American Heroes and Holidays
Session 4: Happy Birthday, Dr. King!

Materials

• One large piece of chart paper with the following paragraph written on it:
  Dr. Martin Luther _______________, Jr., had a _______________ that all people could live, work, and play in ______________. He gave a speech to help change _____________ that were not _______________. He believed that everyone should be treated the _________, no matter what their skin color. We honor this great American on his birthday, ________________.

In each blank, place a small piece of Velcro.

• Seven sentence strips with a piece of Velcro on the back, each with one of the following terms printed on it: King,  dream, peace, laws, fair, same, and January 15
  
• Teacher-selected book about Martin Luther King, Jr.

Instructional Activities

NOTE: The following Web resources may be helpful for information on Martin Luther King, Jr.:
“Martin Luther King, Jr.” <http://www.EnchantedLearning.com/history/us/MLK/> 
“Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.” <http://www.educationalsynthesis.org/famamer/MLKing.html>

1. Read a teacher-selected book about Martin Luther King, Jr., and display a picture of him. Tell students that Martin Luther King, Jr., lived a long time after George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. To assess students’ pre-knowledge, ask what they already know about Dr. King.
   
   
2. After reading the story, distribute each of the seven sentence strips. Review what each word says and how that word might relate to Dr. King.
   
   
3. Read the paragraph on the chart. Each time you arrive at a blank, ask students to help you fill in the missing word. Have students come up to the chart and attach their words to complete the paragraph.
   
   
4. After completing the paragraph, remove and redistribute the seven vocabulary words and repeat step 3 so that each student may have a turn. 
   
   
5. Tell the students that we celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day to remember an African American who worked so that all people would be treated fairly. It is observed in January.
   
   
6. Assist the students to locate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on a January calendar.