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Being Brave and Fair: Rosa Parks

  • Feb 12
  • 3 min read

Updated: Mar 5

Grade Level: K-2
Duration of video: 3 minutes, 15 seconds

Themes:

  • Women’s History

  • Fairness

  • Courage

  • Kindness

  • Helping Others

  • Being Brave and fair

  • World history, women's rights






Photo: Rosa Parks seated during the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955

Photo: Rosa Parks seated during the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955 — public domain photo via Wikimedia Commons.


Description:

In this lesson, students are introduced to Rosa Parks, a woman who helped make the world more fair by calmly and bravely standing up for what was right. Through a short, illustrated read-aloud video, students learn that being brave does not always mean being loud, and that one person can help others by making kind and fair choices.



Lesson Plan:


🎯 OBJECTIVES (SWBAT)

  • Identify Rosa Parks as a woman who stood up for what is fair

  • Describe bravery using age-appropriate language

  • Share one way they can be brave and fair in their own lives


🧰 MATERIALS:


📋 LESSON FLOW

  1. Hook

    Teacher asks:

    • “What does it mean to be fair?”

    • “What does it mean to be brave?”

    Students share responses.

  2. Video

    Before showing the video, tell students:

    A long time ago (1955) in the United States, buses did not let people with dark skin sit in the front, use the front door, or have a seat when White people wanted the seat. This was mean and unfair (prejudice).

    I am going to show you a video about a woman, named Rosa Parks, who was brave and took a stand against the mean behavior of the White people.

    Say:

    “While you watch the video, think: How was Rosa Parks brave?”

    Play video:

    Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum | Rosa Parks Rides the Bus | PBS KIDS

  3. Guided Discussion

    Teacher asks:

    1. Who was Rosa Parks?

    2. How did White people treat Black people on the bus, including Rosa Parks? 

    3. How did Rosa Parks and other Black people feel about how they were treated?

    4. How was Rosa Parks brave?

    5. Because Rosa refused to give up her seat, it made everyone realize that the White people were behaving in a mean and unfair way. How did Rosa’s bravery help other Black people be free and help White people become fair?

    6. Can kids be brave too?

  4. Activity: I Can Be Brave

    Hand out: 

    Paper, crayons, or markers for each student.

    Ask students to:

    • Draw a picture of Rosa Parks being brave and fair OR

    • Draw themselves being brave and fair

    Sentence frame (written on board or spoken):

    “I can be brave and fair by __________.”

    Scribe responses for younger students.

  5. Share & Closing

    Students share their drawings with the entire class.

    Teacher closes with:

    “Women’s History Month helps us remember women who made the world kinder and fairer.”

  6. Hang up Drawings

    Hang up the students’ drawings on a designated wall in the classroom.








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All materials on this website are available for educational use under Creative Commons License CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Educators may download and share the content with attribution, for non-commercial use and instructional purposes, and without modification. Embedding any materials within any website-whether educational, institutional, public, or private-is prohibited without prior written consent of Balanced Learning Resources. Unauthorized embedding or redistribution may violate copyright and licensing terms.


©  2025-2026
All materials on this website are available for educational use under Creative Commons License CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Educators may download and share the content with attribution, for non-commercial use and instructional purposes, and without modification. Embedding any materials within any website-whether educational, institutional, public, or private-is prohibited without prior written consent of Balanced Learning Resources. Unauthorized embedding or redistribution may violate copyright and licensing terms.

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