Unlocking Close Reading by Linda Feaman

Author:Linda Feaman
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: 9781625219282, Nonfiction, Maupin House, Education/Curricula, Teaching Methods & Materials/Reading
Publisher: Capstone
Published: 2015-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

CENTRAL IDEA: Medgar Evers was a hero because he made a choice to make a difference knowing he was putting himself in danger by doing so.

Medgar Evers:

ANNOTATED CONSTRUCTED RESPONSE EXEMPLARS

Recommended for Grades 4−6

Prompt: What does the author really want us to know about Medgar Evers?

Note: The following annotated exemplar is aligned with the Constructed Response Instructional Rubric Grades 3−4 (pages 155–156) and the Constructed Response Student Checklist Grades 3−4 (page 157).

Grade 4

The author wants us to know that Medgar Evers was a hero because he made a personal decision to dedicate his life to achieving equal rights for African Americans, and he lost his life in the process. He “showed extraordinary courage by speaking out against a system of inequality that so many took for granted.” Evers couldn’t take things for granted. He stood up for what he believed in when no one else would. It takes a certain kind of a person to do that—a hero. When he saw the horrible conditions black sharecroppers were living in after being cheated out of their profits by white plantation owners, with no hope for a better future, he “decided to work to bring the civil rights movement to Mississippi.” He made a choice to help African Americans through his work with the NAACP. He wanted to improve their lives by helping to make the “American dream” easier for them to achieve. He also wanted to stop segregation. He “organized boycotts” and “encouraged nonviolent sit-ins” in which he and other blacks sat at white-only lunch counters and went into white-only libraries. This was a brave thing to do because he knew he could be “assaulted or arrested,” but he did it anyway to help the cause. “Medgar knew what he was doing, and he knew what the risks were,” but standing up for what he believed in was more important to him than anything else, and that was heroic. Medgar Evers saw something wrong with the world and lost his life trying to make it right. He was motivated by his desire to make changes for the good of all people, and he went to great lengths for what he believed in. That’s what heroes do. The author wants us to know that Medgar Evers was a man who sacrificed his life for what he believed in. He himself said, “You can kill a man, but you can’t kill an idea,” and in a way he was predicting his own future. His ideas did not die with him. They continue to live in the hearts and minds of the many Americans who benefited from his belief that all people, black or white, deserve a chance to make a better life for themselves.

Note: The following annotated exemplar is aligned with the Constructed Response Instructional Rubric Grades 5−8 (pages 158−159) and the Constructed Response Student Checklist Grades 5−8 (page 160).

Grades 5−6

The author wants us to know that Medgar Evers was a man who stood up for what he believed in regardless of the possible risks to himself, and as a result of his efforts, is considered a hero of the civil rights movement.

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