My Kinder students have a tough time wrapping their heads around a world where segregation was the law. When I introduce Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks they listen, completely engaged to these stories. They watch his Ï Have a Dream" speech with amazement-he talked in front of that many people? Is that really his voice?
I find that it's easiest to introduce new concepts through literature. I wanted to share with you some of the books I shared with my students this past week.
Still my all-time favorite book about MLK. It's a beautiful story and if you have access to Discovery Education (United Streaming) they have a great version of this with background music and everything.
I knew of the Sit-In as a form a protest but did not know the details of how that method started. It began with 4 very brave college students and became a movement that changed the laws of service in this country. A very child-friendly re-telling of that part of our history.
This book is a little long for the young ones but I think an important story. Silvia Mendez and her family sued for the right to allow Hispanic children to go to school with everyone else.
A recap of people who stood up for what is right told in a rhyming verse.
I love the way the author captures not only the spirit of the bold, courageous rebel Rosa Parks but also the fact that she was just an ordinary woman going about her ordinary day before she became an icon of the Civil Rights Movement. There is a part where the author talks about Emmett Till and his murder-I do skip over that paragraph with the little ones.
What books do you use to introduce this all-important topic to your students?
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