Marka Carson

Ahimsa Center Summer Institute

July 2005

Ruby Bridges: One Little Girl’s Brave Act

This lesson is designed for a 2nd Grade class, to be done in one 60-80 minute session, or in two consecutive sessions, with additional extension activities.

Summary of Lesson:

This lesson is designed to introduce the students to a real 6-year old African American girl, Ruby Bridges, who had an effect on life today through her attendance at a previously all-white school in New Orleans in 1960. Through facts presented, a narrative picture book read aloud, and a guided discussion, the students will gain an understanding of how actions by individuals and groups in the past contribute positively to our life today.

California State Standards

Social Studies:

2.1 Students differentiate between things that happened long ago and things that happened yesterday.

2.3 Students explain governmental institutions and practices in the United States and other countries.

2.5 Students understand the importance of individual action and character and explain how heroes from long ago and the recent past have made a difference in others’ lives.

Language Arts:

Reading Comprehension

2.3 Use knowledge of the author’s purpose to comprehend informational text.

2.4 Ask clarifying questions about essential textual elements of exposition (e.g, why, what, if, how).

2.5 Restate facts and details in the text to clarify and organize ideas.

2.6 Recognize cause-and-effect relationships in a text.

In addition, many English Language Development (E.L.D.) Standards, for various proficiency levels, are embedded in this lesson and the extension activities.

Goals and Outcomes:

  • Students will be introduced to (or learn more about) an individual whose actions in the past have made a difference for life today.
  • Students will understand the power that an individual, including a child, can have on changing a situation.
  • Students will understand the basic concept of the word segregation.
  • Students will encounter a child hero who exhibited bravery in a situation of conflict, without being violent.
  • Students will be able to put a human face on segregation in the United States.
  • Students will recognize their own feelings in response to the story read to them.
  • Students will demonstrate empathy for the story’s character(s) or situation.
  • Students will gain a better understanding of the concept of cause-and-effect.

Objective:

Students will be able to explain who Ruby Bridges is, and how she contributed to desegregation in 1960.

Larger Context:

“Students in grade two explore the lives of actual people who make a difference in their everyday lives and learn the stories of extraordinary people from history whose achievements have touched them, directly or indirectly.”- California State Social Studies Standards

This lesson is very much aligned with this focus, and the fact that this actual person, Ruby, is a young child adds to the appeal for students at this grade level. The lesson also fits within the context of numerous other topics. It could be included within a larger unit on the Civil Rights movement, or a study of Dr. Martin Luther King’s work. It could be a part of a Character Education program or Emotional Intelligence teaching, specifically in the areas of emotional awareness, empathy, optimism, and conflict management. It is directly about the relationship of individuals to their larger society, and about how societal changes can occur through legislation and without physical violence. It could be related to the concepts of heroism and self-sacrifice for the betterment of others. Another related theme is conflicts and differences among people and how they can be resolved nonviolently.

Materials needed:

PowerPoint “Ruby Bridges-One Little Girl’s Brave Act” Compiled by Marka Carson

Book: The Story of Ruby Bridges By Robert Coles, Illustrated By George Ford (Scholastic Inc. 1995).

Procedure

Session 1, if covering over two consecutive sessions

1.Show the students the PowerPoint, reading the text aloud and giving viewing/thinking

time on each slide.

2.Using the Discussion Questions at the end of the PowerPoint, guide the class in talking

about their responses, either in small groups or as a whole class.

Session 2, if covering over two consecutive sessions

3.Have the class sit in a way that all students can see the illustrations in the book

The Story of RubyBridges. Explain that the book you’re going to read is about the

same real girl that they learned about in the PowerPoint.

4.Read the book aloud to the class, allowing viewing/thinking time on each 2-page

spread.

5.At the end of the story facilitate a class discussion using the following questions and

prompts as a guideline:

  • Describe what Ruby did that helped to change things in her school.
  • How did you feel listening to this story? Why?
  • Why do you think the author wrote this book?
  • What caused Ruby to act the way that she did?
  • What caused the people in the crowd to act the way they did?
  • Have you ever been afraid to do something, but done it anyway? What was it?
  • How did it feel after you did it?
  • What would have happened if Ruby hadn’t gone to that school?
  • Which person in this story would you most like to meet? Why? (It would be helpful to review the numerous people in the book, including Ruby’s parents; her teacher, Mrs. Henry; the Judge; the Marshals; and the people in the crowd).
  • What questions would you like to ask those people?

Assessment:

At the conclusion of the lesson, can students orally or in written/picture form explain who Ruby Bridges is and what she did that made a difference in 1960? At a higher level of understanding, can they relate that to life today?

Extension Activities:

Read excerpts and view photographs from Through My Eyes By Ruby Bridges (Scholastic Press, 1999), then discuss the content.

Write a letter to Ruby Bridges, either as the 6-year old she was in The Story of Ruby Bridges, or to the adult Ruby of today. This could be done as a whole class together, in small groups, pairs, or individually. The content could be responses to what she did, questions about it, or about how it made a difference for life today.

Visit the Ruby Bridges Foundation website ( to learn about Ruby’s current work.

Ask the students to look for and collect examples of people doing things that make a positive difference in their own community. They could check the local newspaper for stories and pictures, and/or do their own writing and illustrations to explain it. Display the collection in a special classroom space, or in an area of the school where other students and staff can view them.

Search out and read other stories of real people, including children, who have made a positive difference through their actions.

Help the students to identify something that they would like to improve about their school, neighborhood, or city. It could be a small thing, like having less trash on the ground on the school campus. Develop a manageable plan to make it better. Help them to achieve their goal. When they do, or even if they don’t, discuss and write about what it was like, helping to make a positive difference for those around them and for themselves.

Resources Used:

Books

Bridges, Ruby Through My Eyes, Scholastic Press, 1999.

Coles, Roberts The Story of Ruby Bridges, Scholastic Inc., 1995.

Workshop

Hesselgrave, Margaret “Nonviolence and Emotional Intelligence” workshop,

Ahimsa Center Summer Institute, July 19, 2005.

Website