Grades 5–6

This lesson can be taught in about 5–7 days.

Lesson Introduction:
The focus for grades 5–6 in Black History in America is the role of individuals in shaping American history, specifically the Civil Rights movement. Students will focus Rosa Parks and her role in the Civil Rights Movement and respond to her experience in writing. Days 1–2: Rosa Parks
Introduce Civil Rights: Ask students to share their knowledge of the civil rights movement. Write responses on the chalkboard. Discuss with students some of the realities that preceded the civil rights movement of the 50s and 60s, such as segregation in public life and school. Then have students respond to the following question:

• Are people ever justified in breaking the law? Explain.

Have students write about or discuss the question. Explain that they will read the story of a woman named Rosa Parks who found herself at the beginning of a protest movement that would forever change the laws of the United States of America. Hand out the Organizer Patterns: Cause — Effect (PDF) and assign the story of Rosa Parks. Explain to students that they should fill out the organizer, focusing on the causes for the launch of the Civil Rights Movement and their effects both on individuals like Rosa Parks and on United States history.

Days 3–4: Rosa Parks: How I Fought for Civil Rights
Invite students to read through "Sitting Down" to "Supreme Court Ruling" of Rosa's biography. Direct student groups to have a discussion about her experience in the movement to change the segregation laws. Have students create a chronological list of key events in Rosa's fight for equal rights. Encourage students to familiarize themselves with other key figures in the story, such as Martin Luther King, Jr. Lead them to the Articles Archive, Background Knowledge and Related Booklist for further information on important figures in this story. Then Instruct student groups to collaborate on writing a short play about Rosa Parks, other important figures in her story, and one event that surrounded the bus boycott.

Days 5–7: How Would You Feel?
Ask students to imagine what it was like to be Rosa during the bus boycott. Then challenge them to write a short expository essay or a fictional account of what it might have been like to be in Rosa's situation. Students can use original ideas as writing topics or develop topics from the list of questions below. Direct students through the writing process. After students have edited their work they should go to How Would You Feel section in order to submit their work for online publication.

Visit the assessment rubric for use with this activity.

Extend the Lesson with these activities:

Time Line (2–3 Days)
Encourage individuals or small groups of students to take turns using the interactive time line. After students have gotten used to the technology, have them read through the biographies. Have small groups of students do further research on two important contributors from the timeline that lived in different eras. Then have students compare and contrast the changes that had taken place for black Americans using the lives of the two figures as models.

Nominate a Trailblazer (2–3 Days)
Once students have become familiar with the Trailblazers from the time line, invite them to choose one figure they think is the most important in terms of breaking the color barrier. Inform students that they will be joining with classes nationwide to develop an Honor Roll of African Americans who were pioneers in fields that were previously open only to whites. Invite students to write about their nominee. The nomination should include the individual's name, his or her contribution as a pioneer, and why the student believes that this person deserves to be included in the Honor Roll. You may wish to direct students to the Honor Roll Nomination Worksheet to help them with formulating their writings. When your students have edited their work, they can submit their nomination at the Nominate a Trailblazer page.

Instruct students to follow the directions about how to fill in, preview, and submit the nomination form. Encourage students to proofread, edit, and polish their writing before submission. Inform students that all nominations will be reviewed before being published, and that their nomination will appear in the Honor Roll in a few days. Students can read already-posted Honor Roll nominations from schools around the country.

History of Jazz (1–2 Days)
Encourage individuals or small groups of students to take turns reading through the history of jazz and listening to the sound files. Have small groups of students do further research on one area of the history (The blues, New Orleans jazz, Louis Armstrong, improvisation, swing, Duke Ellington, bebop, Dizzy Gillespie, Latin and Afro-Cuban jazz). Then have students compare and contrast the areas and the impact that black Americans have made on the music.

Cross Curricular Extensions

Art (Grades 3–5)
Invite students to draw or cut out pictures depicting how it would feel to be in a place where they aren't wanted. Remind students how Rosa Parks felt being the first to do something very, very hard. Assess students on their expression of these feelings.

Poetry (Grades 3–5)
Compile a collection of poetry on the subject of personal freedom. Selections might include "I Am Freedom's Child" by Bill Martin, Jr. or "Dreams" by Langston Hughes. Read the poems aloud together, discuss the poet's point of view in each one, and have students draw illustrations to accompany the poetry. Then encourage students to write their own "freedom" poetry, using a variety of simple poetic forms such as haiku and couplets. Create an illustrated anthology of your class's favorites.

Drama (Grades 3–5)
Encourage students to transform Melba's story into a play or video script. Suggest that they dramatize the account by creating additional dialogue for the characters. Students may also create a narrator role to help tell the story. After students have had sufficient time rehearsing their play, they can perform it for the class.

History/Technology (Grades 6–8)
Have students create a time line of events in American history that relate to the struggle for civil rights. The time line can be hand drawn or created with computer software. Encourage students to include both well-known events and lesser-known incidents that are of interest and relevance. Ask students to project into the future 5, 15, 25, 50, and 100 years from now and add hypothetical events that they expect will further extend or curtail civil rights.

Discussion Starters:

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