Meet a Hero Lesson Plan

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Academic Standards

 

Reading Objective:

Students will discover five facts about the life and legacy or Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

 

Social Studies Focus:

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

 

Social and Life Skills:

social awareness

 

ELA Skills:

key details, vocabulary, nonfiction text features, video comprehension, writing

 

Page 4 Skill:

read a timeline

 

Vocabulary:

segregation, inspired, marches, speeches, illegal

 

CCSS:

RI.2.1 key details; RI.2.5 text features; RI.2.10 read informational texts; W.2.2 write informative texts; W.2.8 gather information; Sl.2.1 participate in collaborative conversations; L.2.4 use context clues to determine meaning of words; L.2.5 understand nuances in word meanings

 

Lexile level:

530L

Download TEKS Standards
Download Common Core Standards

Provide students with some background on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Build background knowledge (10 min.)

Watch our video “Dr. King: A Leader and Hero.” After children have finished watching the video, discuss the following question:

  • What is one reason Dr. King was a hero?

Set a purpose for reading (5 min.)

  • Pass out the issue, and discuss the cover. What do students already know about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.?
  • Next, read the As You Read prompt on the cover: “Think about how Dr. King made the world a better place.” Encourage children to think about this prompt as they read.

Read together (20 min.)

Pass out the Read and Think skill sheet. Use it to check comprehension as you read the issue together, pausing to ask the questions. 

Review vocabulary (3 min.)

Next, play the online vocabulary slideshow. This issue’s featured terms are segregation, inspired, marches, speeches, and illegal.

Assessment: Reading Quiz 

Pass out the Reading Quiz to review key concepts from the issue and assess students’ proficiency on key nonfiction reading skills.

Be A King by Carole Boston Weatherford  (20 min.)

With this paired text, readers can apply everything that Dr. King stood for as a leader and hero (all those years ago) to their own lives today. How will you Be A King?

  • The “Design a Poster” game lets students review text features as they make a digital poster in honor of Dr. King. They can even print it out!

You can use our printable worksheets to focus on ELA skills. Here’s how.

ELA Focus: Vocabulary (15 min.)

  • Use the Word Work printable to deepen students’ understanding of the terms segregation, inspired, marches, speeches, and illegal.

Editor’s Pick: Vocabulary, Writing (15 min.)

  • The Dr. King’s Wise Words skill sheet helps students interpret and more deeply understand one of Dr. King’s most inspiring quotations! It encourages text-to-text and text-to-self connections, making the sophisticated vocabulary of Dr. King’s wise words part of children’s vocabulary as well.

ELA Focus: Video Comprehension, Writing (15 min.)

  • Students reflect on a video about Dr. King with the Watch a Video skill sheet. Its questions guide and encourage students to make inferences about Dr. King’s impact and make connections to their own lives.

 Here are two past issues you can use to extend your lesson on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.:

  • “The Story of a Speech,” January 2024. Students will identify the importance of Dr. King’s speech.
  • “A Beloved Community,” January 2022. Students will identify the attributes of Dr. King’s beloved community.

You can find a higher-Lexile-level and a lower-Lexile-level version of the article online here:

  • Higher Lexile level: 640L
  • Lower Lexile level: 490L