Ideas for Martin Luther King Day

“Did that really happen?” my son William asked me one cold January day.  “Did people with brown skin have to sit at the back of the bus?  Could they really not drink from all the drinking fountains?”

We were driving home from school, and I could see his perplexed face by looking at him in my rear view mirror.

“That’s not fair.”

It was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, and his class had just performed a play which dramatized when Rosa Parks said "no" when asked to give up her bus seat to a white passenger.  Ms. Parks was played by a pigtailed Chinese girl and the “seat stealer” was a chubby cheeked Korean boy. The rest of the four-year olds were “passengers” – a rather diverse group -- all swinging their feet and sitting happily side-by-side as their parents smiled from the audience and took photos.

Holidays have a vital role in your child’s life because they allow us to talk about our past, our values, and our future – all at once!  This year, why not make an extra effort to celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day with your family?

1.  One way is by reading the Caldecott Honor Book called Martin’s Big Words.  The author takes us on Martin’s journey from being a small boy reading and contemplating “White Only” signs in his hometown, to the church pews where he heard his father preach with “big words,” to marches for the civil rights he dreamed would one day become everyone’s reality:

“The marches continue.  More and more American listened to Martin’s words.  He shared his dreams and filled them with hope. ‘I have a dream that one day in Alabama little black boys and black girls will join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brother.’”

The largely drawn, poetic text, the true compelling story, and beautiful earth-toned collage makes this book the kind you’d want on your kids’ bookshelf.  It’s a message of courage, hope and possibility.

2.  Another way to celebrate the day is by service.  Did you know that Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a day of volunteering?

Service projects come in all shapes and sizes. Some are sponsored by single organizations, while others involve wide-ranging partnerships of charities, communities of faith, government agencies and businesses. Some take place at the most local level—a school or a street—while others are citywide. Some are designed as single-day projects, while others continue long into the future. Some focus specifically on the life and teachings of Dr. King, while others draw on his message to unite people around a common goal.  But all programs should strengthen awareness of the King Day of Service and bring more people into service.

Click here for a few tips to get you started.

3. To really understand Dr. King, your kids must see the "I Have a Dream" speech, which we posted in its entirety below.  They may not get all the way through it, but they'll certainly benefit by becoming familiar with his sing-song cadence that invigorated a nation.

4.  After watching the clip, you could steer the dinner conversation this week to talk about his remarkable life. Need some conversation starters?  Ask your children some of the following questions to stir up interest:

A.    How was Martin Luther King, Jr. able to make such a difference?

B.    What characteristics did he have that made him so effective?  Do you share these characteristics?

C. How could you become more like him? Are there ways in which you wouldn’t want to be like him?

D.    What was his “Dream?”  Why is it important?

E.    What do you hope to achieve in life?

Of course, these are just a few ways to help you "parent deliberately" during Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.  His is the type of story you want your kids to ponder while staring out the windows and contemplating the world of possibilities.