Third Graders Study Civil Rights

by Michael Porter
This January, students in third grade have been studying about the Civil Rights Movement in the United States, as it coincides with the day we celebrate the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
On January 17, the students traveled to St. Augustine to walk in the footsteps of Civil Rights activists who blazed the trail for equality in the United States. Led by Ms. Bernadette Reeves from St. Augustine Black Heritage Tours, our students and their teachers visited sites and listened to stories about actual events that took place where they stood.

In class before MLK Day, the students studied Dr. King's I Have a Dream speech and used their higher-level thinking skills to share their interpretations of what it meant to them. 
 
"Everyone should be treated equally," said Karina. "It doesn't matter what's on the outside, it matters what's on the inside."
 
Other students drew inspiration from Dr. King's speech and talked about their wishes and their dreams for mankind.
 
"I have a dream that my family will have a long life and be with me," wrote Awn D.
 
"I have a dream that all children will speak positively to themselves," noted Charleigh P.
 
Benji P. declared that, "Oh! I have a dream for everyone to be loved!"
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