“Sing about Martin” MLK Song+Ukulele

Hey friends!

Since Martin Luther King Jr. Day is coming up, teachers in our district get a 3 day weekend! I am SO looking forward to this! I don’t know about you, but January feels long…..like, REALLY long. It’s been rainy for the past few weeks in Dallas, so I’m hoping there will be some sunshine and I can finally go for a run or hike! Anyway, I wanted to share with you one of my favorite songs for MLK day, which could also be used for Black History Month. The song is called “Sing About Martin,” and it works extremely well with beginner ukulele players, since they’ll only need to play the F & C chords. Let’s dive in.

During this lesson, I first teach students about Martin Luther King Jr. and all he did for the Civil Rights Movement. I love showing my students a video from Reading Rainbow, in which Levar Burton reads the biographical picture book, “Martin Luther King Jr.” written by David A. Adler. The book is great because it walks kids through MLK’s childhood through adulthood, which helps them realize he was once a kid like them. And that they could also make a great impact in the world, no matter what their background is.

Afterwards, I always ask if they have any questions and make time for dialogue. If I don’t know an answer to a question they have, I am honest and tell them that I don’t know, or we look it up together. Usually this brings out some really meaningful discussions about the Civil Rights Movement or current issues about racial equity. I know sometimes it can be a tough conversation to have with elementary-aged students. So here’s a great resource for talking about race, racism and other difficult topics with students. http://www.tolerance.org/sites/default/files/general/TT%20Difficult%20Conversations%20web.pdf

Next, I’ll introduce the song by echo-singing it. Then I’ll show them the video. I like this video because the last half (starting at 1:30), is the accompaniment track for the song.

Once they’ve got the words and melody down, we’ll review the C and F chords on the Ukulele. If they are still SUPER beginners, I’ll divide the class in half, one side is the C chord and the other is the F chord. That way they’re only responsible for one chord and won’t feel overwhelmed. If they’re more advanced, then we can play through the song. One feature that I LOVE on Youtube is the ability to slow down songs. So we’ll usually start on .5 speed and move our way up to the regular tempo.

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Since I only have 15 ukuleles, I put them into partners. When it’s not their turn to play, I tell them that it’s their turn to sing! Eventually they’ll sing and play at the same time.

For the performance, I chose 15 students to play ukulele, and the rest sang behind them in a chorus. I split the chorus into 2 groups. One group sang the Call (Sing about Martin), and the other group sang the response (Sing about Martin) throughout the song. We also added little movements, which are fairly self-explanatory. (Loving-hands on heart, Peace-peace sign, etc.)

If you are looking for more Black History Month ideas, read my blog post “Black History Month Ukulele Songs”, which includes 4 ukulele chord sheets.

I hope you enjoy this song and have a great MLK day!

Keepin’ it Simple,

Paige