Introduction
You will be reading Warriors Don't Cry by Melba Pattillo Beals. The book is a personal narrative about Melba's life in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957, three years after Brown v. Board of Education established that the "separate but equal" justification for segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. In 1957, Melba chose to attend Central High School, the all-white high school in Little Rock, as one of the first students to officially begin the process of integration in Little Rock. Melba's life became a daily battle for survival, but her choice to play a part in the firestorm of integration helped pave the way for other African Americans to dismantle the oppressive system of racial injustice in the United States. The integration of Little Rock's Central High School is actually only one of many obstacles and battles African Americans faced in the fight for Civil Rights.
Before we begin reading, it is important to study the Central High integration within the larger context of the Civil Rights struggle in order to give you a better understanding of the significance of the Little Rock Nine's fight. You will work with a small group to complete this webquest, and you will need to become experts on other significant aspects or events that led up to the Civil Rights struggle. Additionally, you will learn from your peers, who will become experts as well. By the end of this activity, our entire class will be able to come away with a better contextualized understanding of this significant period in our country's social history.
Task
| #1 Background research--You will spend one or two days finding information that will give you a strong foundation in understanding your topic(s). You will need to take notes on this information for another part of this task. | |
| #2 Collecting Artifacts--While in the researching your topic, you will need to collect some "artifacts" related to your topic. These artifacts can be pictures/photographs, quotes from people involved (if you're researching an event), clipart, maps, excerpts from important texts (like if you're studying the Voting Rights Act of 1965), etc. You will "collect" these artifacts by saving them to a disk. | |
| #3 Creating PowerPoint Slides--You will need to design and create 3-5 PowerPoint slides, not including the title page and bibliography. Your slides should artfully present the artifacts you've collected and the most concise and important information on your topic that you need to share with your classmates. The answers to your questions should be explained thoroughly in your presentation. | |
| ***Subject to change | #4 Timeline Presentation--Once all the slides have been made by all the groups, they will be put together into one big PowerPoint presentation to make a complete class timeline of the whole Civil Rights era. We will view this presentation when it is complete and each group will be responsible for presenting their slides. |
Process
Fourteenth Amendment
Questions:
1. What was the fourteenth amendment? When was it passed?
2. When was the fourteenth amendment ratified? What changes were made?
3. What was the purpose of the fourteenth amendment?
4. How does the fourteenth amendment factor into the Civil Rights Movement?
5. Who supported the fourteenth amendment? Who opposed it?
Sources:
http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/14thamendment.html
http://www.constitution.org/col/intent_14th.htm
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_events_14th.html
http://www.14thamendment.us/index.html
Jim Crow Laws
Questions:
1) Define the term Jim Crow. What was the purpose of Jim Crow Laws?
2) List 5 examples of Jim Crow Laws and where and when each one was used.
3) How were Jim Crow Laws a factor in the Civil Rights Movement?
4) Who supported Jim Crow Laws? Who opposed Jim Crow Laws? Be specific.
5) What were the consequences for those who broke the Jim Crow Laws?
Sources:
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/303897/Jim-Crow-law
http://americanhistory.si.edu/brown/history/1-segregated/jim-crow.html
http://www.ferris.edu/jimcrow/what.htm
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/
Brown v. Board of Education
Questions
1. What is 'Brown v. Board of Education'? When did it take place?
2. What was the purpose of Brown v. Board of Education? What did it accomplish?
3. How did Brown v. Board of Education factor into the Civil Rights Movement?
4. Who supported Brown v. Board of Education? Who opposed it?
5. What was the final decision in regards to Brown v. Board of Education?
Sources:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/rights/landmark_brown.html
http://www.nps.gov/brvb/index.htm
http://americanhistory.si.edu/brown/
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/brown/brown-brown.html
| Jim Crow | |
| 1. Who or what was "Jim Crow?" Give a brief history about where "Jim Crow" came from. | |
| 2. How is the original "Jim Crow" significant to the problem of race relations in the United States? | |
| 3. What were "Jim Crow" laws? Give some examples of real Jim Crow laws and where were they used? | |
| 4. Discuss the impact of Jim Crow laws on the Black community and on the larger society of the U.S. Particularly address how Jim Crow laws were a factor in the Civil Rights movement. | |
| Seeds of Integration | |
| 1. Give a brief history of Berea College. | |
| 2. Why is Berea College an important site in the Civil Rights movement? | |
| 3. Give a brief history of how the Moulin Rouge Hotel is a factor in the Civil Rights Movement. | |
| Emmett Till | |
| 1. Who was Emmett Till? What happened to Emmett Till and why? Write a summary of what happened in your own words. | |
| 2. How did Emmett's mother react to what happened and why did she do what she did? | |
| 3. How did the United States as a whole react to the tragedy of Emmett Till? Write down a short paragraph to explain. | |
| 4. What was the significance of the Till tragedy in terms of the Civil Rights movement? | |
| Montgomery Bus Boycott | |
| 1. How did the boycott begin, for what reasons, and who was involved in what happened? | |
| 2. What were the goals of the boycott? What was specifically done to achieve these goals? | |
| 3. How long did the boycott last and were the goals achieved? | |
| 4. What was the significance of the boycott in regards to the Civil Rights movement? | |
| Protest Songs | |
| 1. Find the lyrics of several Civil Rights protest songs. Choose two that you particularly like or that you find are particularly significant to the movement. | |
| 2. How were protest songs used during the Civil Rights movement? | |
| Sit-In Protests | |
| 1. Give a brief history of the Greensboro sit-in at Woolworths that started the sit-in movement. | |
| 2. Find and briefly summarize two other important sit-ins that happened after Greensboro. Include information about who was involved, why, and what happened. | |
| 3. Discuss why sit-in protests were an important form of resistance during the Civil Rights era. | |
| Freedom Rides | |
| 1. Give a brief history of what freedom rides were, when they started, and their purpose. | |
| March on Washington | |
| 1. Who organized the march and for what purpose? | |
| 2. When did the march take place and who was involved? | |
| 3. What famous speech was delivered during the march? | |
| 4. What effect, if any, did the march have for the proponents of the Civil Rights struggle? | |
| Sixteenth Street Baptist Church | |
| 1. What was the role of this church during the whole of the Civil Rights movement? | |
| 2. What tragedy happened at this church and why? | |
| 3. Summarize the tragedy. | |
| 4. Discuss the reaction of the Black community, the white community, and the U.S. at large to this tragedy. | |
| Chaney, Goodman, & Schwermer | |
| 1. Who were Chaney, Goodman, and Schwermer and how were they important to the Civil Rights movement during their lives? | |
| 2. What happened to these three young men? Why? | |
| 3. Summarize the aftermath of the disappearance of the young men. | |
| 4. What is being done today in response to this tragedy? | |
| Voting Rights | |
| 1. Give a brief history of voting rights prior to 1965. | |
| 2. Why was ensuring voting rights so important, particularly to the Black community during the Civil Rights era? | |
| 3. What did the Voting Rights Act of 1965 do? | |
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4. What were some of the effects of the Voting Rights Act of 1965? Civil Rights Movement 1. What was the movement? 2. When was the Civil Rights Movement? Ruby Bridges 1. Who is Ruby Bridges? 2. How was her experience similar to the Little Rock Nine? Lyndon B. Johnson 1. Who was Lyndon B. Johnson 2. What was his stance on the Little Rock Nine?
Plessy v. Ferguson
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Conclusion
Little Rock Nine in 1957
Now that you have studied some of the important aspects leading up to the Civil Rights Movement, you will be able to read Warriors Don't Cry by Melba Pattillo Beals with a stronger appreciation for the Little Rock Nine and the struggles that they were faced with. You will use your new background knowledge about the historical context of this era to help you to better understand the events and subject matter of the novel.
Little Rock Nine in 2017 Image
Teacher Page
Research your topics thoroughly.
Answer all questions in complete sentences.
Be creative with your slide presentation.
Don't forget your title page and bibliography.
Rubric is attached to your Google Classroom.
Research to learn!!!