4 Great Martin Luther King Jr. Activities for Elementary Students

I have gathered several products and lessons to teach Martin Luther King Jr. activities in this blog post. This is such a significant holiday in the classroom. Teaching the history of what Martin Luther King Jr. did and what he fought for is very important to teach in the classroom. It helps educate the students about U.S. history, an important historical figure, and how to use Dr. King’s beliefs in their every day lives. Here’s a breakdown of Martin Luther King Jr. lessons and activities.

Watch Martin Luther King Jr. Videos.

Brain Pop Jr. has a video and other activities for Martin Luther King Jr.

If there is a Brain Pop video for a topic, I always introduce the topic with one of these videos. They are so informative and my students always loved Moby and Annie. Click the link above to watch the video geared towards Martin Luther King Jr. for kids.

Reading About MLK Jr.

Each of these images above are links to affiliate books on Amazon. 

• Martin Luther King Jr.: My First Biography
• Martin Luther King Jr: National Geographic Kids
• What Was the March on Washington
• We March
• Who Was Martin Luther King Jr.
• Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Source: January Paired Passages

Martin Luther King Jr. is featured in my January Paired Passages. There is a nonfiction and fictional story about him with comprehension activities, writing, and comparison activities. In the nonfiction text, students will learn about the historical figure. In the fiction text, they’ll see how students are celebrating the holiday in their classroom with a play.

Source: Winter Readers Theater

We also read through a Martin Luther King Jr. script which is included in my Winter Reader’s Theater. This is a three-character play that it set in the year 1965. The two girls are interviewing Dr. King. The students can practice their fluency and comprehension while also learning a little bit about Dr. King. This would be a great idea for Martin Luther King Jr. activities that tie in fluency and comprehension practice.

Source: Martin Luther King Jr. Flip Book

This includes reading passages with four comprehension questions, a sorting sheet with what Martin Luther King Jr. wanted, and what he did not want, and also includes a writing page for students to write down what they have learned.

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Shop Martin Luther King Jr. Activities From This Blog Post:

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Want to learn even more about Social Studies topics for January and February? Check out these blogs:

• Best Books for Black History Month
• President’s Day Activities
• Chinese New Years Books for the Classroom

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