Dr. Martin Luther King Junior: Compare and Contrast

Learning Resource Type

Learning Activity

Subject Area

Social Studies

Grade(s)

4

Overview

This learning activity should be used to introduce the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  The students will explore the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by reading and viewing pictures on the website https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/explore/history/martin-luther-king-jr/. The students will use a T-Chart to compare and contrast cultural differences during The Civil Rights movement.

This activity was created as a result of the ALEX Resource Development Summit.

Phase

Before/Engage
Social Studies (2010) Grade(s): 4

SS10.4.14

Analyze the modern Civil Rights Movement to determine the social, political, and economic impact on Alabama.

UP:SS10.4.14

Vocabulary

  • analyze
  • interpret
  • discrimination
  • prejudice
  • protest (violent and non-violent)
  • boycott
  • sit-in
  • segregation
  • integration
  • Jim Crow
  • suffrage
  • rights
  • NAACP

Knowledge

Students know:
  • Many of the key leaders that were vital to the modern Civil Rights movement including Martin Luther King, Jr.; George C. Wallace; Rosa Parks; Fred Shuttlesworth; John Lewis; Malcolm X; Thurgood Marshall; Hugo Black; and Ralph David Abernathy.
  • How the Montgomery Bus Boycott and other forms of protest impacted Alabama's economy.
  • How the many forms of non-violent protests were used to help African Americans in Alabama gain equality including the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the Selma-to-Montgomery March, and children's marches.
  • African Americans in Alabama were often the victims of violence while trying to gain equality (Sixteenth Street Church bombing, Freedom Riders bus bombing).

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Recognize important persons of the modern Civil Rights Movement, including Martin Luther King, Jr.; George C. Wallace; Rosa Parks; Fred Shuttlesworth; John Lewis; Malcolm X; Thurgood Marshall; Hugo Black; and Ralph David Abernathy.
  • Describe events of the modern Civil Rights Movement, including the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, the Freedom Riders bus bombing, and the Selma-to-Montgomery March.
  • Interpret primary sources such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Brown versus Board of Education Supreme Court case of 1954, and Letters from the Birmingham Jail.
  • Use vocabulary associated with the modern Civil Rights Movement, including discrimination, prejudice, segregation, integration, suffrage, and rights.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • Many individuals and events had a social, political, and economic impact on the people of Alabama during the modern Civil Rights Movement. There were many benefits of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and Brown v. Board (1954).
  • The doctrine of separate but equal called for specific things.
  • These events also had a significant impact on the nation.
Social Studies (2010) Grade(s): 4

SS10.4.14.1

Recognizing important persons of the modern Civil Rights Movement, including Martin Luther King, Jr.; George C. Wallace; Rosa Parks; Fred Shuttlesworth; John Lewis; Malcolm X; Thurgood Marshall; Hugo Black; and Ralph David Abernathy

Learning Objectives

I will compare and contrast cultural differences during The Civil Rights movement.

Activity Details

Students will explore the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by reading and viewing pictures on the website https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/explore/history/martin-luther-king-jr/  

There will be a class discussion after the students view the website. The class will discuss the life of Dr. King and his impact on society. For instance, the teacher may state that he was born in Atlanta, GA in 1929. The teacher may state during the time of Dr. King's life in the southern states of the United States of America, many schools were separated by the color of a person's skin. White children went to school with other white children and black children went to school with other black children. As a child, he was told that he could no longer play with a white boy because he was black. He wanted to change the culture or the way of life in order for people to not be judged by the color of their skin. He wanted equal treatment for all. 

The teacher will discuss the life of Dr. King and his positive impact on society such as the nonviolent marches that he led, the speeches that he gave, his most famous "I Have a Dream" Speech, and the Montgomery Bus Boycott that he led and how it allowed black people to sit wherever they wanted.

The educator will create a T-Chart on the board or paper so that the students can have a visual of the comparisons and contrasts between two cultures. The title of the T-Chart is the During the Life of Dr. King. One side of the T-Chart is labeled The Way Life Was. The other side of the T-Chart is labeled The Way Dr. King Wanted It To Be. The teacher may ask probing questions to guide the students' thinking: 1) When Dr. King was little, were black people allowed to sit in the front of a city bus? Why not? 2) When Dr. King was a child, did all children attend school together? 3) How was Dr. King's life different from your life? The following are some examples of the cultural differences that may go on the chart: 

The Way Life Was: 1) White people and black people had to pay to ride the city buses. However, if black people wanted to ride the city buses, they had to sit in the back of the buses. If the bus became filled, black people had to give up their seat and stand in order for white people to sit. 2) White people were able to sit in front of movie theaters; black people had to sit in the balcony. 3) Black children and white children did not attend school together. 4) Black people were arrested and threatened if they did not comply (go along) with how they were unfairly treated.

The Way Dr. King Wanted It To Be: 1) All people who paid to ride city buses be able to sit wherever they wanted and not to have to give up their seats. 2) All people could sit wherever they wanted in movie theaters. 3) All children would be able to attend school together; play together. 4) Dr. King wanted equal treatment for all.

Assessment Strategies

The educator will check for understanding as the students verbally provide comparisons and contrasts between cultural differences.

Variation Tips

The educator may also choose to use Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s speech as a way to compare and contrast. https://www.npr.org/2010/01/18/122701268/i-have-a-dream-speech-in-its-entirety

The educator may also choose to use Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s audio speech as a way to compare and contrast.  https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/i-have-dream-address-delivered-march-washington-jobs-and-freedom

Background / Preparation

The educator will need to have the website, https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/explore/history/martin-luther-king-jr/ ready to display.

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