Grade: Fifth Grade Students
Learning Activity: This activity will allow students to get a better understanding on how the civil rights movement has impacted American Americans today.
Learning Outcomes:
The general learning outcomes for this lesson are as follows: The learners will demonstrate an understanding of famous leaders of the civil rights movement, ordinary men and women who struggled for their beliefs. The learners will explain how the civil right movement has impacted African Americans today. The learner will research one African American person from the present day, who has been able to achieve the American Dream. The learners will write an essay on the person they have been researching. The learners will display their essay in a section of the class along with a picture of the person.
Motivations:
The teacher will ask the learners: Do you think Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. would still have a dream if he was still alive? Why or Why not? The teacher will ask the learners: Have we achieved equality?
Activities:
The teacher will demonstrate a YouTube video to the learners. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FarzJ2jjbOc The class will discuss important African American people who accomplished great achievements in the present day. The class will read a few pages from “A Kid’s Guide to African American History”. The learner will research one African American person from the present day, who has been able to achieve the American Dream. The learner will write an essay on the person they have been researching. The learners will display their essay in a section of the class along with a picture of the person.
Assessment: The learner will peer edit their essay. The teacher will conference with each student to review the final draft of his/her essay.
Follow-up/Enrichment:
The class will have a homework assignment in which they can write about: What does the American dream mean