This Martin Luther King Jr Day Reading Comprehension Worksheet gives 2nd graders a short passage about Dr. King plus multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank, and short-answer questions. Answer key included—an easy, no-prep way to build reading skills.
This Martin Luther King Jr writing paper gives 1st graders a themed page with a kindness prompt and roomy lines, so young writers can share how they will be a helpful friend.
This MLK Day ABC Order Worksheet gives 2nd graders fun practice putting Martin Luther King Jr.-themed words in alphabetical order. Includes a complete answer key — perfect for no-prep holiday literacy practice at home or school.
A dream worth talking about
Kids learn that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a leader who worked for equal rights for all people, especially African Americans, during the Civil Rights Movement. Younger children learn that he believed people should be treated fairly no matter their skin color, and that he changed unfair laws with peaceful words and marches instead of fighting. Older kids learn about the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the March on Washington in 1963, and his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. The click comes when kids connect his ideas to fairness in their own classroom.
Big history, told in a way kids can hold. Read, talk and reflect.
Read a short passage about Dr. King aloud, stopping to ask "Was that fair? What did he do about it?" Then kids answer the questions on their own. Talking first gives everyone the words to write.
Why it works: showing first, practicing together, then letting kids try alone is the "gradual release" model teachers have relied on for decades (Pearson and Gallagher, 1983).
Try it withMartin Luther King Jr Day Reading Comprehension WorksheetWorksheetsOpen it →Kids put MLK vocabulary words like peace, dream and equal in ABC order, then pick one and tell what it meant to Dr. King. It's a gentle way to practice a skill while talking about big ideas.
Why it works: kids understand an idea best when they touch it, then draw it, then write it, the order the U.S. Department of Education recommends for elementary math.
Try it withMLK Day ABC Order WorksheetWorksheetsOpen it →Ask kids "What is your dream for making the world better?" They draw it and write a sentence on special writing paper. Displaying the dreams together makes a powerful hallway board.
Why it works: pairing a picture with each word gives kids two ways to remember it, a well-tested principle of how people learn (Mayer, 2009).
Try it withMartin Luther King Jr Writing PaperWorksheetsOpen it →Teacher favorites right now: Martin Luther King Jr Day Reading Comprehension Worksheet, Martin Luther King Jr Writing Paper and MLK Day ABC Order Worksheet.
Say that a long time ago, some laws treated people unfairly because of their skin color. Dr. King worked peacefully to change those laws so everyone would be treated equally.
It's celebrated on the third Monday of January each year, near his birthday on January 15. It became a federal holiday in 1986.
Dr. King gave it in 1963 at the March on Washington. He shared his hope for a country where people are judged by their character, not the color of their skin.
Read a picture book biography, talk about fairness, then have kids write or draw their own dream for the world. Many families also do a service project together.
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