Who Was Linda Brown?

Essential questions

1. How does one person make a difference?

2. How does change last?

3. What is activism, and how might it affect people?

Outcomes and objectives

After the lesson students will…

1. Describe Linda Brown’s contributions through her adolescent and adult life.
2. Explain persistent activism and how it might support sustained social change.
3. Make inferences about major themes in Linda Brown’s life.

Preparing to teach

Review the materials section below. Be sure you have access to the text(s) for students to use, especially the book Linda Brown, You Are Not Alone by Joyce Carol Thomas (author) and Curtis James (illustrator).

Review the pacing of activities and activity structure, in particular jigsaw (https://www.bell-foundation.org.uk/eal-programme/guidance/classroom-guidance/great-ideas/jigsaw-activities/). 

Scaffolds and accommodations to support learners

Reading supportS are built into the task descriptions, notable scaffolds for reading includE:

• Setting a clear purpose for the students using the prompts provided and clear expectations for the phases of the tasks.
• Tampering with complex texts by offering everyday language alternatives to more complicated phrases in the reading materials.
• Using a structured highlighting strategy for students as a pre- or during reading activity can add time but serve as a valuable support (ex. highlight blue anything confusing; highlight yellow anything that’s related to the prompts; highlight purple anything you understand clearly but is new learning for you).

Adjusting for UPPER ELEMENTARY GRADES 4-6

• The book Linda Brown, You Are Not Alone is a grade level 5 and up/10 years old and up text (Lexile measure 560L). To adjust for grades 5-6, we recommend eliminating the NPR task and focusing on first establishing the context with students, including reviewing some key vocabulary that might be challenging.
• Modifying prompts to make sure the language is accessible for the students you are working with will help scaffold for access and clarify what is expected.
• Extended time for the jigsaw activity will compensate for removing the NPR reading task and offer students additional sense-making time. If the extra time is not needed, using the alternative assessment where students respond to the prompts by either writing a short piece or designing an informational pamphlet about the life of Linda Brown would make for enriched assessment and formative learning.

Instructional activities sequence

1. Review Brown v. Board of Education (see short summary in materials section) – 10 min.
   • This could be done as a quick Q&A if material has already been learned or a more detailed PowerPoint for direct instruction.
   • Alternative review: Print out the summary with some key words removed and replaced with a “__________” (blank space) for students to fill in. This is also a nice reading support for students.
2. Read NPR article about the life and death of Linda Brown and discuss/respond to the following questions with evidence from the article – 25 min.
   1. Who was Linda Brown?
   2. How did she feel about the persistence of segregation in Topeka schools (and schools throughout the U.S.)?
   3. What do you think Linda Brown’s legacy is?

Example structure of response: Linda Brown was an activist for desegregation, put at the center of the fight as a child during the Brown v. Board of Education 1954 case without really knowing what it was about. Evidence from NPR article: “Brown v. Board of Education involved several families, all trying to dismantle decades of federal education laws that condoned segregated schools for black and white students. But it began with Brown's father, Oliver, who tried to enroll her at the Sumner School,” and a quote from Linda Brown, “My parents tried to explain this to me, but I was too young at that time to understand.”

Note: This activity could be structured in different ways. However it is structured, be sure to press students to have varied answers and reference parts of the article to support what they think. You might also talk about sourcing and the quality of an NPR article as opposed to another source like an op-ed piece or a blog post about her life.

• Students could read on their own, then discuss the questions and highlight or make note of evidence in the text for their responses.
• Reading supports could include a small group read-along or reading as a whole class (pre-recorded audio to listen together can help with this too), followed by a small or whole-class discussion of the questions.

Jigsaw activity to read selected excerpts from Linda Brown, You Are Not Alone.

Select chapters for the student groups in their first group (expert group) to read together. This serves as a reading support as well as positions students in a particular role with responsibilities for group two (teaching group), where they will explain their chapter themes, ideas, and outcomes to the group.

Group one (expert group): For a class of 30 students, you would want the initial grouping to be five groups of six students. Each of these groups is assigned a chapter to read and be responsible for attending to the following:

1. What is the chapter about generally?
2. What do you think the major theme or main idea is?
3. What did you learn from the chapter that you didn’t know before reading?
4. What are the most important ideas to share with the rest of the class?

Group two (teaching group): For this grouping, ask students while in group one to number off by 1-6 within each group, then find their new group to teach each other about their chapters. This requires some moving around, so be ready with your typical procedures for changing seats or re-grouping.

Assessment

Exit ticket responding to the prompts from the jigsaw or written responses/notetaking during the jigsaw can serve as valuable assessment tools for this lesson.

Alternative: Students could write a short paragraph with support from their reading and groupwork in response to a prompt like: What was Linda Brown’s role in the fight for desegregation? How does her activism affect us today?

Materials needed and additional resources for enrichment

• Review of Brown v. Board of Education, 1954

Brown v. Board of Education was a landmark case in the United States that challenged the constitutionality of racial segregation in public schools. The case originated in Topeka, Kansas, where Black children were required to attend separate schools for Black students, which were often inferior in quality to those attended by white students. The plaintiffs argued that this segregation violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, which guarantees equal rights to all citizens.

The case reached the Supreme Court in 1954, and in a unanimous decision, the Court, led by Chief Justice Earl Warren, declared that state laws establishing separate public schools for Black and white students were inherently unequal and unconstitutional. This decision overturned the precedent set by the 1896 case Plessy v. Ferguson, which had upheld the "separate but equal" doctrine.

The Brown v. Board of Education decision marked a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement, as it laid the groundwork for desegregation efforts across the country and challenged the legal basis of segregation in other public facilities. It played a crucial role in the ongoing struggle for racial equality in the United States.

• Linda Brown, You Are Not Alone: The Brown v. Board of Education Decision by Joyce Carol Thomas (author) and Curtis James (illustrator) https://www.amazon.com/Linda-Brown-You-Are-Alone/dp/0786808217 

This is a collection of short stories and poems about Linda Brown and related topics.

Table of Contents:
Who Is Linda Brown? Joyce Carol Thomas pg. ix

Introduction 
Joyce Carol Thomas pg. xiii

Wonamona
Jerry Spinelli pg. 3

Desegregation
Eloise Greenfield pg. 15

Legacy
Eloise Greenfield pg. 16

Anthony
Lois Lowry pg. 27

St. Louis
Quincy Troupe pg. 43

The Prophet
Katherine Paterson pg. 55

Stormy Weather
Michael Cart pg. 73

Color Blind
Ishmael Reed pg. 85

The Awakening
Jean Craighead George pg. 97

My Dear Colored People
Leona Nicholas Welch pg. 107

• NPR Article, “Linda Brown, Who Was At The Center of Brown v. Board Of Education, Dies” March 26, 2018 https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/03/26/597154953/linda-brown-who-was-at-center-of-brown-v-board-of-education-dies