Civil Rights Research - The Watsons Go to Birmingham

Introduction

Welcome!  During this WebQuest, you will research and learn about key individuals and events of the Civil Rights Movement.  This movement is a very important part of our American history and is directly related to our next novel study.

Scholastic.com best describes the American Civil Rights Movement as....

....... a movement to secure for African Americans equal access to and opportunities for the basic privileges and rights of U.S. citizenship. Although the roots of the civil rights movement go back to the 19th century, the movement peaked in the 1950s and 1960s. African American men and women, along with whites, organized and led the movement at national and local levels. They pursued their goals through legal means, negotiations, petitions, and nonviolent protest demonstrations. 

The civil rights movement centered on the American South, where the African American population was concentrated and where racial inequality in education, economic opportunity, and the political and legal processes was most blatant. Beginning in the late 19th century, state and local governments passed segregation laws, known as Jim Crow laws, and mandated restrictions on voting qualifications that left the black population economically and politically powerless. The movement therefore addressed primarily three areas of discrimination: education, social segregation, and voting rights.

Davis, Jack.  "Civil Rights Movement:  An Overview." Scholastic.com.  17 February 2014.  http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/civil-rights-movement-overvi…

Task

Your task is to travel back in time and discover what life was like in the 1960's and to learn about the Civil Rights Movement.

You will visit different websites, and you will read and view different information and documents. You will answer questions with a partner.

Process

For each section, click on the link.  READ the information on the website, and then answer the questions on your WebQuest answer sheet.

I. WHAT WAS LIFE LIKE DURING THE 1960s?

To find out, go to: American Cultural History 1960-1969

 

II. Go to:  Civil Rights Movement Timeline webpage to answer questions in part II. 

III. Why was Birmingham, Alabama so important during 1963?  

Revisit the timeline for this information.  Be sure to find specific information related to Birmingham.  Click here.

IV.  Read about the incident at West Park and answer the questions on your answer sheet.

V.  Read about the bombing at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church and answer the questions on your answer sheet.

VI.  Review the "I Have a Dream" speech by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  Answer the questions on your answer sheet.

VII.  Visit the Powerful Days in Black and White (A photo tour of the Civil Rights Movement).  Follow the instructions on your answer sheet after viewing the snapshots. 

Evaluation

Each section of your WebQuest will be graded for accuracy.  Please keep the following guidelines in mind while working with your partner:

1.  Cooperation is the key to completing this WebQuest in a timely manner.  Take turns!

2.  Both people in the group should complete an answer sheet.  If a line is drawn, you may answer with a short phrase.  IF NO LINE IS DRAWN, YOU SHOULD ANSWER WITH COMPLETE SENTENCES!

3. The objectives in this lesson include:  

  • viewing and comprehending information from online resources
  • using technology for research
  • comparing and contrasting historical fiction texts to non-fiction articles
  • summarizing information and determining the central idea of a text
  • using textual evidence to support claims
Credits