Martin Luther King Jr.
Where can I find information about Martin Luther King Jr.?
(Years 7-10)
Image: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mathew Ahmann in a crowd of demonstrators at the March on Washington by Unseen Histories on Unsplash.
Entry last updated: 26/05/22
Introduction
Born in 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia, Martin Luther King Jr. was a Baptist minister who became the most powerful voice of the American civil rights movement in the 1950s. He spoke up for African Americans, and with his clear and persuasive speeches, he gained the support of both Black and White Americans. In 1968 Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated at the age of 39.
General websites
The websites below will guide you to information about Martin Luther King Jr.'s life, beliefs and work as a civil rights leader.
Biography (Gale in Context) is one of the EPIC databases, a collection of reliable databases covering lots of different topics. It is put together especially for New Zealand school students and helps to answer questions like this.
Enter 'Martin Luther King Jr.' into the search box.
Find the article on Martin Luther King and select Read more for an overview of his early life, education and his nonviolent protest.
Or, select Biographies, Videos and Images to explore more ways to look for this information.
Tips: To get to the EPIC resources you will need a password from your school librarian first. Or you can chat with one of our AnyQuestions librarians between 1 and 6pm Monday to Friday and they will help you online. Some EPIC databases may also be available through your public library.
Encyclopedia of World Biography
This website has an American focus with short biographies of famous people in an A-Z list.
Look down the page to 'Ki-Lo' to find the biography on Martin Luther King Jr.
Tips: please check the information against other sources as the owner and writers for this website are not provided.
Use this website for information on United States history and society. It includes primary source material.
Choose American History.
Then Civil Rights 1860-1980.
Look down the page for Civil Rights Campaigners: 1900-2020.
Select Martin Luther King.
Go to the section Primary sources to read the famous speech 'I have a dream'.
You will also find links to events like the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the arrest of Martin Luther King.
Tips: Many web pages have links to further information or to other recommended sites. Following these links is a great way to find out more. This searching method is called “pearl growing” because you are picking up pieces of sand to make a beautiful pearl!
Articles, images and videos
There are some great websites that also have photos and videos of speeches and protests.
Use this EPIC resource for articles, images and videos.
Type in the search words 'Martin Luther King'.
Choose Videos or Images of Martin Luther King Jr. and his famous protest marches.
Go to Audio to listen to the 'I Have A Dream" Speech, In Its Entirety'.
Tips: Search words, or keywords, are the most important words in our question. Usually it’s better to leave out small words like ‘the’, ‘a’ and ‘of’ and just choose the main ones, eg Martin Luther King. We can always change our keywords or add more if we need to.
This online version of Encyclopedia Britannica covers history, geography, social sciences, society and cultures of the world.
Type the keywords 'Martin Luther King Jr.' into the search box.
Read the article Martin Luther King Jr. ((1929-1968) United States religious leader and civil-rights activist)or select Images & videos.
Tips: For more detailed information choose Reading Level 3 from the top of the page.
Books
Check out your school and public library for books. Here are some titles we have found:
Martin Luther King, Jr.: The last interview: and other conversations by Martin Luther King Jr.
Be a king: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream and you by Carole Boston Weatherford.
Martin Luther King Jr.: walking in the light by Jon M Fishman.
The life and death of Martin Luther King Jr. by Andrew Vietze.
SCIS no: 5376046
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