Celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr. in the Classroom and Beyond
Updated December 28, 2022
Martin Luther King, Jr. is well-known as one of the leaders of the civil rights movement, during which he encouraged nonviolent protests and acts of civil disobedience while promoting equal rights for Black people. It is always worthwhile to study this incredible man who did so much for civil rights; however, did you know that MLK Day has only been celebrated officially by all 50 states since 2000? Campaigning for a day to recognize and remember this leader began almost immediately after Dr. King’s assassination in 1968, and President Ronald Reagan signed the observance into law in 1983, but for nearly two decades after, many states combined the holiday with other memorial days.
Today, MLK Day is the only national day of service celebrated across the US. In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s commitment to his community, all people in America are encouraged to spend this day helping others. This message of service, equality, and justice for all is one of Dr. King’s most powerful and is perfect for connecting concepts that students learn in the classroom to the wider world around them.
Below are some resources that will help students engage more fully with the civil rights movement, activism, and Martin Luther King, Jr.’s life and legacy. Additionally, please join NYPL's Center for Educators and Schools at 12 PM on Friday, January 13th, 2023 for a presentation by middle grade author and activist Kathlyn J. Kirkwood that will show how to connect history and civics with kids' present day lives. Together, we can all help make Dr. King’s dream of a community of equity, generosity, and kindness a reality!
Nonfiction
If You Were a Kid During the Civil Rights Movement
by Gwendolyn Hooks, illustrated by Kelly Kennedy
Gr. K-2. Joyce Jenkins has recently moved to a new town with her family, and she will soon be attending a segregated school for the first time. Meanwhile, Connie Underwood is trying to figure out what her twin brothers are planning in secret. Follow along as these girls find themselves in the middle of a civil rights demonstration and find out how the fight for equality changed the country forever.
The Youngest Marcher: The Story of Audrey Faye Hendricks, A Young Civil Rights Activist
by Cynthia Levinson, illustrated by Vanessa Brantley Newton
Gr. K-3. This presents the life of nine-year-old Audrey Faye Hendricks who became the youngest known child to be arrested for picketing against Birmingham segregation practices in 1963.
Be a King: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s Dream and You
by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by James Ransome
Gr. 1-3. See a class of young students as they begin a school project inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and learn to follow his example as he dealt with adversity and never lost hope that a future of equality and justice could soon be a reality. As times change, Dr. King's example remains, encouraging a new generation of children to take charge and change the world ... to be a King.
Voices of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer, Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement
by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Ekua Holmes
Gr. 1-3. An illustrated collection of poems and spirituals inspired by the life and work of Fannie Lou Hamer, a leading voice in the fight for civil rights.
She Persisted: Ruby Bridges
by Kekla Magoon, illustrated by Gillian Flint
Gr. 2-4. As a first grader, Ruby Bridges was the first Black student to integrate William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans, Louisiana. This was no easy task, especially for a six-year-old. Ruby's bravery and perseverance inspires children and adults alike to fight for equality and social justice.
Child of the Dream
by Sharon Robinson
Gr. 4-7. As the daughter of baseball legend and activist Jackie Robinson, Sharon Robinson had access to some of the most important events of the era including her family hosting several fundraisers for Martin Luther King, Jr. at their home in Connecticut and attending the March on Washington for Freedom and Jobs. But Sharon was also dealing with her own personal problems like going through puberty, being one of the only Black children in her wealthy Connecticut neighborhood, and figuring out her own role in the fight for equality. This memoir follows Sharon as she goes through an incredible year of her life.
Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me 'Round: My Story of the Making of Martin Luther King Day
by Kathlyn J. Kirkwood; illustrated by Steffi Walthall
Gr. 5-8. This moving memoir-in-verse tells about what it means to be an everyday activist and foot solider for racial justice, as Kathlyn recounts how she went from attending protests as a teenager to fighting as an adult for Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday to become a national holiday.
Brown Girl Dreaming
by Jacqueline Woodson
Gr. 5-8. In this award-winning biography-in-verse, Jacqueline Woodson shares what it was like to grow up as an African American in the 1960s and 1970s, living with the remnants of Jim Crow and her growing awareness of the civil rights movement.
Marching to the Mountaintop: How Poverty, Labor Fights, and Civil Rights Set the Stage for Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Final Hours
by Ann Bausum
Gr. 6-9. This middle grade title explores how the media, politics, the civil rights movement, and labor protests all converged to set the scene for one of King's greatest speeches and for his tragic death.
Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom: My Story of the 1965 Selma Voting Rights March
by Lynda Blackmon Lowery, illustrated by PJ Loughran
Gr. 7-10. As the youngest marcher in the 1965 voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, Lynda Blackmon Lowery proved that young adults can be heroes. Jailed nine times before her fifteenth birthday, Lowery fought alongside Martin Luther King, Jr. for the rights of African Americans. In this memoir, she shows today's young readers what it means to fight nonviolently (even when the police are using violence, as in the Bloody Sunday protest) and how it felt to be part of changing American history.
March, Vols. 1-3
by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, art by Nate Powell
Gr. 7-10. A vivid first-hand account of John Lewis's lifelong struggle for civil and human rights, meditating in the modern age on the distance traveled since the days of Jim Crow and segregation. Rooted in Lewis's personal story, it also reflects on the highs and lows of the broader civil rights movement.
And We Rise: The Civil Rights Movement in Poems
by Erica Martin
Gr. 8-12. In stunning verse and vivid use of white space, this poetry collection walks readers through the Civil Rights Movement, from the well-documented events that shaped the nation's treatment of Black people, beginning with the "Separate but Equal" ruling, to lesser-known figures and moments that were just as crucial to the Movement and our nation's centuries-long fight for justice and equality. A poignant, powerful, all-too-timely collection that is both a vital history lesson and a much-needed conversation starter in our modern world.
1968: Today’s Authors Explore a Year of Rebellion, Revolution, and Change
edited by Marc Aronson and Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Gr. 9-12. An anthology of essays that explore the tumultuous and pivotal year of 1968, when the generations clashed as thousands of Vietnamese and Americans were killed in war, assassins murdered Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, and demonstrators turned out in cities across the globe.
I See the Promised Land: A Life of Martin Luther King Jr.
by Arthur Flowers, illustrated by Manu Chitrakar
Gr. 9-12. This graphic novel describes the apartheid South in Martin Luther King's time, which in many ways was not very different from the early days of slavery, with descriptions of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the formation of civil rights groups, and mass movements against segregation.
Unequal: A Story of America
by Michael Eric Dyson and Marc Favreau
Gr. 9-12. Interconnected stories present a picture of racial inequality in America, showing systemic discrimination in all areas of society and showing the unbroken line of Black resistance to this inequality.
Fiction
A Sweet Smell of Roses
by Angela Johnson, illustrated by Eric Velasquez
Gr. K-3. Two young girls sneak out of their house and join a freedom march. This beautiful picture book highlights the importance of youth involvement in the civil rights movement.
Freedom on the Menu: The Greensboro Sit-Ins
by Carole Boston Weatherford, paintings by Jerome Lagarrigue
Gr. 1-3. The 1960 civil rights sit-ins at the Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina, are seen through the eyes of a young Southern Black girl in this picture book.
Clean Getaway
by Nic Stone, illustrated by Dawud Anyabwile
Gr. 5-8. Set against the backdrop of the segregation history of the American South, take a trip with eleven-year-old William “Scoob” Lamar, who is about to discover the world hasn't always been a welcoming place for kids like him and that things aren't always what they seem—his G'ma included.
The Rock and the River
by Kekla Magoon
Gr. 6-9. In 1968 Chicago, fourteen-year-old Sam is caught in a conflict between his father's nonviolent approach to seeking civil rights for African Americans and his older brother, who has joined the Black Panther Party.
I Rise
by Marie Arnold
Gr. 7-10. Fourteen-year-old Ayo has to decide whether to take on her mother's activist role when her mom is shot by police. As she tries to find answers, Ayo looks to the wisdom of her ancestors and her Harlem community for guidance.
Dear Martin
by Nic Stone
Gr. 8-12. Writing letters to the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., seventeen-year-old college-bound Justyce McAllister struggles to face the reality of race relations today and how they are shaping him.
This Is My America
by Kim Johnson
Gr. 8-12. While writing letters to Innocence X, a justice-seeking project, asking them to help her father, an innocent Black man on death row, Tracy takes on another case when her older brother is accused of killing his white girlfriend.
Additional Resources
Voices of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer, Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement
This DVD takes younger children through the inspiring life and work of Fannie Lou Hamer, a champion of civil rights and speaker at the 1964 Democratic National Convention who helped motivate leaders to support the Freedom Democrats.
I Have a Dream
by Martin Luther King, Jr.
It wouldn’t be an MLK Day reading list without Dr. King’s most well-known and inspiring speech! This version is beautifully illustrated by Kadir Nelson—perfect for children of all ages.
NAACP Papers
This ProQuest database of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People’s archives is an excellent supplement to a high school research project or class discussion on the civil rights movement.
Civil Rights Teaching
This website provides educators with lesson plans, handouts, and excerpts from the book Putting the Movement Back into Civil Rights Teaching: A Resource Guide for K-12 Classrooms (which is available to read at the Schomburg Center).
Extension Activities
Have your students plan a meaningful service project for the community—whether that community is their school, neighborhood, or something else. You can find lots of helpful service tips at AmeriCorps, and you can also find ideas for virtual projects here.
Examine the Library’s historical Button Collection and design your own button that supports civil rights, equality, nonviolence, and/or service to others.
Compare and contrast historical newspaper articles of civil rights marches to recent newspaper articles on Black Lives Matter marches.