Inside: Free printable Martin Luther King Coloring Sheets and activity ideas for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Each year in the United States on the third Monday of January we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day (MLK day).
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To help my kids learn a little bit more about Martin Luther King I made a MLK coloring page (ok 2 different pages).
Martin Luther King Jr. Coloring Sheets
The MLK coloring pages I made are a little bit different than traditional coloring pages. Each page has pictures to color as well as facts about Martin Luther King jr.
I originally planned on only making one page, but I ended up with two similar but different pages. The two page have some of the same facts, but a few different ones and they have different pictures to color.
Using the Martin Luther King Jr. Coloring Pages
These MLK coloring pages are a great way for kids to learn a little bit more about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Even older kids will enjoy these unique pages.
I made these coloring pages to use as part of our homeschool but they are also a perfect activity for in the classroom, a homeschool co-op or as an at home activity.
You can use them for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Black History Month, or as part of an African-American civil rights movement unit study.
My kids colored the pages while watching a youtube video about Martin Luther King Jr. to start our unit study about Dr. King.
Facts About Martin Luther King Jr.
Like I said above the coloring sheets not only have pictures to color but also facts about the life of Martin Luther King jr.
When teaching younger children about history and important historical figures I try to keep it simple and relatable. Some ideas you can talk about with Kindergarten and 1st grade age kids might be:
- He was a Baptist minister and activities who became one of the most well-known leaders in the civil rights movement.
- He is known for advancing civil rights through nonviolence and civil disobedience. He led marches for black’s right to vote, desegregation and other basic civil rights.
- His famous I have a Dream speech is something most of us studied at least once while in school.
Depending on the age of your kids you might want to spend more time learning and discussing King and what he did. I share several fun activity ideas later in the post.
Below are the facts about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King that I included on the free printables.
- He was born January 15, 1929 in Atlanta Georgia
- King was arrested 29 times and assaulted 4 times
- He was a Christian Baptist minister and activist who became the most visible spokesperson and leader in the Civil Rights movement.
- Over 250,000 people gathered in Washington DC to hear Martin give his famous “I Have a Dream speech.
- From 1957 to 1968 King traveled over 6 million miles and spoke over 2,500 times.
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day is celebrated on the 3rd Monday in January each year.
- King is the only non-president to have an American Federal Holiday in his name.
- He helped fight against discrimination in the United States with nonviolent protests.
- King oversaw the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Free Printable Martin Luther King Jr Coloring Pages
Download your free printable coloring page pdf file below. Please share a link to this post with others that are interested in the coloring pages, keep the pdf file for personal and class use only.
Learning More About King
There are a lot more fun activities, printables and books you can use to learn more about this great man and civil rights leader.
MLK Footsteps Activity
Get this free printable footsteps activity for kids to write about how they can change the world and follow in the footsteps of Martin Luther King Jr.
Free Martin Luther King Jr. Word Search Printable
The Martin Luther King word search is a great activity to use as you learn about MLK’s life. There are 20 words to find in the puzzle including things like civil rights, American, freedom, and more. Get the Word Search and Answer Key Here.
Little Book About Martin Luther King Jr.
This one page printable folds into a little book with 8 pages of information about Martin Luther and pictures for kids to color. Get the Little Book