When Thunder Comes: Poems For Civil Rights Leaders

Written by Patrick Lewis
Illustrated by Jim Burke, R. Gregory Christie, Tonya Engel, John Parra, and Meilo So
Copyright ©2012
Published by Chronicle Books

Reading Level: Grades 3-5
Fountas and Pinnell Guided Reading: N
Lexie Reading Level 500L
Accelerated Reader Points: 0.5

Genre: Poetry, Diversity

Description:
A collection of poems to remember and inspire civil rights activists. These poems highlight some of the memorable moments around the relating to civil injustice and civil rights triumph.

5 words/phrases to describe the book: Diversity, Civil Rights, Activists, Hope, Hardships.

Suggested Delivery: Read Aloud, Independent Reading, Small Group Reading.
Depending on the students this book would be great to use in small group discussions. I would suggest that for a small project students choose one Civil Rights Leader to do further research on.

Technology Resources:
pbs.org is a great resources about civil rights. Students can choose a civil rights leader and do a research project using reputable sites like pbs.
Biography.com is also a great website for information.

Before During and After Activities:

Before Reading:
Create a KWL chart asking students what they know and want to know about civil rights.

During Reading:
Have students practice reading out loud in groups. Have students do partner or popcorn reads. Students can read one poem each out loud. To assess students look for the signs of fluency: accuracy, rate, and prosody. Speaking and listening during this activity helps students to understand the poems because they can hear the words and vocabulary being read out loud.

After Reading:
Finish the KWL chart. Have students choose one poem from the book and think about the theme of the poem and what the author is trying to say. The students should try to use vocabulary they have learned from the book in their response.

Vocabulary:
Civil Rights:the rights of citizens to political and social freedom and equality.

Ku Klux Klan: a secret organization in the southern U.S., active for several years after the Civil War, which aimed to suppress the newly acquired powers of blacks and to oppose carpetbaggers from the North, and which was responsible for many lawless and violent proceedings.
Tarnish: to diminish or destroy the purity of; stain; sully
Justice: rightfulness or lawfulness, as of a claim or title; justness of ground orreason
Caste:each of the hereditary classes of Hindu society, distinguished by relative degrees of ritual purity or pollution and of social status; any class or group of people who inherit exclusive privileges or are perceived as socially distinct.
Unmitigated: absolute; unqualified