The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963
By Christopher Paul Curtis
What would it be like to be ten years old back in 1963?
Yes, you're right, there would be no cell phones, no laptops, no DVDs,
but
What was America like?
What was the music and culture like?
What was the political environment like?
This was a turbulent time in American history!
Through these activites, you will learn the answers to these questions.
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Christopher Paul Curtis
He was born in Flint Michigan
He and his wife Kaysandra have a son, Steven, & daughter Cydney
For 13 years he worked on the assembly line putting doors on Buicks
He got the idea for Watsons from a family trip he took from Flint to Florida
The Watsons Go to Birmingham --1963 was his first book
His hobbies: basketball, collecting old record albums, and writing!
His favorite authors: Toni Morrison, Kurt Vonnegut, or Zora Neale Hurston
The Watsons go to Birmingham--1963
Bud, not Buddy
Bucking the Sarge
*AWARDS for The Watsons go to Birmingham--1963
1996 Newbery Honor Book
1996 Coretta Scott King Honor Book
An ALA Top Ten Best Book
An ALA Best Book for Young Adults
An ALA Notable Children's Book
An IRA Young Adults' Choice
The Jane Addams Peace Award Honor Book
A Booklist 25 Top Black History Picks for Youth
An NCSS-CBC Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies
Bank Street Child Study Association
Children's Book Award
A New York Times Book Review Best Book
A Publishers Weekly Best Book
A Horn Book Fanfare
A Bulletin Blue Ribbon
A Golden Kite Award for Fiction
Winner of the California Young Reader Medal
*AWARDS for Bud, not Buddy
Newbery Medal Winner
A Coretta Scott King Author Award Winner
An ALA Best Book for Young Adults
An ALA Notable Children's Book
An IRA Children's Book Award Winner
An NCSS-CBC Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies
A School Library Journal Best Book
A Publishers Weekly Best Book
A New York Times Notable Book
This is the authors advice to young writers: "Writing is not magical; it's not mystic. Keep it fun. You're in control -- you create people and places, you're like a little God when you write. Like anything else in life, if you're serious about it, do it everyday. Stay in practice. At first it seems hard, but your mind is so fantastic, it learns how to make it easier. And remember that when you write about your family, what you know, it just has more truth --- it sounds believable." (http://www.kidsreads.com/authors/au-curtis-christopher-paul.asp)
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Poetry Activity:
Christopher Paul Curtis got the idea to write The Watsons go to Birmingham -- 1963 from a trip he took with his family. He (like Dad) decided to drive 24 hours straight to get to Florida. The problem was, when his characters got to Florida--- nothing happened. Then his son brought home the poem "Ballad of Birmingham" by Dudley Randall, and that poem inspired him to change his story and have the Watsons drive to Birmingham and become a part of a great American tragedy. Now let's see how these two writers inspire you!
First, read the poem "Ballad of Birmingham" by Dudley Randall CLICK HERE http://www.ctadams.com/dudleyrandall4.html
Next, write a poem with a connection to The Watsons go to Birmingham -- 1963 (the characters, the setting, the conflicts, or the bombing). The style of the poem is your choice. When it's done, print a hard copy and submit it to me. Then you will submit it to an online poetry contest.
Civil Rights Activity:
1. Alone, or with a partner, research the events of the Civil Rights Movement, then make an annotated timeline of the significant (important) events. You can use the links on this Website, or search for your own. You can use the program "Timeliner" to help structure your timeline. Be sure to include photos and/or graphics.\
2. View the PowerPoint "A Day of Sorrow and Shame" about the 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing- CLICK HERE
Then research the political activity that went on at the 16th Street Baptist Church. Write an essay about what you learned. Be sure to include information about the political consequences of the bombing. Or, make an annotated timeline of the civil rights events at the church, as well as a timeline of the events in the search for justice for the four dead girls.
Geography Activity:
Do a MapQuest of the trip from Flint, Michigan to Birmingham, Alabama. Plan a family trip you would like to take along this route. Search on the Internet for interesting stops along the way. Produce an itinerary (plan) that will include at least four interesting stops along the way. Include photos and information about your scheduled stops. You may work with a partner.
Family Activity:
Kenny talks about the "Weird Watsons". Well, now go visit the "Strange Singers". Take a look at my family, and then tell us about your family. CLICK HERE TO VISIT WITH THE "STRANGE SINGERS"
American Culture Activity:
You will go on a "Scavenger Hunt" on the Internet. Scavenger hunts were popular in my neighborhood in the early 1960's. During a party, groups of kids would be given a list with random items on it. Then each group left the party and scavenged through the neighborhood, ringing doorbells, and trying to find the items (things like a bobby pin, a ruler, a can of creamed corn, whatever). The group who returned with the most items on their list won the game. Now this is what you'll do: The American Culture section is a collection of links to Web sites that will give you a glimpse of what the early 1960's were like. Visit the sites, and using the questions on the "All You Wanted to Know About the 1960's" hand-out, find as many answers as you can. Then create a computer collage about the 1960's. You may work with a partner.
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The Civil Rights Movement brought a powerful and just change in America. Hard work by determined people over many years finally yielded wonderful results. To learn more, do the following:
1. View the video, "Marching in Alabama"' at United Streaming. Log on as NY.student & Use the password WLIW. Now CLICK HERE for the video
2. View my PowerPoint CLICK HERE
3. Check out some of these links http://www.abbeville.com/civilrights/washington.asp
http://www.abbeville.com/civilrights/index.asp
http://www.abbeville.com/civilrights/chronology.asp
4. Think about all the ways America is a better place today. Remember, the results of the Civil Rights Movement did not only help blacks. This movement brought equality and protection of the law to blacks, women, and all minorities- ethnic or religious. So, there's a very good chance that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s work has benefited you and your family.
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What was happening in 1963? Well----
Zip codes were first used
The computer mouse was invented by Douglas Engelbart
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech
Now you will go out on the Web and explore these sites to learn more about 1963
http://www.bbhq.com/cgi-bin/boomeryr.pl?63 Events of 1963
http://www.factmonster.com/year/1963.html Fact Monster -- Information Please
http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0005251.html Events from the 60's --read about 1963
http://school.discovery.com/schooladventures/womenofthecentury/decadebydecade/1960s.html Women of the 60's
http://www.historychannel.com/perl/timeline.pl?year=1963 History of the World Timeline- 1963
http://www.factmonster.com/spot/civilrightstimeline1.html#1960 Civil Rights Timeline
http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/travel/civilrights/sitelist1.htm Sixteenth Street Baptist Church
http://www.factmonster.com/ce6/ent/A0860765.html Rock Music of the late 1950's & early 1960's
http://www.filmsite.org/aa63.html 1963 Academy Award winners
http://www.bbhq.com/bomrtv1.php?caller=intro Television shows of the early 1960's
http://www.filmsite.org/1963.html Greatest films of 1963
http://www.infoplease.com/year/1963.html Facts of the year 1963 world & U.S. events, sports, entertainment, economics, science, and deaths
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1963 chronological events of 1963
http://www.baseball-almanac.com/yearly/yr1963a.shtml Baseball almanac of 1963
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Maureen Singer, West Hollow Middle School, Melville, NY, [email protected]
