Martin Luther King Speech Analysis - "What is Your Life's Blueprint?" (Digital)

“What is Your Life’s Blueprint?” - Speech Analysis

****This resource is for an analysis of Martin Luther King's speech, "What is Your Life's Blueprint?" It includes a paper and digital version of student resources. If you would prefer similar resources that are designed to be used in an Interactive Notebook, check out the Interactive Notebook Speech Analysis Mini-Unit HERE.****

You and your students will absolutely LOVE this close reading mini-unit for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s speech, “What is Your Life’s Blueprint?” One of King’s most inspiring speeches, its content and message to be the very best person you can be is perfect for students.

This resource is designed for 2-3 days of engaging, rigorous, and motivational instruction. The resource begins with a building background jigsaw activity as students become experts on segregation, Jim Crow Laws, The Montgomery Bus Boycott, and the Civil Rights Movement. Students develop greater context for the speech by reading about and completing a timeline on Martin Luther King, Jr.’s life. Then, students dive deep into the analysis of the speech as they interact with and investigate the speech four different times and ways. Their close readings enable them to react to the text, connect with the speech, analyze the speech, and personally reflect on King’s message. The end result is a celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy and work, an understanding of the society that fueled the Civil Rights Movement, and development of critical reading, writing, and analyzing skills.

Great news! This resource includes a traditional PDF version of the student packet, as well as a link for Google Slides. This means that this resource is ready for Google Classroom! The digital version of the packet is accessible from any computer and allows students to complete their work online.

This detailed unit includes:

• Detailed Lesson Plans (5)

• Nonfiction Reading Passages for Building Background (4)

• Biographical Article about Martin Luther King, Jr.

• Student Packets

---- Building Background

---- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Timeline

---- Critical Vocabulary

---- Reacting to the Speech

---- Connecting to the Speech

---- Analyzing the Speech

---- Reflection

• All Instructional Keys

IMPORTANT: The speech is NOT included in this resource. However, links are provided to access the speech online.

During this unit, students will...

• Read and comprehend literary nonfiction

• Cite textual evidence to support analysis

• Determine the central idea of a text

• Determine the meaning of words as they are used in a text

• Analyze how particular elements of the text contribute to the overall meaning of the work

• Determine the speaker’s point of view

• Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims

CCSS addressed in this resource:

• RI.1, RI.2, RI.4, RI.5, RI.6, RI.10

• SL.1, SL.3

• L.4, L.6

Ready to take this unit to a whole new level? Just pair it with this interactive study of Martin Luther King, Jr.!

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