Although the federal holiday has passed, students and staff are honoring Martin Luther King Junior through music, art and various activities this month. Many students are reading articles, watching videos and creating displays about the civil rights leader. Here is a look at some of the activities going on throughout the district.

At Burnett Creek Elementary School, Tiffani Pettit’s fifth grade class listened to the book, Martin’s Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and then created a display with their own big words. “We discussed how words have a powerful way of impacting others,” says Pettit. “We shared our words in small groups and realized the importance of empowering others. We also discussed how the little bit of encouragement can totally change someone's day.”

At Hershey Elementary School, students watched the movie “Our Friend Martin,” and did several related activities. Madison Terry’s kindergarten class created posters with lyrics from “With My Own Two Hands.” Terry says the class learned about King's important “I Have a Dream” speech through educational videos, individual readers and creating a craft that showed how everyone in our world should be treated with equality.

Klondike Middle School Social Studies teacher Anne Brandt shared this Martin Luther King Jr. quote: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” Then, Brandt had students choose a sucker for a snack. When they unwrapped the candy, they discovered a different flavor than expected. This led to a discussion about not judging something by its outside, but rather look at the inside.

In addition to several classroom activities, Dayton Elementary staff members volunteered after school at the Food Finders Food Bank warehouse in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. and his commitment to service.