For Kids

Interested in learning more about Martin Luther King Jr. and other leaders of the Civil Rights movement? See the book lists below. You will also find the names of black Americans who made significant contributions.

Check out some of these resources!

06880 Essay Contest Winners

Where Westport meets the world.

1. TEAM Westport “White Privilege” Essay Winners Announced
   Honest, powerful, insightful, sensitive, and clear, the top three essays—as judged by a panel of writers—tackle the hot topic exactly as it should be: head on.
   https://06880danwoog.com/2017/04/03/team-westport-white-privilege-essay-winners-announced/
2. TEAM Westport Essay Winners Shine Diverse Lights On Micro-Aggressions
   Chet Ellis is a perceptive observer of Westport, and the world. He’s also a clear, incisive writer.
   https://06880danwoog.com/2019/04/04/team-westport-essay-winners-shine-diverse-lights-on-micro-aggressions/

Book List Recommendations

1. Best Civil Rights Kids Books List:
   https://www.the-best-childrens-books.org/civil-rights-kids.html
2. Children’s Bibliography from the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel:
   https://www.speakcdn.com/assets/2417/Childrens-Bibliography.pdf
3. Coretta Scott King Book Awards:
   http://www.ala.org/awardsgrants/awards/24/all_years
4. Exploring the Civil Rights Movement:
   http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/resources/civilrights
5. MLK 360 Booklist About Dr. King’s Legacy:
   https://www.carnegielibrary.org/mlk-360-a-childrens-booklist-about-dr-kings-legacy/
6. Reading Rockets—Books for Martin Luther King Jr. Day:
   https://www.readingrockets.org/booklists/books-martin-luther-king-jr-day
7. Scholastic Books:
   https://www.scholastic.com/parents/books-and-reading/raise-a-reader-blog/5-must-read-books-celebrating-martin-luther-king-jr-older-kids.html

Multimedia

1. Virtual Tour of Martin Luther King Jr.’s Childhood Home:
   https://www.nps.gov/malu/learn/photosmultimedia/virtualtour.htm

Leaders of the Movement and Vocabulary

Listed below are the names of black Americans—some children—who made significant contributions; and, in fact, in some instances lost their lives for the Civil Rights movement. This may not be a complete list; can you identify others? Also included are key vocabulary words related to the movement.

Prominent Leaders: Children/Young People

• Linda Brown
• Ruby Bridges
• Greensboro 4
• Little Rock 9
• Emmett Till
• Children’s Crusade students
• Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Carol Denise McNair

Prominent Leaders: Adults

• Ella Baker
• Daisy Bates
• Septima Clark
• Medgar Evers
• Fannie Lou Hamer
• Dorothy Height
• Jesse Jackson
• John Lewis
• Thurgood Marshall
• Diana Nash
• Rosa Parks
• Jo Ann Robinson
• Bayard Rustin
• Fred Shuttlesworth
• Andrew Young

Vocabulary
Development

1. Civil Rights
2. Demonstrations
3. Desegregation
4. Discrimination
5. Equality
6. Freedom
7. Integration
8. Jim Crow Laws
9. Movement
10. NAACP
11. Non-violent Protests
12. Prejudice
13. Protests
14. Civil Rights Act—July 2, 1964