“As you read The Watsons Go to Birmingham- 1963 you cannot help but fall in love with this spunky family. It is a hilarious yet touching story about the Civil Rights Movement and its powerful impact on one African American family. The Weird Watson family of Flint Michigan is not like any other family, or at least according to Kenny, the 10-year-old son. After Bryon, Kenny’s 13-year-old juvenile delinquent brother, acts up a final time, Momma and Dad decide its time to pay a visit to Grandma. So, the family spruces up the old family car and heads South to Birmingham, Alabama were they come face to face with the Civil Rights Movement.
The story is told through the eyes of the ten-year-old son Kenny which I believe helps students understand that history is not something that we merely read in textbooks rather, it happens to people just like them in a very real way. This is a great book to have students read during a unit on the 1960s, Civil Rights Movement. Students could spend time learning about the what life was like in the 1960s including the way people dressed, important news events, music that was popular, ect in comparison to what life is like today. Not only is The Watsons Go To Birmingham-1963 a great book to help students learn about the Civil Rights Movement, but it is also filled with many important thematic connections such as humor, family and relationships, friendship, and even how to get along with others. Using these thematic connections, students can practice incorporating such themes as humor and friendships into their writing. Through these different activities, students are able to explore the novel’s characters, setting, plot, and theme.
”