

Report on a topic or text or present an opinion, sequencing ideas logically and using appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details to support main ideas or themes; speak clearly at an understandable pace.

Grade: 05

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.5.5

Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, sound) and visual displays in presentations when appropriate to enhance the development of main ideas or themes.

Grade: 05

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.5.6

Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, using formal English when appropriate to task and situation. (See grade 5 Language standards 1 and 3 here for specific expectations.)

Grade: 06

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.4

Present claims and findings, sequencing ideas logically and using pertinent descriptions, facts, and details to accentuate main ideas or themes; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.

Grade: 06

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.5

Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, images, music, sound) and visual displays in presentations to clarify information.

Grade: 06

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.6

Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate. (See grade 6 Language standards 1 and 3 here for specific expectations.)

Grade: 07

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.4

Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points in a focused, coherent manner with pertinent descriptions, facts, details, and examples; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.

Grade: 07

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.5

Include multimedia components and visual displays in presentations to clarify claims and findings and emphasize salient points.

Grade: 07

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.6

Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate. (See grade 7 Language standards 1 and 3 here for specific expectations.)

Grade: 08

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.4

Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points in a focused, coherent manner with relevant evidence, sound valid reasoning, and well-chosen details; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.

Grade: 08

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.5

Integrate multimedia and visual displays into presentations to clarify information, strengthen claims and evidence, and add interest.

Grade: 08

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.6

Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate. (See grade 8 Language standards 1 and 3 here for specific expectations.)

Grade: 09, 10

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.4

Present information, findings, and supporting evidence clearly, concisely, and logically such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and task.

Grade: 09, 10

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.5

Grade: 09, 10

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.6

Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate. (See grades 9–10 Language standards 1 and 3 here for specific expectations.)

Grade: K

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.K.4

Describe familiar people, places, things, and events and, with prompting and support, provide additional detail.

Grade: K

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.K.5

Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions as desired to provide additional detail.

Grade: K

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.K.6

Speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings, and ideas clearly.

Students will:

Recognize the contributions Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. made to our country
Gain a deeper understanding of the Civil Rights movement
Create a profile of someone who inspires them

Materials:

paper and pens
computer with projector or interactive whiteboard to show BrainPOP
additional art supplies, if needed

Vocabulary:

Martin Luther King, Jr.; civil rights; segregation; Freedom Riders; sit-in; boycott; Nobel Peace Prize

Preparation:

Preview movie (BrainPOP or BrainPOP Jr.) and plan where to pause for discussion and note-taking with students. You might write your own Inspiration piece to share with your students.

Lesson Procedure:

Discuss why Monday is a holiday. What did Martin Luther King Jr. do to earn a national holiday, and have millions of people celebrate his birthday? Students can jot down notes or turn and talk to discuss.
Take the Quiz (on BrainPOP or BrainPOP Jr., depending on your age group). Challenge kids to see how much they know already, and let them know they can take the Quiz again after viewing the movie.
Have your students choose someone who inspires them. It may be a family member, community leader, friend, hero, role model, or even a character in a book. Have all students turn and share their person, and share a few with the whole group so everyone is prepared to write about the person they selected.
Have each child create a profile of a hero or role model and explain why he or she is inspirational. Some students may even want to interview their subjects. Then have students share their profiles with the class. Encourage students to be creative: they can dress up, give a speech, write a poem, offer inspirational quotes, create posters, or even build a webpage that honors their inspirational person.
Find ways to give your students an authentic audience to share their work with. Invite other classes, record and put up on a class website, create a museum, etc.

Extension Activities:

This idea comes from BrainPOP Jr.'s lesson ideas. There are other excellent ideas in there that can be adapted for any age group! You might also watch the Rosa Parks movie to help support and extend this topic.