Using We ve Got a Job, by Cynthia Levinson, in an Intermediate-Leveled Civil Rights Unit By Christa Armantrout, Talented & Gifted Specialist, Round Rock ISD Introduce Civil Rights unit by using poetry and quotes to increase an awareness of the global desire for equal rights: Suggested Poetry: A Poem about Children s Rights by Dorothy Roight; I Dream a World by Langston Hughes; Songs for the People by Frances E.W. Harper Suggested Quotes: Mahatma Gandhi: A man is but the product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes. You must be the change you wish to see in the world. Martin Luther King, Jr.: The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character that is the goal of true education. "Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter." *Students should read and respond to quotes. Then students can quickly research the lives of Gandhi and King using internet biography sources to discover connections between the two men. Discuss. Establish background of segregation and racism in the United States using the following resources: Slavery in US resources: Websites: History Channel History of Slavery and Abolitionist Movement ; National Geographic Underground Railroad Books: Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson; Follow the Drinking Gourd by Jeanette Winter Civil Rights in US resources: Websites: History Channel Freedom Riders and Civil Rights Movement ; Thekingcenter.org; Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (www.bcri.org); PBS.org The Little Rock Nine ; Infoplease.com Heroes of the Civil Rights Movement Article: To the promised land: The civil rights years By Whitman, Sylvia. Cobblestone, Feb1994, Vol. 15 Issue 2, p26 Books: Ruth and the Green Book by Ramsey and Strauss Primary Sources: Jim Crow Laws, Martin Luther King Jr. s Letter From Birmingham Jail, The Negro Motorist Green Book (PDF format online only), 1964 Civil Rights Act
Using We ve Got a Job Christa Armantrout, Round Rock ISD 2 Student activity suggestions: Three Minutes of History Students research and present information about the big events in world history leading up to the church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama - Teacher assigns a year between 1953 and 1963. Students list 5 big events that happened that year in the US and world. Share and post information in room for future reference. Key Moments in the History of Civil Rights Students are given an important civil rights event or name and date to research for 3 to 5 quick facts to educate peers about the topic. Collect facts on a note card and share with the class. Examples: 1863 Emancipation Proclamation; 1954 Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka Biography Connections Small groups read short biographies to learn of individuals who influenced the Civil Rights movement: Ida B. Wells, Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, Ruby Bridges, Martin Luther King Jr., etc. As a class, create a flow chart documenting connections between leaders. Power of Children In partners, students are assigned a specific child from We ve Got A Job to learn about their perspective of the march. The students may also use Peachtree Publisher s website www.wevegotajob.com to learn more about the assigned child. The students create a two to four minute presentation to share their new-found knowledge. Using We ve Got A Job by Cynthia Levinson with Classroom Novels Pairing the nonfiction book, We ve Got A Job, with the suggested historical fiction books will enhance each student s understanding of the Civil Rights Movement. Copies of the book, We ve Got A Job, should be available for students to reference as they read their assigned novel and respond to the rigorous questions and activities. Suggested novels: Watson s Go To Birmingham, 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis (4 th grade+) Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor (5 th grade+) Questions to promote rigorous thinking: How does the author use his/her characters and chosen settings to introduce the reader to the issues of racial segregation/the Civil Rights Movement? How do the lives of the white and black children differ in this novel? Make a chart comparing similar situations and belief systems. Create a 3 rd column comparing the children in your novel to the four children in the book, We ve Got A Job. Can you find similar characters to Audrey, Arnetta, Wash, or James in your novel? Explain and give evidence for at least 2 similarities between one child in We ve Got a Job and one character in your current novel (similar age is not a requirement!).
Using We ve Got a Job Christa Armantrout, Round Rock ISD 3 Choose two controversial issues in the novel you are reading this week. Focus on the multiple perspectives regarding those issues. What were the perspectives of that time? What is your perspective of those topics today? Create a T-chart to organize your information. List evidence of the author s voice in the historical fiction book you are currently reading (not the character s word choice!). Write a quote from the book and explain your thinking. What tone is the author setting? Does Cynthia Levinson use voice in her book, We ve Got A Job? If so, give an example and explain the tone. Do you feel that Cynthia Levinson should use more or less voice in We ve Got A Job? Explain your opinion with evidence from the book. Compare and contrast Flint, Michigan in 1963 (Watson s )/ Mississippi in 1933 (Roll of Thunder ) and Birmingham, Alabama in 1963. What did both cities have in common? How were they very different from each other? Use the information from your novel as well as the factual evidence from We ve Got A Job. While reading your novel and chapters 5, Collision Course from We ve Got A Job, make a list of at least 3 generalizations or truisms you can make regarding relationships between people of diverse cultures. Explain and give evidence for each of your truisms. On August 28, 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. gave a powerful speech in Washington DC. from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. He said, I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. Consider your novel and the nonfiction book, We ve Got A Job. How does this quote apply to the decisions made by characters in your novel as well as the black Americans who lived in Birmingham, Alabama in 1963? Explain your thinking using textual proof from both books. After reading the lyrics for We Shall Overcome, explain your understanding of this song and how it relates to your world today. While reading your novel, consider and explain how this song relates to the issues the characters in your novel must endure. Are their issues in the novel historically accurate? Teddy Roosevelt (the 26 th president of the United States) said, Do what you can where you are with what you've got. Explain how that applies to both of the main characters from the novels you are comparing. Write at least half a page explanation for each.
Using We ve Got a Job Christa Armantrout, Round Rock ISD 4 Activities to stimulate a deeper understanding of the civil rights issues: Compare information gathered from the History Channel website, Civil Rights Movement, with events in the novel. Create a glossary of at least 8 important people and events of the Civil Rights Movement. Who is your intended audience? Write a one-paragraph explanation of the glossary for your audience. Read Ballad of Birmingham by Dudley Randall Choose 5 words to use in a poem about an important event during the Civil Rights Movement Create a poem for two voices using themes or characters from the novel you are reading or from We ve Got A Job. Each voice should have (or share) at least 15 lines. How can you relate the issues of civil rights to your audience through the poem? Refer to Paul Fleishman s Joyful Noise for examples of format. Read Martin Luther King Jr. s Letter from the Birmingham Jail. Consider the following activities: Create a list of metaphors King uses to illustrate his perspective. What is the general theme of many of his metaphors? What does wait mean to you? Write a poem to express your feelings when someone tells you to wait. Quote three phrases or sentences from his letter. What is it about those words that are so meaningful to you? Give evidence from your own understanding of the world to explain your thoughts for each of the quotes.. Create a 140 character tweet to state King s intent for writing the letter. Write a 140 character response from one of the white clergymen who received the letter. Write another tweet from a person who may have read the letter: Did Bull Connor see it? How would James Stewart have responded? Many of the Civil Rights leaders received a copy of the letter as well. What may one of them tweeted to Dr. King? In his letter, King states, In your statement you assert that our actions, even though peaceful, must be condemned because they precipitate violence. But is this a logical assertion? He goes on to give 3 examples to prove that the statement is not at all a logical assertion. Give an example of your own to prove King s belief. Follow his writing style to create your point.
Using We ve Got a Job Christa Armantrout, Round Rock ISD 5 (SOAPStone + Theme) Poetry Analysis Speaker: Who is the speaker of the poem? What do you know about him or her? No independent research is allowed on the poet. Occasion: What is the occasion of the poem? What is the event that prompts the speaker to speak? Is it important that you understand the situation which led the poet to publish this poem? Audience: To whom is the speaker speaking? What do you know about him or her or the audience? Purpose: What is the purpose of the poem? Why do you think the poet wrote the poem? Subject: What is the general topic, content, and ideas contained in the text. tone: What is the tone of the poem? What is the speaker s attitude toward the subject of the poem? Theme: What is the theme of the poem? What is the poet pointing out about people, society, or life? Additional features to look out for: Author s Craft: (1) Rhythm or Meter (2) Figures of Speech (3) Unusual use of words (4) Imagery