Featured Sites Week of: Aug 23, 2026 - I have a Dream Day and Martin Luther King, Jr.

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Martin Luther King Jr - Van Andel Institute for Education

Grades
K to 8
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Van Andel Institute for Education offers five creative and thought-provoking topics to help students explore the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. Featured lessons include "Explore...more
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Van Andel Institute for Education offers five creative and thought-provoking topics to help students explore the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. Featured lessons include "Explore the Life of Martin Luther King Jr.," "Scrambled Civil Rights," "Unsung Heroes of the Civil Rights Movement," "Virtual Tour of Memphis," and "Take a Stand Mountain." Each lesson plan is offered at three levels (grades K-2, grades 3-5, and grades 6-8). Each activity is presented through Google Slides and includes built-in support for educators, featuring instructions, time estimates, learning objectives, and student reflection opportunities.

tag(s): civil rights (224), martin luther king (42)

In the Classroom

Students can use Book Creator reviewed here to create a class book after learning about the "Unsung Heroes of the Civil Rights Movement." Students can use Time Graphics Timeline Maker reviewed here to create their own scrambled timeline. Students can create a word cloud using WordClouds reviewed here of words related to Martin Luther King, Jr.

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African American Activists of the 20th Century - Library of Congress

Grades
6 to 12
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Discover a rich collection of historical photographs and illustrations showcasing influential African American activists throughout history. Each image is clickable, allowing you to...more
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Discover a rich collection of historical photographs and illustrations showcasing influential African American activists throughout history. Each image is clickable, allowing you to explore detailed descriptions, historical context, and related resources to understand better these prominent figures and their contributions to social justice. This resource is an excellent visual tool for educators teaching African American history and the Civil Rights movement.

tag(s): 20th century (171), african american (131), black history (133), civil rights (224), martin luther king (42)

In the Classroom

Have students select an activist from the website, research their life and achievements, and create an interactive digital timeline using tools like Canva, reviewed here or Class Tools, reviewed here. Have students choose an activist and prepare a short presentation or monologue in character, sharing their achievements and struggles. Turn the classroom into a "living museum," with students acting as historical figures. Using the website images as inspiration, students can create hand-drawn or collaged posters highlighting an activist's achievements, including key facts, quotes, and visuals. Ask students to select an activist, research their contributions, and create a short podcast episode using Acast, reviewed here or Podbean, reviewed here explaining their importance.

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Short History Of... - Paul McGann and John Hopkins

Grades
6 to 12
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Short History Of... is a weekly podcast that takes listeners back in time to learn the stories behind historical events. Hear about diverse topics like Elvis Presley's rise from a ...more
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Short History Of... is a weekly podcast that takes listeners back in time to learn the stories behind historical events. Hear about diverse topics like Elvis Presley's rise from a working-class truck driver to one of the best-selling music artists of all time and the cultural and economic factors leading to the French Revolution of the late 18th century. Each podcast runs about an hour long and is available on most podcast streaming sites.

tag(s): africa (162), american revolution (99), artists (106), authors (116), churchill (6), colonial america (86), colonization (22), d day (11), dickens (10), dinosaurs (48), disasters (35), diseases (59), england (49), explorers (65), great depression (33), greece (47), india (33), industrial revolution (21), korea (21), lincoln (65), listening (118), martin luther king (42), native americans (162), olympics (49), pearl harbor (16), podcasts (183), presidents (152), pyramids (24), renaissance (36), rome (38), roosevelt (16), rosa parks (9), russia (32), shakespeare (99), st patricks day (10), underground railroad (15), vietnam (41), westward expansion (42), womens suffrage (64), world war 2 (169), wright brothers (17)

In the Classroom

Add this podcast to supplement your current list of history resources. Organize and share resources with students using Wakelet, reviewed here or Padlet, reviewed here. Wakelet and Padlet offer tools that make it easy for students to collaborate and share information. Enhance learning by sharing a podcast as an introduction to a new unit and asking students to discuss what they learn. Consider using Project Zero's Thinking Routine Toolbox, reviewed here to encourage student understanding and develop critical thinking skills. For example, the Step-in, Step-out, And step-back routine can help students view people and events from different perspectives. Extend student learning by asking them to develop a script and share a podcast as a final assessment of your unit using a free tool such as Buzzsprout, reviewed here or Spotify for Podcastors, reviewed here.

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The Best of Our Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Resources - Learning for Justice

Grades
3 to 12
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Learning for Justice has compiled an invaluable collection of resources to help educators explore Dr. King's work beyond the "I Have a Dream" speech. From lessons on economic injustice...more
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Learning for Justice has compiled an invaluable collection of resources to help educators explore Dr. King's work beyond the "I Have a Dream" speech. From lessons on economic injustice and civil rights to multimedia tools and primary texts, these materials foster meaningful discussions on social justice, past and present.

tag(s): civil rights (224), martin luther king (42)

In the Classroom

Students could identify a modern injustice, draw parallels to Dr. King's methods, and propose peaceful solutions. Assign students to analyze and reflect on Dr. King's speeches and letters to understand his rhetoric and goals.

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The Plainest Demands of Justice: Documents for Dialogue on the African American Experience - Bill of Rights Institute

Grades
8 to 12
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This seven-lesson curriculum uses primary source documents to teach students about the efforts of individuals and groups, from colonial times through the present, working to ensure...more
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This seven-lesson curriculum uses primary source documents to teach students about the efforts of individuals and groups, from colonial times through the present, working to ensure the ideals of the Declaration of Independence with a focus on civil rights issues. Beginning with the Declaration of Independence and ending with current times, each lesson includes objectives, links to resource materials, and extension activities. Free registration is required to access all materials in the lesson plans. In addition, registration allows members to save their favorite activities to a personal library, share a link to your LMS (Learning Management System), and add lessons to custom playlists.

tag(s): 1700s (39), 1800s (90), 1900s (87), 20th century (171), bill of rights (40), civil rights (224), declaration of independence (26), martin luther king (42), primary sources (165), slavery (82)

In the Classroom

Bookmark and save these lessons to supplement your current American History curriculum. Each lesson includes links to primary source documents; use these resources to find materials not typically available in a broader curriculum. Engage students in the lesson activities and introductory essays using Pear Deck, reviewed here, to create interactive presentations that include guiding questions, videos, and formative assessment questions. Extend learning by asking individual students or groups to present their concluding analysis as a multimedia presentation with their peers. For example, Lesson 1 includes six questions for the concluding analysis activity. Assign a question to six different groups of students and ask them to share their responses through a video presentation created with Adobe Express Video Maker, reviewed here, or as a website created with Google Sites, reviewed here.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Freedom's Ring - Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute

Grades
5 to 12
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Freedom's Ring is an interactive website project created by the Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University. This site provides an immersive, multimedia...more
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Freedom's Ring is an interactive website project created by the Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University. This site provides an immersive, multimedia experience where students can take an in-depth look into the Civil Rights period of American History. Students may explore the speech by choosing to display Dr. King's written words, spoken words, or both while listening to the recording. Throughout the address, lines of text are highlighted and lead the reader to a more in-depth look at the time period or reasonings for particular words used. The multimedia player where the speech is displayed makes it easy for students to pause and play by using the spacebar and marking sections of the text that have links to further information with longer lines. The entire site is also indexed, so students may choose to read the entire speech and view the entire directory of supplemental materials.

tag(s): black history (133), civil rights (224), martin luther king (42)

In the Classroom

This resource takes a comprehensive look inside Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s famous speech. Teachers may want to use this site to engage students by playing the address at the beginning of a lesson or by having students preview the oration by scrolling through and observing the pictures and graphics displayed throughout. Instruction can be enhanced by having the students view and analyze the supplemental materials and videos. Extend your student's knowledge by having them create their own interactive slide analyses presentations made with Canva for Education, reviewed here to reflect on their learning and share with their peers. You may also want to ask students to comment on others' videos to compare similar and different viewpoints.

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This is a wonderful site. Karen, VA, Grades: 0 - 12

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Unpublished Black History - The New York Times

Grades
6 to 12
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Browse through unpublished images from The New York Times archives published daily during February's Black History Month recognition, including short background information about the...more
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Browse through unpublished images from The New York Times archives published daily during February's Black History Month recognition, including short background information about the picture's subject. Email signup isn't required; scroll past that portion at the top of the page to browse the content. Images include well-known entertainers, sports, political figures, and pictures commemorating everyday events. In addition, each entry has a link to a New York Times article.

tag(s): 1950s (33), 1960s (54), 1970s (30), 1980s (21), black history (133), civil rights (224), famous people (40), journalism (74), martin luther king (42), movies (51), rosa parks (9), sports (90)

In the Classroom

This page is perfect for sharing with students to explore and find people and events of interest. The page is quite lengthy; if looking for specific information such as an event in a particular city or a person, use the search for text feature on your computer to find that information. On a Mac, use "Command+F"; on a Windows device, use "Ctrl+F"; another method for easier viewing is to click on the magnifying glass found on the bottom, left-hand corner of an image. This option allows viewers to scroll through a slide show of the images that include a short description of the activity. As students find information to research further, use the Wikipedia Timeline Generator found at Class Tools, reviewed here, to view a chronological list of events related to that person or event. Use other templates found in class tools to extend learning further. For example, use the Venn Diagram generator to organize and understand overlapping events and people involved or ask students to use the Fakebook generator to create a fictional social profile for one of the people featured on the New York Times page. Extend learning by asking students to become reporters and write news articles about current or past Black History events not found in this article. Consider using a simple web-publishing tool like Telegra.ph, reviewed here, to create and share articles that include student-created text along with images and web links.

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Black History Milestones: Timeline - History.com

Grades
6 to 12
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Learn about important events in Black history in the United States, starting with the arrival of 20 enslaved people brought into the British colony of Virginia in 1619 and continuing...more
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Learn about important events in Black history in the United States, starting with the arrival of 20 enslaved people brought into the British colony of Virginia in 1619 and continuing through present times. This timeline updates frequently and includes the latest and most relevant milestones related to Black history. Each entry consists of images or videos along with a summary of the event; many also have links to additional information and resources.

tag(s): black history (133), civil rights (224), martin luther king (42), presidents (152), racism (82), rosa parks (9), slavery (82), women (192)

In the Classroom

Include this timeline with your Black history and civil rights resources. Share with students using Padlet, reviewed here, along with other resources including videos, weblinks, and reading suggestions. Other considerations for using Padlet are to use the column feature in Padlet to sort information by dates or use the timeline option to build a visual timeline of the events shared in this timeline and additional ones taught in class. Ask students to share their understanding by creating timelines using the templates found at Canva Edu, reviewed here or Knight Lab, reviewed here.

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Facing History and Ourselves - Facing History and Ourselves

Grades
6 to 12
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Using history to connect students to choices made in the past, Facing History provides lessons and curated collections that address racism, bigotry, and prejudice. Visit the For Teachers...more
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Using history to connect students to choices made in the past, Facing History provides lessons and curated collections that address racism, bigotry, and prejudice. Visit the For Teachers from the top menu to browse through videos, lessons, and complete teaching units. Within the same area, explore the many examples and instructions for teaching strategies, including ideas such as character charts and cafe conversations. Learn more at the Professional Development area of Facing History through classroom videos and free one-hour webinars. Educators who complete a workshop, seminar, or course are eligible to use the site's free lending library.

tag(s): bullying (39), civil rights (224), democracy (29), holocaust (42), immigrants (50), immigration (86), journalism (74), martin luther king (42), racism (82), religions (120)

In the Classroom

Discover the many free resources found on this site to include with your teaching units. If you find that some of the reading material is useful, but is above the reading level of your students, use a summarizing tool such as SummarizeThis, reviewed here, to break down large portions of text into manageable content. Include activities from this site as part of a larger unit using a learning management system such as Curipod, reviewed here. Use Curipod to build an interactive learning experience that includes videos, reading activities, quizzes, and images. Extend student learning by asking them to become the creators through sharing their knowledge with others. Provide options for students to create audio podcasts with Podcast Adobe, reviewed here, make explainer videos using Adobe Creative Cloud Express Video Maker, reviewed here, or use Google My Maps, reviewed here, to take viewers on a virtual journey through map locations.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Martin Luther King Jr. Day - Myvocabulary.com

Grades
4 to 10
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As part of their extensive site for vocabulary, roots, and more, MyVocabulary.com has added a themed area for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Find interactive vocabulary activities using...more
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As part of their extensive site for vocabulary, roots, and more, MyVocabulary.com has added a themed area for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Find interactive vocabulary activities using Martin Luther King Jr. vocabulary words. You will also find printable crosswords, fill in the blanks and more, all using the same theme words. This and other "themes" available on the site will make vocabulary development fun.

tag(s): african american (131), black history (133), civil rights (224), holidays (292), martin luther king (42), vocabulary (261)

In the Classroom

Use this site to reinforce and support vocabulary as you study MLK Jr. Share the word puzzles on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Have students create their own word activities from the same vocabulary list, such as matching or ranking challenges for their peers to try on the interactive whiteboard.

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Citizen King - PBS Online

Grades
8 to 12
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View this Youtube Playlist to see a PBS special focused on the last five years of Dr. Martin Luther King's life, from his "I Have a Dream" Speech in 1963 ...more
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View this Youtube Playlist to see a PBS special focused on the last five years of Dr. Martin Luther King's life, from his "I Have a Dream" Speech in 1963 to his assassination in 1968. Highlights include a discussion of his non-violence philosophy. This is a great resource for a 20th century American history class. If your district blocks YouTube, the video may not be viewable.

tag(s): 1960s (54), 20th century (171), africa (162), african american (131), black history (133), civil rights (224), martin luther king (42)

In the Classroom

Share the interactive videos clips and timelines on your projector or interactive whiteboard. Extend learning by using a tool such as WeVideo (was playposit), reviewed here, where you can insert questions for students to discuss. Use this site for research about the civil rights movement or the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. Then show your students how to embed media transforming their work into a multimedia presentation with a tool like Marq (was Lucidpress), reviewed here, or Canva, reviewed here.

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Exploring the Power of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Words through Diamante Poetry - ReadWriteThink / NCTE

Grades
9 to 12
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Reading, writing, and thinking come together with history in this beautifully detailed lesson plan that focuses on the power and passion of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream"...more
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Reading, writing, and thinking come together with history in this beautifully detailed lesson plan that focuses on the power and passion of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. After reading and interpreting the text, students are asked to create original poetry using words and themes taken from King's speech. All materials, including rubrics, handouts and worksheets (mainly PDF, a captioned audio clip, video clip, related Web resources, and links to NCTE/IRA standards) are included.

tag(s): african american (131), black history (133), civil rights (224), holidays (292), martin luther king (42), poetry (196)

In the Classroom

This lesson plan is ready to go, includes interactive elements, and is even linked to national standards. English class and history class can team up on this lesson and discuss the poetry and history behind King's magical words.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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March on Washington Lesson - PBS Newshour

Grades
6 to 12
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These 10 featured items, from the website for the PBS Newshour Extra, offer both a set of structured questions about integration and racism and a set of resources that documents ...more
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These 10 featured items, from the website for the PBS Newshour Extra, offer both a set of structured questions about integration and racism and a set of resources that documents Dr. King and the struggle for equal rights in America. The lesson includes links to important documents, extension activities, thinking questions, audio and video footage, and correlations to National Standards in history, civics, culture, and more.

tag(s): 1960s (54), african american (131), black history (133), civics (131), civil rights (224), holidays (292), martin luther king (42)

In the Classroom

These lesson plans are ready to use and easy to follow! The extension activities offer some excellent higher order thinking questions. After sharing video footage with your students, why not project one of the extension activities on your interactive whiteboard or projector? Enhance learning by having students create a blog with Telegra.ph, reviewed here to answer the questions in the extension activities. With Telegra.ph you just click on an icon to upload images from your computer, add a YouTube or Vimeo, or X (formerly Twitter) links. This blog creator requires no registration.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Famous Quotes of Martin Luther King, Jr. - wikiquote

Grades
4 to 12
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This site features countless quotes from Martin Luther King, Jr. with reference to where and when he said them. This site can be helpful as a starting point for students ...more
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This site features countless quotes from Martin Luther King, Jr. with reference to where and when he said them. This site can be helpful as a starting point for students to find important dates and events in Martin Luther King's life. Be aware this site is user-contributed, but most quotes include attribution to a source. The Discussion tab at the top reveals comments by other user-contributors regarding certain quotes that they dispute.

tag(s): african american (131), black history (133), civil rights (224), holidays (292), martin luther king (42)

In the Classroom

Share these quotes with your students around Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. The quotes can also be used throughout the month posted for reflection or read aloud. Have students rewrite the quotes in their own words.

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