The Watsons Go to
Birmingham-1963
A WebQuest
by
Christopher Paul Curtis
Travel Guide | Newspaper Reporter | Historian | Lawyer | Scrapbook Artist
I
am Wilona Watson, you were first introduced to me in The Watsons Go To
Birmingham-1963. As you remember from reading the book, when planning my
family’s drive, I made a detailed notebook that contained information about our
trip. Since we’ve returned to Flint, Michigan, I’ve decided to make another
notebook. I want this notebook to capture not only the adventures our family
encountered on our drive south, but also the memorable events that happened in
Birmingham. I want Byron, Kenny, and Joetta to know what happened during this
trip.
Now,
I’m contacting you because I’ve heard you are all experts at researching. Will
you please help me make this family notebook? I’ll need quite a bit of
information, including…
-The
trip itself
-Some
newspaper accounts of the historical events
-Information
about segregation and racial tensions in the south
-Explanation
of laws that effected the lives of people during this time period
-Lots
of pictures
I’m
counting on you to help me create this so that my children can remember this
family adventure and learn about this period in our country’s history. Finally,
I do want you to be creative with this notebook, but I also want it to look
professional with all items being computer-generated.
Sincerely,
Wilona
Watson a.k.a. Momma
An important aspect of any family trip
notebook is detailed information about the trip itself. As the travel guide,
you will gather and formulate information about how long the trip will take,
the distance from Birmingham to Flint, and information about the trip in
general. This will help us look back at exactly what we did and what we could
do if we were to take the trip again. Include detailed information to answer
the questions listed below as well as any additional information you can think
of. Visual aids would also help my children get a clearer picture of what you
are explaining.
How long is the trip in miles?
- If the Brown Bomber can only travel at approximately 55mph, how
long will the trip take (hours)?
- What is the best route they can take?
- What states will they travel through?
- What is the quickest route?
- What is the easiest route?
- What are some of the tourist places along the way?
- What are some of the sites the Watsons might have seen in
Birmingham?
- If Mr. Watson only wants to drive for 5 hours a day, how many
days will the trip take?
Try these sites:
I
want Kenny, Byron and Joetta to read newspaper clippings from the bombing at
the church in Birmingham when they get older. Can you help me create these? I need
three articles written in the basic newspaper form. Include the following
criteria and use eyewitness accounts from the WebPages.
- The answers to the basic journalism questions, who, what,
where, why, when and how.
- An effective lead sentence and headline (photos if possible.)
- The name of a possible newspaper the Watsons might have read in
1963.
Try these sites:
- "In
the Memory of Four Little Girls"
- Eyewitness Account from "In the Memory
of Four Little Girls" site
- The
"Four Little Girls" Movie Web site
- GCPS Media Page
When
my children get a bit older, they will need to find out about the events that
led up to the bombing. To do this, I need you to gather information about
segregation and racial tensions in the south during the 1950's and early
1960's. Look at the WebPages listed below for help.
- What kind of segregation was there at the time in Birmingham
(discuss schools, restaurants, bathrooms etc.)?
- What kinds of protest did African Americans make at the time?
- Who were some influential leaders of these protests? Give some
facts about these leaders. (Introduce them to my children.)
Try these sites:
- The Martin Luther King Home Page
- National Civil
Rights Museum
- Western
Michigan University's Timeline of the American Civil Rights Movement
- Birmingham Church Bombing (CNN Report)
- The FBI & the Birmingham Church Bombings
- Alabama Department of Archives and History
As a
lawyer, you will help explain how the laws in Birmingham and other parts of the
south contributed to segregation and how these laws were eventually changed in
a two-page paper. Kenny, Byron and Joetta will want to know how the bombing
helped to change the country's laws.
- What laws helped to establish segregation? (Discuss 2 laws)
- What laws helped to end segregation? (Discuss 2 laws)
- Write about the stories behind these laws and how they came
about.
Try these sites:
- Find Law
- Withy
Law Firm
- LII Legal Information Institute
- Brown
v. Board of Education
- Brown
v. Board of Education
- Plessy
v. Ferguson
- Linda
Brown and others
Every
good travel notebook needs photographs! As the scrapbook artist, I need at least
fifteen images that depict our family’s trip to Birmingham. Use photographs
from the following sites to illustrate the events that might have happened on
our trip. Each of these photographs needs to have a 3-5 sentence caption
accompanying it to help my children gain a greater understanding.
As
the Scrapbook Artist, you will also be responsible for the Table of Contents
for your group’s notebook. This should include the Item, Page Number, and Name
of Student for everything in the notebook.
Try these sites:
- The
"Four Little Girls" Movie site
- National Civil
Rights Museum
- The "Powerful Days in Black and
White" Photo Exhibit
- Western
Michigan University's Timeline of the American Civil Rights Movement
Conclusion: All of the work you have created will be placed
together in a notebook and turned in to your teacher. Click here for the rubric for this assignment. Click here
for the rubric for the oral
presentation.
I thank you
for all the effort you have put into making this notebook possible. The trip to
Birmingham was a huge event in the lives of my children and it will be very
nice for them to get a broader picture of the events and the world around them.
I hope you have learned a bit too!
-Mrs. Watson
WebQuest by Christine S. Dewey
Revised by J. Blanchette, Feb. 2003