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“An Integration Investigation”
Holly Blakely
In this lesson students will develop a higher level of empathy for the first black students to attend a white school following the Brown vs. Board of Education ruling of 1954. Through the Internet, students will view a Norman Rockwell painting, hear song lyrics and examine other primary source documents. This multi-faceted approach will provide students with a broad overview of the effect of Brown vs Board of Education..
- Student access to Internet
- Norman Rockwell questions (Bell Assignment)
- Rockwell, Norman. "The Problem We All Live With." National Museum of American History. http://americanhistory.si.edu/Brown/resources/pdfs/unit6/54-object-rockwell-print.pdf.
- Idris, Andrew. "Turbulent Times: Brown vs. Board." http://library.thinkquest.org/C004391F/new_page_14.htm
- Melba Pattillo fill-in-the-blank handout
- Scholastic. "The Melba Pattillo Story." http://teacher.scholastic.com/barrier/hwyf/mpbstory/index.htm.
- Bridges, Ruby. Through My Eyes. New York: Scholastic Press, 1999
- McKenna, Lori. "Ruby's Shoes." http://www.rubybridges.com/home.htm.
- footprint cut-outs for displaying writing
- Morrison, Toni. Remember: The Journey to School Integration. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2004.
- Shore, Diane. This is the Dream. New york: HarperCollins, 2005.
- Fradin, Dennis and Judith. The Power of One: Daisy Bates and the Little Rock Nine. New York: Clarion, 2004.
- Ruby Bridges. DVD. Directed by Euzhan Palcy. Burbank, CA: Walt Disney Home Entertainment, 2004
90 minutes
2Y3
What were the effects of the Brown vs. Board of Education ruling of 1954 on society?
Students will analyze Norman Rockwell's The Problem We All Live With painting. (found at http://americanhistory.si.edu/Brown/resources/pdfs/unit6/54-object-rockwell-print.pdf ) They will briefly answer questions about the print. (Suggested questions are listed below.) This print is also available for purchase from the Norman Rockwell Museum at http://www.nrm.org/ for $12-$15.
Suggested questions:
1. Who are the people in this painting?
2. What is happening?
3. Where do you think these people going?
4. Describe the expression on the little girl's face. What do you think she is thinking?
The teacher will share a personal story (and photo, if available) of a person he/she believes to be a COURAGEOUS person. The teacher will follow the story with photos of Ruby Bridges and Melba Pattillo, two girls that showed courage during the Civil Rights Movement and the fight to end school segregation in the 1950's and 1960's. (Photos of Pattillo and Bridges are available from sites listed below.)
BEFORE LESSON
Key vocabulary:
- The teacher will display key vocabulary and meanings on chart paper while previewing them with students orally.
- Brown vs. Board of Education
- United States Supreme Court
- NAACP
- Integration
- courage
DURING LESSON
Teaching Strategies:
- The teacher will take students to a computer lab or provide alternate access to the internet. Students will be directed first to http://library.thinkquest.org/C004391F/new_page_14.htm to read, along with the teacher, an overview of Brown vs. Board of Education.
- Students will then be directed to http://teacher.scholastic.com/barrier/hwyf/mpbstory/index.htm for an article on Melba Pattillo and the Little Rock Nine. Students will complete the fill-in-the-blank handout as they read the article.
- The teacher will then read aloud Through My Eyes, by Ruby Bridges (if unavailable, students may be directed to http://www.rubybridges.com/ and/or http://pbskids.org/wayback/fair/fighters/fighters_02_2.html for the Ruby Bridges story). The teacher will once again show the Norman Rockwell painting from the Bell Assignment, informing students that the little girl in the painting is Ruby Bridges. Students will share their Bell Assignment responses.
AFTER LESSON
- Students will view lyrics while listening to Lori McKenna'a "Ruby's Shoes". (Song is available for listening at www.rubybridges.com/home.htm and lyrics are available at http://www.songmeanings.net/lyric.php?lid=3530822107858570362 .)
- Students may respond to the "How Would You Feel?" section at http://teacher.scholastic.com/barrier/hwyf/mpbstory/index.htm and then print the response to attach to a footprint cut-out for display in the hallway or classroom.
- Students may write about a person he/she thinks to be courageous. Students may share their writings (and photos, if available) with their classmates. These may be typed/published and compiled in a class book that is titled by the students.
- Students may want to further their readings to include (all available for purchase at http://www.amazon.com/ ):
- Remember:The Journey to School Integration by Toni Morrison
- This Is the Dream by Diane Shore
- The Power of One: Daisy Bates and the Little Rock Nine by Dennis and Judith Fradin
- Students may enjoy viewing Disney's video/DVD, Ruby Bridges. (Also available at http://www.amazon.com/ )
- Students may further research and report on key figures of integration, to include:
- Thurgood Marshall
- Chief Justice Earl Warren
- President Dwight Eisenhower
- Governor Orval Faubus
- The Little Rock Nine
- Daisy Bates
Written Response/Application/Extending: Students will research editorials, letters to the editor, and political cartoons dealing with the Brown decision in local newspapers at Troup County Archives. They will draw conclusions about how the decision was received in their own community. Students may also wish to discover the names of the first black students to integrate the schools in their community, which may allow for interview opportunities if the individuals are still living in the area.
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