Originally written on January 20, 2020 by Dee Lanier.

A few years ago, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was designated as a snow make-up day for schools in my kids’ district in Charlotte, NC. Teachers and parents across the district were up in arms, “could no other day be chosen instead?” many of us lamented. I remember seeing a friend that offered a perspective that I honestly was not prepared to immediately respond to. He said, “My kids went to school today and it was great! They learned about MLK all day and came back sharing facts that I never knew… It felt like this is what the holiday should be about.” That’s when it hit me. Holidays are often treated as a day without work or learning, but what if it was a day to actually do both? So to all of my parents and educators, here is an activity the Laniers will be engaging in on this incredibly important day. Want to see how it goes? Feel free to periodically check my updates on Twitter here.

Print and cut these  DIY Civil Rights add-on cards to pair with your original Solve in Time cards. You may need to print several copies if want to give multiple groups the same option, or make the activity completely structured by presenting the same problem to solve to all groups. Note, the Civil Rights edition is part of the Equity Problem Pack, if you would like to purchase the full set here.

Organize participants into groups of 3 or 4 (I have 4 kids ages 9-13, so there’s one team!) and distribute your Solve in Time! cards so that you have one of every color for each small group of 3 or 4. Have each group choose a topic of interest from one of the topics or have them choose at random.

Set the Stage

Watch the first 6:50 of this video of MLK speech excerpts and discuss. Suggested questions to ask:

• WHAT was something memorable that you heard?
• HOW did it make you feel?
• WHY do you think Dr. King is mostly loved today, but was hated during his lifetime?

If time permits, have each team read and discuss this article from AP News. Notice not only the historical context, but the relevance of these very issues today. State that these were issues that Dr. King fought for in the 1950’s and 60’s as part of what is known as the Civil Rights Movement. In today’s activity, we will try and come up with solutions to these problems to continue in the work of civil rights in society.

Time to Play!

Set aside at least 30 min (not including share time) for play with Solve in Time! cards. Optional, use this presentation slide with preset timers to guide the activity. If your kids come up with some fun responses, please feel free to share out on social media using #SolveiT and #MLK.

Extend The Play

Extend this learning experience by finding MLK quotes and facts related to each topic. Here are a few examples:

“We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality.”

— I Have a Dream speech, August 28, 1963

“The time has come for an all-out world war against poverty. The rich nations must use their vast resources of wealth to develop the underdeveloped, school the unschooled, and feed the unfed. Ultimately a great nation is a compassionate nation.”

— The Quest for Peace and Justice, 1964

“Segregation…not only harms one physically but injures one spiritually…It scars the soul…It is a system which forever stares the segregated in the face, saying ‘You are less than…”You are not equal to…'”

— The Christian Way of Life in Human Relations, Address Delivered at the General Assembly of the National Council of Churches, 1957

“We are tired of paying more for less. We are tired of living in rat-infested slums… We are tired of having to pay a median rent of $97 a month in Lawndale for four rooms while whites living in South Deering pay $73 a month for five rooms.”

— Poor People’s Campaign, 1966

“So long as I do not firmly and irrevocably possess the right to vote I do not possess myself. I cannot make up my mind — it is made up for me. I cannot live as a democratic citizen, observing the laws I have helped to enact — I can only submit to the edict of others.”

— Give Us the Ballot, 1957

“We must concentrate not merely on the negative expulsion of war, but on the positive affirmation of peace.”

— Nobel Lecture, 1964

You’ve read this far, which means you may be willing to try something new. Try this!