Primary Type: Lesson Plan
Status: Published
This is a resource from CPALMS (www.cpalms.org) where all educators go for bright ideas!
Resource ID#: 70026
Looking Over the Mountaintop: Central Ideas
This is the first lesson in a three-part series on Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech "I've Been to the Mountaintop." In this lesson, the speech has been
divided into eight sections with text-dependent questions that are specific to each section. Throughout the course of the lesson students will
determine a central idea for each section and examine King's ideas and claims and how they are developed and supported. At the end of the
lesson, students will determine an overarching central idea of the speech and write an extended paragraph to explain the central idea and how it is
developed and supported with specific evidence throughout the text. Text-dependent questions, graphic organizers, selected answer keys, and a
writing rubric have been included with the lesson.
Subject(s): English Language Arts
Grade Level(s): 9, 10
Intended Audience: Educators
Suggested Technology: Document Camera,
Computer for Presenter, Computers for Students, LCD
Projector, Speakers/Headphones, Microsoft Office, Java
Plugin
Instructional Time: 4 Hour(s)
Resource supports reading in content area: Yes
Freely Available: Yes
Keywords: Martin Luther King, MLK, Dr. King, King, mountaintop, black history, civil rights, Memphis, I've Been to
the Mountaintop
Resource Collection: CPALMS Lesson Plan Development Initiative
ATTACHMENTS
Lesson 1_Central Idea Graphic Organizer.docx
Lesson 1_Central Idea Answers.docx
Lesson 1_But I Wouldnt Stop There Graphic Organizer.docx
Lesson 1_Key I Wouldnt Stop There Graphic Organizer.docx
Lesson 1_Text Dependent Questions Graphic Organizer.docx
Lesson 1_Biblical Allusions.docx
Lesson 1_Paragraph Rubric Mountaintop Speech.docx
Lesson 1_Extensions Activity Sample Answer.docx
LESSON CONTENT
Lesson Plan Template: General Lesson Plan
Learning Objectives: What should students know and be able to do as a result of this lesson?
Students will be able to:
Cite evidence from the speech to answer text-dependent questions about Dr. King's speech "I've Been to the Mountain Top."
Analyze how King's ideas are developed, refined, and supported by particular sentences, paragraphs, and sections.
Determine King's central idea in each of the eight sections of the speech.
Determine an overarching central idea of the whole speech and analyze how it is developed and shaped through specific details.
Write an organized and focused paragraph to explain an overarching central idea of the speech, supported by evidence from the text.
Prior Knowledge: What prior knowledge should students have for this lesson?
page 1 of 5 Students will need to be familiar with:
Claim-Cite-Comment: First, you make a claim, which is an informed opinion. Secondly, cite evidence from text to support the claim. Lastly, explain how the evidence
is related to the claim.
Procedures for a Quotation Sandwich. (See Summative Assessment for the link.)
Brief background for this speech: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered this speech in Memphis, Tennessee. He was fighting for fair hiring practices and safe working
conditions for the sanitation workers. Also, King was assassinated the day after delivering this speech.
What the term "central idea" means and strategies to determine a central idea(s) in a text
Guiding Questions: What are the guiding questions for this lesson?
What is a central idea of each separate section of Dr. King's speech "I've Been to the Mountaintop"?
What is an overarching central idea of King's "I've Been to the Mountaintop" speech?
Teaching Phase: How will the teacher present the concept or skill to students?
1. For the hook, show a Youtube video clip of MLK delivering the last portion of the speech: "Be true to what you said on paper."
2. After watching, allow students to write and discuss their reactions to thevideoandMLK's central ideas in that portion of the speech. Suggestions for discussion:
1. What are MLK's central ideas for this portion of his speech?
2. What mood do you think MLK's choice of words may have invoked in the audience? What words seemed to have the most effect on the audience? Defend your
position using actual details from the speech and reactions from the crowd.
3. Dr. King says, "Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's
allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that
we, as a people, will get to the promised land!"
What can we infer about MLK's perspective regarding his "longevity"?
1. Knowing that MLK was killed the day after he delivered this speech, what do you think might have been the topic of the conversations surrounding his death?
Place students into groups with a maximum of five students. This will be their working group throughout the course of the lesson. Explain to students that they will be
reading the entire speech "I've Been to the Mountaintop" by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Go over the guiding questions with students.
1. Pass out a copy of the speech to students. Teachers might wish to copy and paste the speech into a Word document first and number the paragraphs and break the
speech into sections. Due to the length and complexity of the speech it is recommended that teachers use this chunking strategy when having students read and
analyze the speech.
Sections:
Section 1: Paragraphs 1-8
Section 2: Paragraphs 9-15
Section 3: Paragraphs 16-21
Section 4: Paragraphs 22-25
Section 5: Paragraphs 26-31
Section 6: Paragraphs 32-37
Section 7: Paragraph 38 through the line "I'm so happy that I didn't sneeze."
Section 8: The remainder of the speech
Guided Practice: What activities or exercises will the students complete with teacher guidance?
A suggested strategy to use: Allow students to read the assigned paragraphs for each section/chunk of the speech three times. First, they will read silently to
themselves. Next, they will take turns reading within their groups. Lastly, the teacher will read aloud to the entire class. Or, the students can read a section silently
to themselves and then the teacher can read aloud that section to model fluency.
After reading a section, have students work in small groups to answer any text-dependent questions for that section, share out their responses with the class, and
the teacher can provide verbal corrective feedback as needed. Students should make corrections to their work during the discussion in order to use these answers
to help them with the summative assessment. A text-dependent graphic organizer has been provided for students to use when answering the questions.
For each section, students will also work to determine the central idea for that section. A handout for student use has been provided. A suggested answer key has
been provided to assist teachers with discussion and providing feedback to students. Students should make corrections to their work during the discussion in order
to use the handout to help them with the summative assessment.
Section 1: "But I Wouldn't Stop There" (Paragraphs 1-8):
Task 1: Using a graphic organizer, students will examine each age Dr. King alludes to and write down (if the information is included in the speech) the time period,
the people, the location, and the contribution or action. A key has been provided to assist teachers with the follow up discussion, going over students' answers and
providing corrective feedback. If needed, the teacher can model filling in the first row on the graphic organizer before students complete the rest with their group.
Task 2: Students will determine the central idea for this section. The teacher can use the suggested central ideas key (this is a guide only and there is room for
interpretation on what students might determine the central idea is for each section) for discussion and providing corrective feedback to students.
Section 2: "Happy to be in the 20th Century" (Paragraphs 9-15):
Task 1: Students should look to the text to respond to the following text-dependent questions. Each group will use the Quotation Sandwich method (see the
Summative Assessment box) to construct their responses to the following questions. Each group will discuss and write their answers to the following text-dependent
questions: (If teachers need to shorten the instructional time for the lesson, students can answer the questions without using the quotation sandwich method.)
According to Dr. King, why are Negroes no longer "scratching where they didn't itch and laughing when they were not tickled"?
Why is Dr. King happy to live in the 20th century?
Task 2: Students will determine a central idea for this section.
The teacher will have groups share out their responses and provide corrective feedback as needed.
For the Remaining Sections
Students will continue the same procedure as above, answering the text-dependent questions, and then determining a central idea for that section. The teacher will
page 2 of 5 then have students report out and the teacher will provide corrective feedback as needed.
Section 3: "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around" (Paragraphs 16-21):
In this section, Dr. King recalls the struggles of the civil rights movement in Birmingham, Alabama. He reminds the audience of the attacks by dogs and water hoses
that were orchestrated by the direction of Sheriff Bull Connor. Blacks in Memphis must be as insurmountable as the people of Alabama in order to win this civil
rights fight.
Questions:
How does Dr. King defend his position that the press was not fair in the reporting of this event?
How do the protesters respond to each action taken against them by law enforcement (calling the dogs, water hoses)?
Section 4: "Injunctions!" (Paragraphs 22-25):
In this section, Dr. King explains to the audience why the injunction that has been issued to stop the protests is unconstitutional. He also attempts to encourage
ministers to take on an active role in the fight.
Questions:
How does Dr. King support his claim that the "injunction" is "unconstitutional"?
Based on the text, how would Dr. King define a "relevant ministry?"
How does Dr. King connect various biblical allusions with current problems of that time? (Note- students could use this graphic organizer to respond to this
question.)
Section 5: "Economic Power" (Paragraphs 26-31):
In this section, Dr. King stresses to the audience the economic power blacks have if only they would pool their resources. He continues to convince them that they
should continue to do business with those who are not fair in their hiring practices and working conditions.
Questions:
How does Dr. King defend his claim that "the Negro" has economic power?
What suggestions does he give for building a strong economic base?
How might Dr. King's speech have a negative impact on certain businesses and banks, based on the recommendations he provides in the speech?
Section 6: "The Good Samaritan" (Paragraphs 32-37):
In this section, Dr. King recalls the parable of the Good Samaritan. He focuses on possible reasons why the others may have passed by the injured man in the road.
He uses this parable to convince others to join the fight with the sanitation workers even though they think they aren't directly affected.
Questions:
How does Dr. King relate the issue with the sanitation workers to the parable about the Good Samaritan?
How was the Samaritan's reaction to the injured man different from the Levite and priest's reaction?
How does Dr. King use the Samaritan’s response to the injured man to convince others to support the sanitation workers?
Section 7: "If I Had Sneezed..." (Paragraphs 38- through the line "I'm so happy that I didn't sneeze."):
In this section, Dr. King recalls an incident in New York at a book signing when he was stabbed. Doctors told him that the blade was at the edge of his aorta, the
main artery. If he had sneezed, the artery would have been punctured and he would have bled out. He recalls all the events of the Civil Rights Movement, in
chronological order, that he would have missed had he died.
Question:
What events does Dr. King say he would have missed had he sneezed and died?
Section 8: "The Promised Land":
In this section, Dr. King reveals that there were threats against him regarding his stay in Memphis. He convinces the audience that he is not afraid and that God has
allowed him to see the future of the black race.
Questions:
Why is Dr. King not worried about anything despite the fact that his life has been threatened?
When speaking of the "Promised Land," why might Dr. King have said, "I might not get there with you"?
Independent Practice: What activities or exercises will students complete to reinforce the concepts and skills developed in the
lesson?
Claim-Cite-Comment: Each student will determine an overarching central idea of Dr. King's speech and demonstrate how this central idea is developed throughout the
speech by citing appropriate evidence from the text. Students will construct their answers using the Quotation Sandwich method (see Summative Assessment box),
and then students will write out their answer in the form of a paragraph.
Teachers can use the rubric found in the Summative Assessment box to assess students' paragraphs.
Closure: How will the teacher assist students in organizing the knowledge gained in the lesson?
Informal presentation: Each student will present to the class their determination of one overarching central idea of King's speech and the evidence to support that
central idea. The teacher may wish to record students' central ideas on chart paper for easy reference for the other lessons in this unit.
Summative Assessment
Claim-Cite-Comment - Each student will determine an overarching central idea of Dr. King's speech and demonstrate how this central idea is developed throughout the
entire speech by citing appropriate evidence from the text. Students will construct their answers using the Quotation Sandwich method, and then students will write
out their answer in the form of an extended paragraph.
Teachers can use this rubric to assess students' paragraphs.
Formative Assessment
The students will work in groups to read Dr. King's "I've Been to the Mountaintop." The speech will be chunked into eight different sections. As students read each
section the teacher will be able to assess students' understanding of that section through any graphic organizers they complete and any text-dependent questions they
answer.
page 3 of 5 In particular, the teacher will be able to assess if students can analyze King's ideas or claims in each section and explain how they are refined and supported by
particular sentences or paragraphs in the speech.
The teacher will be able to assess if students understand how to use appropriate evidence from the speech to answer a text-dependent question.
The teacher will be able to assess if students understand how to use a claim/cite/comment structure for their written responses.
The teacher will be able to assess if students can correctly identify a central idea for each section and support that central idea with relevant and significant
evidence from the speech.
Feedback to Students
After reading each of the eight sections of the speech, each group will present their answers to the text-dependent questions, their responses on any graphic
organizers, and their determination of the central idea and supporting evidence for that section. The teacher will provide immediate verbal corrective feedback to each
group. Each group will make revisions to their answers in order to use the materials for their summative assessment paragraph.
ACCOMMODATIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
Accommodations:
Already built into the lesson:
Use of graphic organizers and handouts to assist students with organizing their knowledge as they read and analyze different sections of Dr. King's speech.
Students will receive immediate feedback and opportunities to correct their work before they move on to reading and analyzing the next section in King's speech.
Working in teams through reading and analyzing each section of King's speech can help struggling readers with their comprehension and fluency.
For Struggling Readers:
The teacher could build in a vocabulary component to pull selected words from King's speech and work with students to use various strategies (context clues, word
parts, reference materials) to determine the meaning of these words before students work to answer the text-dependent questions or determine the central ideas
for each section.
The teacher may want to provide students with a copy of the speech the night before beginning this lesson and have students read the text and listen to an audio
version of this speech.
For Struggling Writers:
The teacher could provide sentence starters or a paragraph frame to help students with the summative assessment writing.
The teacher could provide feedback to students on the rough draft of their paragraph and then students could be provided with an opportunity to make revisions
and resubmit their work for a final grade.
Extensions:
1. Before students complete the summative assessment for this lesson, the teacher could have students use the Quotation Sandwich method (see Summative
Assessment) to practice writing a paragraph about the central idea for just one section of this speech. The teacher could have students use peer review to provide
feedback on each others' work. After students have made corrections they could take turns reporting out a few examples of their paragraphs (possibly through use
of a document camera) and the teacher could provide corrective feedback as needed. An example paragraph for one central idea (for section five) has been
included that the teacher could use with students. Then, students could move on to the summative assessment.
2. "But I Wouldn’t Stop There": Students will review section one from the speech and analyze one of the ages Dr. King mentions by conducting research and
thencreatingaPrezi.ThePrezi should give insight as to the significance of the event. It should explore the who, what, when, where, why, and how. Those events,
people, or places are:
Egypt to watch God's children cross the Red Sea.
Mount Olympus in Greece to watch Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Euripedes, and Aristophanes discuss reality.
The Roman Empire and its developments.
The Renaissance period and how it affected the cultural and aesthetic life of man.
The church of Wittenberg to watch Martin Luther place his theses on the door.
1863 to watch President Lincoln sign the Emancipation Proclamation.
The early thirties to see a president (FDR) deal with the bankruptcy of the nation due to the stock market crash.
3. "If I had sneezed..." students will do research on one of the major events in the civil rights movement that King mentions in his "If I had sneezed" part of his
speech. Students could then present their research in the form of a Prezi or PowerPoint.
Suggested Technology: Document Camera, Computer for Presenter, Computers for Students, LCD Projector, Speakers/Headphones, Microsoft Office, Java Plugin
Special Materials Needed:
Copy of Quote Sandwich Directions (see Summative Assessment).
Copy of "I've Been to the Mountaintop" speech (see Accommodations).
http://prezi.com/ - Students will need to set up an account before creating a Prezi. Note- Prezi provides a one month free trial. Alternatively, teachers could have
students use PowerPoint software instead of making a Prezi.
Additional Information/Instructions
By Author/Submitter
This lesson is the first lesson in a three-part series; however, this lesson can stand alone and be implemented independently of the other two.
ID 70235 - Looking Over the Mountaintop: Figures of Speech and Rhetorical Devices
ID 70397 - Looking Over the Mountaintop: Tone and Perspective
page 4 of 5 SOURCE AND ACCESS INFORMATION
Contributed by: Nekeshia Harris
Name of Author/Source: Nekeshia Harris
District/Organization of Contributor(s): Gadsden
Is this Resource freely Available? Yes
Access Privileges: Public
License: CPALMS License - no distribution - non commercial
Related Standards
Name
LAFS.910.RI.1.1:
LAFS.910.RI.1.2:
LAFS.910.RI.2.5:
LAFS.910.W.1.2:
LAFS.910.W.3.9:
Description
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences
drawn from the text.
Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges
and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.
Analyze in detail how an author’s ideas or claims are developed and refined by particular sentences, paragraphs, or
larger portions of a text (e.g., a section or chapter).
Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and
accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
a. Introduce a topic; organize complex ideas, concepts, and information to make important connections and
distinctions; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., figures, tables), and multimedia when useful to
aiding comprehension.
b. Develop the topic with well-chosen, relevant, and sufficient facts, extended definitions, concrete details, quotations,
or other information and examples appropriate to the audience’s knowledge of the topic.
c. Use appropriate and varied transitions to link the major sections of the text, create cohesion, and clarify the
relationships among complex ideas and concepts.
d. Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to manage the complexity of the topic.
e. Establish and maintain a formal style and objective tone while attending to the norms and conventions of the
discipline in which they are writing.
f. Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the information or explanation presented
(e.g., articulating implications or the significance of the topic).
Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
a. Apply grades 9–10 Reading standards to literature (e.g., “Analyze how an author draws on and transforms source
material in a specific work [e.g., how Shakespeare treats a theme or topic from Ovid or the Bible or how a later
author draws on a play by Shakespeare]”).
b. Apply grades 9–10 Reading standards to literary nonfiction (e.g., “Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific
claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false
statements and fallacious reasoning”).
page 5 of 5