Posted on January 14, 2025

photo credit: Julian Wasser

It's that time again family, where the out of context quotes and images of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr will be flooding your social media feeds. Many of us will find ourselves reaching for craft supplies and printable worksheets. Even though we know Dr. King's legacy deserves a deeper, more thoughtful approach that can plant seeds for lifelong learning about justice, compassion, and community, it is find time to build such an intentional practice.

The Power of Starting with Children's Voices

When I first began teaching young children about Dr. Rev. King, I made the mistake of launching straight into historical facts and dates. Over time, I learned that the most meaningful conversations begin with a simple question: "What do you already know about Dr. Rev. King?" The answers never fail to surprise and inspire. Children often come with pieces of knowledge, sometimes mismatched or incomplete, but always genuine. These fragments of understanding become our foundation for deeper learning.

Starting with "what do you already know?" can be a practice that you can continue as your work to build an intentional practice of weaving in work of lifelong learning. It is so easy to spotlight and move on. The real question and where most of the work lies is how you build a consistent and continual practice. Starting with a question can help you build connections and slow down the learning in the moment which is helpful for those who thrive on "pre-planning".

Beyond "Peaceful": Understanding Dr. Rev. King's Complete Legacy

We often reduce Dr. Rev. King to a single dimension in our teaching - the peaceful protestor who had a dream. While his commitment to nonviolence was crucial, this simplification does a disservice to both Dr. Rev. King and our children. When you add the other dimension of Dr. Rev. King's life of being a father who spent time with his children, being a husband who listened to the wisdom of his wife, Coretta, being a student who loved learning, being a man of faith, and being someone who stood up for what he believed in even when he was scared.

These elements help children make connections with their life and the people within their lives.

Weaving Together the Threads of Justice

Dr.  Rev. King understood something profound that we can share with children: the connection between different forms of injustice. He saw that poverty, racism, and militarism were intertwined, like strands of a single rope. In his own words, "We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny."

These complex ideas take shape in surprisingly accessible ways in children's daily lives. The observations they make about the world around them - noticing differences in neighborhoods, questioning why some people have more than others, wondering about conflicts they hear about - all connect to the deeper issues Dr. Rev. King fought to address. Their natural sense of fairness and justice often leads them to insights that mirror the core of Dr. Rev. King's philosophy.

He emphasized that you cannot truly address one form of injustice without addressing them all. When he spoke about poverty, he connected it to the broader struggle for civil rights. When he opposed militarism, he linked it to the fight against economic inequality. He understood that these issues were not separate challenges but manifestations of the same underlying problems in society.

This interconnected vision remains vital today. The three evils he identified - poverty, racism, and militarism - continue to reinforce and sustain each other. Poverty creates conditions where racism can flourish. Racism perpetuates economic inequality. Militarism diverts resources from social progress while often targeting marginalized communities. Understanding these connections helps us see why progress in one area often requires addressing all three.

These threads of justice that Dr. Rev. King identified run through every aspect of society, from our local communities to global relations. By helping children recognize these connections early, we prepare them to understand complex social issues as they grow. We enable them to see beyond surface-level explanations and understand the deeper systemic changes needed for true transformation.

The wisdom of Dr. Rev. King's interconnected approach to justice becomes more relevant with each passing year. As our world grows more complex and interrelated, his vision of addressing root causes rather than symptoms becomes increasingly essential. When we teach children to see these connections, we're not just helping them understand history - we're preparing them to be the thoughtful, engaged citizens our world needs.

Living Dr. Rev. King's Legacy Every Day

As Coretta Scott King reminded us, this holiday must be "substantive as well as symbolic." In the classroom and at home, this means moving beyond one-day celebrations to create lasting change. It means listening when children point out unfairness, supporting them as they learn to stand up for others, and helping them understand that small actions can create big changes.

This where building a consistent practice comes in when teaching children but also working with adults. The intentionality shines through when you are able to help children make those connection between their "today" with the past because there is not only a blueprint but a deep reverence of love and hope. As you expand your practice of honoring and remembering ancestors, children will begin to understand that the work of those who came before us was to plant seeds for us. It was to help us cultivate wisdom and hope during the hard and challenging times of our lives.

Coretta Scott King said in her book, My Life with Martin Luther King Jr. (1969),

Freedom is never really won. You earn it and win it in every generation. That is what we have not taught young people, or older ones for that matter. You finally win a state of freedom that is protected forever. It doesn't work that way."

We as parents and guides also must remember this. We must teach from the mindset that we are teaching our children how to fight for their freedom. All one must do is look at our current events...the landscape is constantly changing, and it is our duty to provide our children with the tools on how to navigate a world that is shifting on its moral obligations.

Looking Forward with Hope

Teaching children about Dr. Rev. King isn't just about sharing history - it's about nurturing the qualities that will help them build a better future. When we engage children in meaningful conversations about justice, when we support their natural inclination toward fairness, and when we help them see their own power to make positive change, we honor Dr. Rev. King's legacy in the most authentic way possible.

These conversations aren't always easy, but they are always worthwhile. As we approach another MLK Day, let's commit to moving beyond surface-level activities to engage with the depth and richness of Dr. Rev. King's vision - a vision that remains as relevant and vital today as ever.