Hunter – He makes it fair and equal.  Some people have different skin and he makes it equal (for people with different color skin).

 

Alex – He makes a speech for the people who don’t want black and brown and blonde people to be together.

 

Ethan – He taught the kids to go to the same school because their parents didn’t go to the same school, the black and white people, but MLKJr. Said no. They can all go to the same place.

 

Elliott – MLKJr. Did a lot of stuff to make it fair and equal so white people and black people could go the same playgrounds and stuff.

 

Isabel – It was a very big and bad lie that white people are better than black people.  

 

Sora – The black people got worse stuff in their school and the white people got better stuff.  

 

Hunter – If the white people were mean the brown people, brown people are going to want to be mean to the white people.  

 

Aiden – MLK is dead.  People didn’t like him because he was saying to be nice.  So they killed him.  They didn’t want to be nice to black people, they wanted to be bad.  

 

Sora – Some white people put him in jail when he was alive.

 

Isabel – They didn’t want to be nice and he was standing up to make people be nicer.

 

 

Neve – It’s not fair that people put up signs “white only” and “black only”.  

 

Wyatt – My mom said I can’t learn about shooting because it’s inappropriate.  If people shoot people they will get blood out and never come alive.

 

Massimo – When I went to Nonna’s house I saw a real gun.  Then they throwed it away.

 

Rosie – A long time ago, at night, I heard a gun fire.  It made me sad.  My parents heard it.

 

Adam – One time in the night we were doing our prayers and some people were shooting guns and we had to go into the bathroom because they could make us dead.  When they were finished the police came and arrested them.

 

Ben – You can never ever use guns.  

 

Mrs. Scofield What about hunting?

 

Ben – That’s bad.

 

Ethan – You can’t shoot other animals because what if they are endangered.

 

Hunter – MLK was a nice guy and also one of my friend's papa shot a bird with a bb gun.  I think they wanted to eat him.

 

Maggie – I think he (MLK) is good man.  He is trying to get everyone get a long and have peace in the word.

 

Isabel – I think it’s unfair that they were not liking him and then somebody shooting him.  He wasn’t just trying to help black people he was trying to help white people too.  He wanted them to be equal and work together.  

 

Ben – It’s not cool to just kill random things if you’re not going to eat it.

 

Massimo – One time when I am at my Grammy’s house I always hear a rifle shoot but sometimes I think it is but it is just snow falling off the roof.

 

Elliott – It’s not good that someone shooted him.  He was helping so much.  He helped both people, black and white and brown.  One day someone killed him which wasn’t very nice.  He gave a lot of big speeches which were good and nice but then one day when he stepped out someone shot a gun on him and an hour later he was dead.  I’m not very happy about that.  They killed him for no reason.  They liked it not to be fair.  They liked to have good stuff and brown people to have bad stuff.  It’s still true a little bit.

 

Hunter  - He was a nice guy and helped a lot of people.  Once he went on his balcony he got shot.  

 

Byron – Help people.  See if they were ok if they were upset or hurt.

 

Maggie – When there are signs that have ‘white only’ I could cross out the ‘white only’ and write in ‘and black’.

 

Owen – Be kind to people.  If they ask for something you give it to them.

 

Neve – Share.  Share blankets, toys, games.

 

Massimo – you could be a cop and get the rest of the bad guys and then we could have only nice guys.

 

Sora – You can pick up trash.

 

Yanai – You can recycle.

 

Hunter – We could be MLK!  We can make speeches, about white people and black people coming together and make sure nobody can shoot a gun at anybody.

 

Elliott – I think James Earl Ray was not very nice. I bet he got arrested by a black person or a brown person when he did that (shot MLK Jr.).

 

Ethan – Why would a brown person shoot a white person?  Why would anybody shoot anyone else?

 

Ava – If someone was not playing with one of the persons I could play with the person that was alone.

 

Morgan – Help everyone like each other.  

 

Adam – I would play a game and if someone was being mean to another person I would stand up for them. 

 

Aliya – I could make everyone smart.  I’ll become a teacher.

 

Rosie – I can recycle plastic garbage.

 

Nia – I can tell people who are shooting animals that they don’t eat, to stop.

 

Ethan – If someone gets hurt and they are bleeding I can get them a band-aid to help them feel better.

 

Ben – You could help somebody if they fell.  I could tell them not to move and have my mom and dad call the ambulance (911).

 

Wyatt – Tell people to not shoot people.  I can write a sign about not shooting people.

 

Ethan – I noticed he gave a speech.  I am confused about what he talking about - 'I have dream'.  

 

Massimo – I noticed that he gave a speech for all the states like New York, Colorado.  I have been to New York and Colorado.  He wanted everyone to be nice in the whole world.  He didn’t want white people in NY or CO to be mean to black people.

 

Isabel – I noticed that he was doing a march at the beginning of the speech.

 

Oscar – I was thinking about when the statue was the only thing in the picture.  The Lincoln memorial.  I wonder why he gave the speech at the Lincoln Memorial.

 

Alex – What does he mean when he says 'let freedom ring'?

Before we listened to Martin Luther King I Have a Dream, we had a conversation to share what we knew already:

"He was powerful." - Mia

____________

After listening to part of I Have a Dream, and reading Martin’s Big Words, we checked in again to share what we knew now:

"He didn't stop." - Emmy

"He didn't want anything to happen to kids and people." - Mecca

"He died." - Henry, Elliot

"Someone took his life away. I've been learning about him with my brother." - Emerson

______________

After reading Happy Birthday, Martin Luther King, we reflected as a class once more to share what we knew and connections we had to the book:

“He’s powerful. That he changes the world.” - Rowan

“I study, too! I read books… It was his birthday, and he studied.” - Mecca

“Washington, D.C.! He went there.” - Na’eel

“He missed his parents a lot. When he went to Washington, D.C.” - Emerson

 

We also read, “My Brother Martin”, by Dr. King’s sister, Christine King Farris. Here she shares childhood stories about “M.L.”, as their family called him, that are very relatable to all children.  She also retells a moment when her brother, after being treated in a racist way, told his mom that he was going to “turn this world upside down.” For our reflections, students were encouraged to think about a change they’d like to see in our world and how they might help others make this change happen. 

 

Here are their thoughts:

A change I’d like to help make is no more guns!! Guns are weapons in wars. Guns kill a lot of people. No guns = more life on earth.

A change I’d like to help make is using less trash by using less trash and putting recyclable things in the recycling. 

A change I’d like to help make is there needs to be less littering! I think we need more people picking up trash and less pollution.

A change I want to see in our world is for White people to be nice to Black people and Black people to be nice to White people. 

A change I’d like to help make is everyone needs to get equal. Donate money to people who need it. 

A change I’d like to help make is be kind to people that aren’t like YOU.

This quote makes me feel beautiful and free.

A change I’d like to see in our world is less pollution. Plant trees. If you are traveling a small distance, ride a bike. 

A change I’d like to see is I want to change the text books and videos so that they say how people who thought that segregation is good are mean. Give the people that think that Blacks are not equal books about freedom.

A change I’d like to see in the world is people being safe.  

A change I’d like to see is to make the city environmentally plant friendly.  

A change I’d like to see in our world is no sickness and racism.  

A change I’d like to help make is no more littering.

“A bunch of people.” - Elliot

“Some people right there on the grass.” - Na’eel

“They are in Washington, D.C.” - Emmy

“There are so much people in the grass. They are going inside because it’s cold.” - Mecca

“They’re going in the building to see Martin Luther King!” - Emerson

“Dr. Martin Luther King is there. And there’s voice.” - Alice

“Statue.” - Emmy [Noticing the statue of Lincoln behind King]

Friends were particularly interested in the page that depicts a group of black and white children holding hands.
“I see black children, white children. Spinning.” - Elliot

“They're happy, because they love to play ‘Ring Around the Rosie." - Henry

_________________________
As we read and revisited different books about King’s life, friends started to share connections between the texts:

Mecca: [Pointing at the different covers of the books, and noticing King’s faces on each] He’s feeling happy there, and he’s feeling sad there. Maybe he’s feeling sad because someone pushed him. He told them ‘stop.

Henry: Hey, we heard that in that book! [He points to Martin’s Big Words as we read I Have a Dream, after recognizing a quote that is in each text]