North Branch School was in session today to honor the life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We began the day with a special morning assembly. Charlotte talked for a bit about Dr. King’s life and the things that were different in the time before the Civil Rights movement. We had several special guests, among them parents and friends. We also enjoyed seeing several former students who came back to spend the day with their classes. The Big Room was decorated with posters and art that students have been working on:
Here are some interesting facts about Dr. King from the Little Rock School District website, among others: “In 1957 Dr. King was elected president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and between 1957 and 1968 he traveled over six million miles and spoke over 2,500 times. In these years he led a massive protest in Birmingham, inspiring his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail;” he planned the drives in Alabama for African-American voter registration; he directed the peaceful march on Washington, D.C., of 250,000 people to whom he delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech; he conferred with President John F. Kennedy and campaigned for President Lyndon B. Johnson; he was arrested more than 20 times and assaulted at least four times; he was awarded five honorary degrees; he was named “Man of the Year” by Time Magazine; and he became the symbolic leader not only of African Americans but also of people of all races all around the world.”
The students in the middle school annex got an interesting lesson on segregation:
We were lucky to have one of the school parents come in and share this song with us:
Another video to come tomorrow…