About the Big Question (English)

Overview

Have you ever wanted to make a change in your school, in your community, or in your own life? Making changes can be difficult, even if they are for the best interests of your school or community. Making a change means working hard to get what you want. How do you decide if all your hard work will be worth it in the end?

Try reading about other people and how they fought for changes in the world around them. People often express their views and opinions through essays, or other forms of persuasive writing. The purpose of persuasive writing is to convince readers to agree with your opinion about a certain topic. When you read persuasive writing, you learn about people's opinions, develop your own views on controversial topics, and learn to distinguish facts from opinions.

Web Resources

Promoting Tolerance
www.tolerance.org/pt/
This website is about accepting people who may come from a different background than your own. Read stories, play games, and take virtual tours that celebrate the ethnic diversity of the United States.

What Is Justice?
www.usdoj.gov/kidspage
This website provides information on different aspects of justice - like internet crimes, drug prevention, and laws that protect your rights. Click on the different links to learn about the FBI, what happens inside a courthouse, and the legal enforcement of American civil rights.

Making a Difference
www.peacecorps.gov/kids
The United States Peace Corps is an organization supported by the U.S. government. Peace Corps volunteers live in developing areas of the world. This website explains what the Peace Corps organization is and the important work of Peace Corps volunteers.

Peace Gallery
www.mamamedia.com/activities/gallery_2/peace
View art, or make your own. This website displays student art work devoted to promoting peace.

The Civil Rights Era
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aaohtml/exhibit/aopart9.html
Follow this time line through the Civil Rights era. Read about Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks, and other people who believed equal rights were worth fighting for. Learn about important events, such as Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka and the Montgomery bus boycott, which changed our nation's history.