Lesson Plan - History Makers: Rosa Parks

Watch a Video
Watch the video “Working to Make Change.” Discuss: Based on the video, what are civil rights? What happened during  the civil rights movement?

Preview Words to Know
Project the online vocabulary slideshow and introduce the Words to Know.

• boycott
• civil rights

Set a Purpose for Reading
As students read, have them identify what makes Rosa Parks a history maker.

1. What kinds of laws did Rosa Parks think were unfair, according to the article?
According to the article, Parks thought laws that segregated White people and Black people were unfair. These laws said that Black people had to go to separate restaurants, schools, and theaters. They had to sit in the back of public buses and give up their seat if a White person wanted it.
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2. Based on the article, what do you think was the purpose of the Montgomery Bus Boycott?
You can infer that the purpose of the Montgomery Bus Boycott was to show city leaders that Black people were tired of the laws that segregated people by race on public buses—and to draw attention to those unfair laws.
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3. What do you think would be another good title for this article? Explain.
Sample response: Another good title for this article might be “A Hero of History” because a hero is someone who takes brave actions to help others. Rosa Parks did this when she was willing to get arrested to protest unfair laws.
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FEATURED SKILL: Types of Questions
Distribute the skill builder “Four Kinds of Questions,” and discuss how students should approach “right there,” “think and search,” “author and me,” and “on my own” questions. Have students work in pairs to complete the skill builder and report back to the class.
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