, challenge each student to compare Dr. King 's dream to the reality of life in the U.S. in the year 2008 . Direct each student to compose a written response to Dr. King , explaining what life is like in the U.S. today and to what extent his dream has been realized . -LRB- Encourage students to be creative in their responses . For example , students could write a letter , a speech , a song or a poem . -RRB- After students share their responses to Dr. King , pose the following questions for class discussion : Do you think that in today 's society individuals are judged by the content of their character and not by their race ? Give examples to support your opinion . Correlated Standards United States History Standard 29 . Understands the struggle for racial and gender equality and for the extension of civil liberties Level II -LSB- Grade : 5-6 -RSB- Benchmark 1 . Understands the development of the civil rights movement -LRB- e.g. , the Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education and its significance in advancing civil rights ; the resistance to civil rights in the South between
-LRB- CNN Student News -RRB- -- Students will examine Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 's famous `` I Have a Dream '' speech . Also , they will compose written responses to Dr. King in which they compare his historic vision of racial equality in the United States to the reality of present-day life . Procedure On August 28 , 1963 , Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. shared his vision of racial equality in America in his historic `` I Have a Dream '' speech . Now , efforts are under way to build on that dream by constructing a monument to Dr. King on the banks of the National Mall 's Tidal Basin in Washington , D.C. . In class discussion , have students define the following terms : racism , prejudice and discrimination . Have them give examples of each . Then , point out that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke of being judged not by the color of one 's skin , but by the content of his or her character . Direct your students to read Dr. King 's famous `` I Have a Dream '' speech and discuss its content in class . Then