Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Activities for Celebrating with Your Kids
by Katy Abel
Keep the Dream Alive
"He wanted all the brown kids and white kids to like each other."
"He wanted everybody to sit on the bus wherever they want."
"He had a dream and it was so big and then he died."
In honor of the gifts Dr. King gave our nation, try these five creative ways to help children celebrate his vision of hope and sense of humanity.
Create a Multicultural Banquet!
One of Martin Luther King's greatest achievements was his ability to help Americans appreciate diversity. Celebrate his birthday with an eclectic holiday dinner featuring cuisine from different countries or geographical regions. Serve Puerto Rican rice-and-beans, Boston clam chowder, a Chinese stir-fry, and a peach pie from Dr. King's native Atlanta. The variations on this theme are endless, and the dinner doesn't need to be time-consuming. You can achieve almost the same effect by stopping for takeout from Kentucky Fried Chicken, Taco Bell, and your local pizza parlor (Italian or Greek).
Decorate with Many Colors
What's a birthday party without decorations? Here's a great MLK Day activity to do with younger children: Make the classic paper chains using black, white, red, yellow, and brown construction paper to represent the various skin tones found across our nation. Show kids the symbolism behind the craft: "Each link represents a hand, and our chain reminds us that Dr. King joined hands with people of all colors when he marched for freedom." A variation on this theme: Children can trace their own hands, then color them in using different skin-tone shaded crayons.
Walk the Walk
Most children learn about Dr. King as an individual, but the changes that came about during the Civil Rights era of the 1950s and 1960s were the result of a massive social movement, not the actions of one man. A good way to press home that point with kids is to "just take it to the streets" as a group of family and friends. Plan a walk to raise money for a local charity or nonprofit organization that your children care about. Ask relatives and neighbors to sponsor your family for a certain amount of money per mile (or block). Although the cause may be different than those Dr. King fought for, the message to children will be the same: "When we all march together, we can change things."
School-aged children will enjoy helping to identify a worthy cause; they can also chart your trek on a local map. Make sure the distance you choose is realistic for younger children, but also long enough so they appreciate that old saying of the Civil Rights era: "My feets is tired but my soul is rested." Finally, when it's time to send in your donation, make sure you note that it is made in honor of King's memory.
Visit Another House of Worship
Many children think Dr. King was a physician; they have no idea that he was a minister who preached regularly. Celebrate his birthday weekend and promote religious tolerance by taking children to a church, temple, or synagogue other than your own. If you're Roman Catholic, visit a Baptist Church so your children can hear a gospel choir like the one at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, where both Dr. King and his father preached. If you're Methodist, attend Saturday morning Shabbat services at a local synagogue. Share your thoughts and feelings with kids about the unfamiliar prayers and rituals, while promoting the common threads: "Even though we sing different hymns, we all believe in the same God."
In the famous "I Have a Dream" speech, Dr. King told the nation he dreamed of a day when his four little children would "not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." As a family, consider these three situations, each of which poses a test of character. Try to guess how Dr. King would have chosen to act, then consider what your own response might be.
Best Friends
Joe, Tim, and Gregory were best friends who played on the same hockey team, hung out at each other's houses, and always ate lunch together in the school cafeteria. One day on the playground, they started playing fireball with a new kid named Josh. Josh was pretty good at the game, but he moved more gracefully than the other boys, and Joe thought he looked like a girl, darting across the playground. Josh also wore a silver bracelet, and Joe thought that was weird. He whispered to Gregory and Tim, then yelled over to Josh:
"Hey, are we playing fireball or having a ballet lesson here? I didn't know you were gay, Josh."
Josh looked surprised and hurt. Tim was holding the ball, and everyone looked at him to make the next move.
If you were Tim, what would you do or say? What would Dr. King do?
Math Class
Every Friday afternoon, Ms. Parker handed back the Thursday math quizzes done by the fifth-graders at the Martin Luther King Jr elementary school. She'd make some general comments about how the class did, and then stroll the aisles of the classroom picking up individual students' work.
"This is a good example of a bad calculation right here," she said, pointing to Jennifer's paper. "What Jennifer should have done, and hopefully will do correctly next week..."
As she spoke, Jennifer lowered her head in shame. Some of the other students snickered. Sarah passed a note to her friend Amy.
"I am so sick of her picking on kids," Sarah wrote. "Ms. Parker shouldn't call attention to people's mistakes in front of everybody. I'm going to talk to her. It's not fair!"
"Aren't we brave," Amy wrote back. "And stupid, too. Don't say anything or she'll give you a bad grade. You can't change a teacher; you're just a kid!"
If you were Sarah, what would you do? What would Dr. King do?
Kid Brother
Seven-year-old Derek sits down on the couch to watch his favorite cartoon. His two-year-old brother Garvin wanders into the room and starts crying that he wants to watch Teletubbies.
"You watched TV all morning and now it's my turn," says Derek. But Garvin stands in front of the screen and won't move.
"Get out of the way!" yells Derek. His brother yells back: "No!"
"If you don't get out of the way, I'll make you move and you won't like it!" warns Derek. But his brother won't budge. Derek gets off the couch. His mother is upstairs working on her computer. She told Derek to stay out of her office, that she was busy and he was in charge.
If you were Derek, what would you do? What would Dr. King do?
