Who was Thurgood Marshall? Find out how his legal career in civil rights shaped the lives of people in the United States.

• 1.

  Do you believe that one person can make a difference? Study the life and deeds of Thurgood Marshall to learn how this man changed the lives of African Americans and all people who live in the United States. Born in July of 1908, Thouroughgood Marshall was named after his grandfather, a freed slave. In second grade, he grew tired of writing such a long first name, so he shortened it to Thurgood. He came from a long line of people who had stood up for what they believed was right. Research the stories about Marshall's grandmother Annie Marshall, his grandfather Isaiah Williams, and his dad, William Marshall.

• 2.

  As a punishment in school, Thurgood was sent to the school basement to memorize the United States Constitution. He was confused because some of the ideas in the Constitution were not true in his life. His father said the Constitution was about the way things should be, not the way things were. What do you think---does the Constitution stand for what is, or what should be? Maybe this is where the seed of becoming a lawyer began to grow in Thurgood.

• 3.

  Marshall had a tough time as an attorney in the beginning of his practice because African Americans believed that they had a better chance of winning cases if their lawyers were white. So only low-income people used African American lawyers. Thurgood's cases, however, earned him recognition and ultimately a job with the NAACP (The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). The NAACP was working hard fighting racial discrimination and segregation. Research some of the cases that Marshall and the NAACP fought concerning voting and housing rights, and especially those connected with people named Lyons, Lloyd Gaines, and Donald Gaines Murray.

• 4.

  Thurgood Marshall's most important case was argued in front of the United States Supreme Court during 1952 to 1954. It was a consolidation of five separate lawsuits challenging racial segregation in the public schools. The case was called Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. Marshall argued that in this case "separate was not equal." By separating African American students from others, the notion of equal education became impossible because African American school children were treated less well than other students.

• 5.

  In 1965, Thurgood Marshall was appointed as the U.S. Solicitor General and 2 years later, he was sworn in as a Supreme Court Justice.

• 6.

  Create a diorama to illustrate Thurgood Marshall's journey to become the first African American to serve on the highest court in the country, just 13 years after he had argued before it for the rights of African American school children. Cut off the top and one long side of a recycled box with Crayola® Scissors. Save the cut pieces for later use.

• 7.

  With Crayola Colored Pencils, Color Sticks or Crayola Multicultural Markers, illustrate Marshall's argument before the Supreme Court (or any other scene from his life that you choose) on the bottom and sides of the box.

• 8.

  With the extra box pieces or recycled file folders, draw the Supreme Court Justices as they listen to Marshall. Cut out pieces as needed. With Crayola School Glue, attach judges to the box in front of Marshall. Then illustrate Marshall as a Supreme Court Justice. Cut the figure out and attach him to the foreground of the box to make it look like he is remembering his role in Brown v. Board of Education.

Standards

• LA: Read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grade level text complexity band independently and proficiently.
• LA: Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade level topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.
• LA: Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources and refocusing the inquiry when appropriate.
• LA: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace.
• SS: Identify key ideals of the United States' democratic republican form of government, such as individual human dignity, liberty justice, equality, and the rule of law, and discuss their application in specific situations.
• SS: Explain how public policies and citizen behaviors may or may not reflect the stated ideals of a democratic republican form of government.
• SS: Explain the purpose of government.
• SS: Identify and use various sources for reconstructing the past, such as documents, letters, diaries, maps, textbooks, photos, and others.
• SS: Explore factors that contribute to one's personal identity such as interests, capabilities, and perceptions.
• VA: Intentionally take advantage of the qualities and characteristics of art media, techniques, and processes to enhance communication of experiences and ideas.
• VA: Select and use the qualities of structures and functions of art to improve communication of ideas.
• VA: Integrate visual, spatial, and temporal concepts with content to communicate intended meaning in artworks.

Adaptations

• Possible classroom resources include: A Picture Book of Thurgood Marshall by David A. Adler; Thurgood Marshall (Biography Series) by Montrew Dunham; Thurgood Marshall (Up Close) by Chris Crowe; Thurgood Marshall: The Supreme Court Rules on "Separate but Equal" (A Graphic History of the Civil Rights Movement) by Gary Jeffrey; Plessy v. Ferguson: Segregation and the Separate but Equal Policy (Landmark Supreme Court Cases) by David Cates
• Encourage students to investigate the U.S. Supreme Court. How many justices sit on the court? How does someone get to be a justice? How long do justices serve? What are they charged with accomplishing? How does this branch of the U. S. government work with the other two branches?
• Students research the history of The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). What was the purpose of its formation? How has its mission evolved during its history? What does the NAACP stand for today?
• Examine other justices that sat with Thurgood Marshall on the Supreme Court. What are significant cases that they addressed? How did their decisions change life in the United States for the future? Students work in small groups to examine a single case that was addressed by the Supreme Court while Thurgood Marshall was a justice. Organize research into an electronic format for presentation to classmates.
• Students investigate other "firsts" for the U. S. Supreme Court, such as the appointment of the first woman on the court, Sandra Day O'Connor.
• Working in small groups, students look at the saying "separate but equal" that was inspired by the law suit Plessy v. Ferguson. Research the facts of the case and the Supreme Court's response to hearing the appeal. How did this case set the course for minority treatment for the first half of the 20th century?