Introduction
This webquest is designed to give students a more complex understanding of the Civil Rights Movement. The goal in this activity is to give students different perspectives of 4 individuals who were activists during the movement.
Task
Students will have the opportunity to discover the actions of 4 civil rights activist from Monday-Thursday. In doing this students will be able to understand the similarities/differences of the activists, the different methods used to obtain their goals, and the lasting impacts of each individual. They will hand in notes on each individual. Then each students will randomly be given an activist to write a 2-4 page paper. Students will work on the paper on Firday. Both assignments will be due on the following Monday.
Process
Day 1: Research the life and activism of Martin Luther King Jr.
- Identify his political viewpoints and his reasons/inspirations for believing them.
- Locate his strenghts/weakness.
- Identify key events that defined his legacy.
- Why/How did he have a 'change of heart' at the end of his life?
- Explain the impact of his assassination and the effect it had on the black community. (Note he was only 39)
- Understand his lasting impact on the movement.
Websites for research
http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/martin-luther-king-jr
http://www.ushistory.org/us/54f.asp
http://www.thekingcenter.org/about-dr-king
Day 2: Research the life and activism of Robert F. Williams.
- Identify how his upbringing shaped his beliefs and politics.
- Understand the difference between armed-self defense and nonviolent actions.
- What people were on his agenda? Why did he focus on these individuals?
- Explain the significance of his role on the local level.
- Locate the difference between National and Local Civil Right Movements.
- Discover why he becomes friends with Communist leaders and wanted by the F.B.I.
- Understand his lasting impact on the movement.
Websites for research
http://www.northcarolinahistory.org/encyclopedia/186/entry/
http://www.sea-urchin.net/buggers/williams.html
http://www.aavw.org/protest/early_rfw_abstract04.html
http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/negroeswithguns/rob.html
Day 3: Research the life and activism of Malcolm X.
- Identify the tragedies his family endured and how it shaped his political stance (especially the murder of his father shaped his political stance.)
- Identify why he changed his name numerous times.
- Explain how each name symbolized a significant period of his life.
- What politcal party did he join?
- What political party did he join
- What were his religious beliefs?
- What were his views on white people?
- Explain the impact of his assassination and the effect it had on the black community (if possible correlate both X and King's assassinations and note they were both 39 years old.)
- Understand his lasting impact on the movement.
Websites for research
http://www.biography.com/people/malcolm-x-9396195
http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780195390155/obo-9780195390155-0122.xml
http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/malcolm-x
Day 4: Research the life and activism of Angela Davis.
- Identify he upbring and the classing between white and black citizens.
- Explain what 'dynamite hill?'
- What was her educational background?
- Why did she lose her job?
- Why was she on trial for murder?
- What was the verdict in the trial?
- What role did she have as a women's activist?
- After her lecturing, what became her steady job?
- Understand her continual impact on the movement.
Websites for Research
http://www.biography.com/people/angela-davis-9267589
http://www.jayepurplewolf.com/PASSION/ANGELADAVIS/
http://womenshistory.about.com/od/aframerwriters/p/angela_davis.htm
Evaluation
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Category |
4 Excellent |
3 Very Good |
2 Needs Improvement |
1 Little Effort |
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Notes/Answering Questions(20 points) 5 points for each individual |
Students successfully answered every question, giving through answers with each question. |
Students answered most questions, gave good answers, but lacking depth. |
Students answered some questions, but only responded with little description. |
Students answered little to no questions, lacked much response, if any given. |
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Paper Assignment (2-4 pages) (70) points |
Clear thesis statement. All paragraphs include introductory/topic sentences, explanations and details. Not only lists facts, but gives depth and insight.
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Clear thesis statement. Most paragraphs include introductory/topic sentences, explanations and details. Facts are listed, but needs more depth and insight.
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Confusing/Lack of good thesis statement. Paragraphs included related information,but were typically not constructed well.
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No thesis statement. Paragraph structure was not clear and sentences were not typically related within the paragraphs. |
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Mechanics (10 points) |
8 or less typographical errors. |
10 or less typographical errors. |
15 or less typographical errors. |
20 or more typographical errors. |
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Conclusion
Through my learning of the Civil Rights Movement I realized I had not learned much at all. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks did not make the movement, the movement made them. Society glorifies these two, but there were so many others who made contributions to the movement but there are many underlining stories of the movement. Only talking about violence discredits the movement. In this task students will not only discover the success and stuggles of activists, but the legacies they have left behind.
At the end of the research students should be amazed at the many challenges of the Civil Rights Movement. They will have a newer appreciation of the time and bloodshed of the men and women of the time period. They should also realize the struggles in the movment still remain in society, especially with recent police brutality on African-Americans.
Credits
This lesson was created by William Patrick Whisker on April 29, 2015.
Teacher Page