Graduation Speech: Perseverance and Determination :: Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

As a hurdler for County High, I stumble upon some pretty tough obstacles each time I race; the same is true in life. Everyone encounters obstacles, but in order to overcome them and succeed, one must never give up. I love to run hurdles, but unfortunately last year, little pulls and strains prevented me from running to my full potential. One Thursday, we had a home track meet against Lake Stevens. For the first time I was in pretty good shape for my race, the 100-meter hurdles. I began jumping up and down partially to stay warm, and partially to let out some of my excitement. By this time, I had butterflies in my stomach and the adrenaline was pumping. The starter asked us to 'Take your sweats off and stand behind your blocks.' 'Runners take your marks.' Hands shaking, I crouched into the starting blocks. The gun was up. 'Set!' 'Bang!' I bolted out of the blocks. I was way ahead of the other girls when suddenly, I realized I didn't have enough speed to carry me over the next hurdle. Gathering all of the strength I could, I grabbed at the air in hopes of guaranteeing clearance. I had just brushed over the wood when my foot hit the ground and my ankle gave out. I fell. I heard a gasp from the cro wd and the other racers' feet pounding past me. I got back up. I had never gone over a hurdle with my right leg first, but I did after that fall. Sprinting as fast as I could in between hurdles, I found myself basically bunny hopping over the rest of them. My goal was to cross that finish line and to be able to say that I did the very best that I could, even if I didn't look very graceful along the way. Although it might have seemed like a bad day, I was proud. It was the first time I had ever fallen in a race, and not only did I get back up and keep running, I managed to place second. Sometimes you encounter hurdles in life - sometimes you have to adapt and alter your normal routine to clear them. Then there are times you fall; the people surrounding you may gasp - they had been rooting for you. But they haven't given up on you-it's now more than ever that they want you to succeed - it's human nature to want the underdog to come from behind.

Child Development Holistic Essay

Introduction I am require to review a play activity that I used my observational skills to plan for. I decided to do indoor art activity, which was making a Robin with the Children while observing TC by doing this activity may learn the textures and colours, and they will use a hand and eye co-ordination. The Intellectual, Physical, Language, social and emotional observations allows us to find out what children understand, how they think, what they are able to do, and interests are. This information helps us to build rich stories of children as capable and competent learners in order to support further activities and development. In doing this, observation gave me information to give on-going feedback to children about how they are getting on in their learning, to provide enjoyable experiences for them, to choose appropriate supports for them, and to document, celebrate and plan the next steps in their learning. Aims My play activity was a robin, so in this activity children need to stick and cut out a small pieces of carbon sheet. This art activity supporting children’s large and small muscle development, as well as their eye-hand coordination. Using paintbrushes, fingers and scissors helps children practice the fine motor control they will need for writing later on. Children were work together in the art area , they learn to share and interact with others , these are important changes for social learning. During this activity I valued TC’s creativity, so I helped him to feel valued as like everybody and hopped to raise his self-esteem. After this activity I got better observation and planning skills. Read more:  How many words in 10 minutes. Planning Before doing that activity I had discussion with my supervisor about that activity it is propped for children in that age and do she have any ideas. Also I must to have a permission from supervisor and parents. After that I need to plan what equipment I may use and plan out a costs of it. I need to buy a 20pack of carbon sheets which cost 3.25e, sugar paper cost 2.45e, PVA glue cost 2.50e and the rest of equipment like brushes, scissors etc. I used a room in the setting so that was no costs. Also I need help in washing hands, and I also needed help with supervising my group. And the last step before my activity was to make sure is everything safe for children like for  e.g. glue was non-toxic, floors are non-slip and is no any sharp corners in the room etc. Narrative Date of observation: 04th April 2014 Time observation started and finished: 12.00a.m. to 1.00p.m.but observed TC 12:35-12-12:45 Number of children present: sixteen children did this play activity, including TC Number of adults present: 2 and 1 student Permission obtained from: supervisor Description of setting: This observation took place at the Montessori, the observation took place in the main room of the Montessori, It’s a bright and spacious room. All children were involved in this too . Immediate context: The Montessori room was a bright and airy rooms. The observation took place at 12:00 in the evening. TC is listening and sitting down when I was explaining and demonstrating the play activity . Brief description of the child observed: TC is a male aged (4). He is a bright and very happy child, he gets on with all his classmates. and loves getting involved but also can get a bit distracted. Aim of observation: The aim of this observation is to observe TC for a period of 10minutes in order to assess his Developments. the play activity was an hour long. Rationale: It is important to observe children in order to plan developmentally appropriate activities for them. Method: Narrative TC is sitting around the table along with fellow classmates and is enjoying himself. TC approaches fellow classmate ‘Why is your Robin messy?’ Child X ‘no its not!’ TC ‘yes it is, you painted on the table’ child X ‘I didn’t mean too’. TC turns around and continues to finish his work. He leans over to get some googly eyes for his Robin. TC ‘I want the big ones’, hoping that the teacher or myself would hand them to him. TC gets off his seat an says ‘I’ll get them I want to see if there is two funny ones’ Child Y ‘haha, I’m going to do that too’. TC laughs and sits down to apply his eyes onto his Robin and shouts ‘FINISHED’, he then jumps up and shows myself and the teachers his work, I praised him for a good job he did and TC replies back ‘Thank you Chloe’, He then goes over to the sink as he has glue on them and starts to mess with his hands by slap ping them together. TC ‘haha, feels  funny’. TC then washes his hands to remove paint and glue of his hands. He then goes over to the place he was sitting and cleans up what pieces of paper were there. TC throws it in the bin ‘Thank you Mr. bin’. As TC is finished before some of the other children he goes over to some to observe their work. TC ‘child Z that’s really cool’, Child Z ‘thanks it took ages’. TC walks away and find a piece of paper on the ground and picks it saying ‘paper! who owns this paper?, I have paper!! anyone want this paper?’ Child F ‘no’, TC ‘oh okay, I’ll put it in the bin’ TC walks over to the bin and opens it and says ‘you are very good Mr. bin’. TC then goes over to the library to read a book as he is finished his work. This ends my 10 minute observation on TC Observations I choose this activity because children one week before were doing something similar before, they were enjoyed so I decide to do something similar. Children’s reaction was positive, when I told them what we will do it they clap their hands. I ask them to sit down at the table in the art area and I prepared all staff that was needed. TC sat down and started to chat away among friends. After that I explained how we will make a robin and I show them a final work, to give it an idea to children how final peace should look like. Then we started doing it. During activity I again explained clearly what we need to do next, step by step. I want to learn children how to share which others, what is proper handing a paintbrush and scissors, how to use their creativity and imagination to solve problems, learn them how to interact and work co-operatively and give help to others, also I think that this activity help to make children a better team workers. When every child have it done, I ask them to line up to the sink and I ask them to wash their hands. TC was a problem as he had glue on his hands and wanted to run and stick his hands to other fellow classmates hands. Implementation Section 2 My play activity took me one hour. I think that TC had a great time with doing a robin because he didn’t lose interest and I know that, cutting out, painting , sticking and playing with other in my case was working in the group, and for TC. I learn more about supervising TC during an activity and  now I know how to make children interested in something. TC meets all the development skills in this play activity. TC by doing art activity can in easy way express his feelings. To the Physical development I can bring Aistear well-being theory, because everything was healthy and safe, the equipment that I used was non-toxic etc. Intellectual development during this activity TC had problems with proper holding scissors so my role was to show him how to do it. Vygotsky stressed the importance for development of someone who knows more than the child to learn something that would be too difficult for the child to do on his or her own. Also we can bring Vogotsky and Piagets theory about concentration and imagination, it will suit to Aistear, team exploring and thinking. Language development TC was well able to communicate with me and with other children in the group. Skinner says that behaviour thought that language had to be ‘put into’ children, because they are rather like empty vessels. But the Chomsky had different opinion on ‘empty vessels’ and he says that babies are born with the predisposition to learn, talk and listen. Children learn to talk because they are genetically equipped to do so. Language development is in Aistear in communicating team. Emotional development when TC was doing this activity he build a relationship with other children in group, they communicate with him. When they finish their work I praised them and also to TC who was thrilled with himself, this gives them self-esteem and has grown, so that build attachment between me and children (TC). I talk with children and to TC about good behaviour and I told them what consequences will be when they won’t listen me. In this part we can see Freud’s theory about ego. Definition of an ego is that the children begin to consider the consequences of their actions and also start being able to plan the best way of meeting the powerful id’s demands. Also I can see here superego, because TC knows what is right and what is wrong. TC was a good team workers and built a friendships with others. It is in Identity & belonging team in Aistear. Reflection Section 3: My Role: * Judging how best to support TC during activity. Adults have to be able to gauge when and how to intervene in child led activities – too much intervention can interrupt the flow of TC’s play and  learning, but lack of support may mean that TC’s play/activity becomes repetitive or learning opportunities were missed. * Encouraging TC to take ownership of activities Most children will concentrate for longer periods when they have some kind of ownership over an activity. This means that wherever possible children should be encouraged to be creative and make their own decisions. This requires adults to be confident, and quite often the more confident early years worker is able to find opportunities for children to develop their own ideas or approach an activity in their own way. * Encouraging TC to preserve There are often situations where children need a little help or encouragement from an adult in order to finish an activity, such as drawing etc. This may mean giving children a little helping hand . Helping children to preserve to the end of the activity can increase their self-esteem and concentration skills. * Interacting with TC A major part of the early years worker role is to build children’s communication and language skills. Older children may need questioning and prompts to learn from their experiences, for example question such as ‘ why do you think this is blue colour?’ Also I need to be able to listen and simply chat to children. * Extending or adopting activities to meet TC’s needs It is important for adults working with children to know how to adapt or extend an activity for a child e.g. to make a task easier or more challenging. This is the way in which you can include all children and is major focus of inclusion policies. Ideally I should think about the needs of children before an activity starts, but in some cases I will need to adapt the activity once I see that is not meeting a child’s needs. Varying the activity according to the needs of the children will mean that children enjoy learning and do not get bored or feel that they failed. Section 4: †¢ Objectivity means to keep your own opinions, emotions, prejudices, and biases out of a situation. When applying objectivity in child care, it helps to teach the child the importance of; observing boundaries, the consequences of right and wrong, ineffectiveness of manipulation and other key character traits that will make them more responsible members of the society. †¢ You can recognize a sensitivity period occurring when you see child your child developing a passion for a certain toy or activity. *He may be trying to acquire balance and is drawn to walk on the cracks of sidewalks, or along  the curb. * She may be drawn to pick up small objects of any kind to develop the pincer grip. *Your child will spontaneously repeat the activity again and again until one day the cycle is finished. *The activity may not seem to be particularly meaningful to you, but it fulfils some area of mental or physical development and aware parents and caregivers will permit the activity. †¢ There are many influences on the environment such factors that influence a child’s early years of development. Some factors can be within the environment itself, like chemicals and pollution. Other factors can be parental, societal and economical. A child’s behaviour and personality is dependent upon the world around him. The interaction between heredity and the environment can also play an important role in the growth and development of a child. Chemicals and Pollution -Chemicals in the environment can affect a child’s performance in school, growth and development, health, and overall well-being. According to Chemical Kids by Dan Orzech, children are exposed to toxins in various ways–diesel exhaust from school buses, pesticides in foods, lead paint and mercury. Parental Factors -A child’s growth and development in the early years are primarily shaped by parents. The amount of parental interaction with a child can negatively or positively affect a child. According to the National Center for Children in Poverty, the state of the parents also plays a role in the developmental process. Factors such as whether both biological parents are in the home or if the child is raised by a single parent come into play. In a single-parent home, there is often less of a support system, which increases the odds a child will grow up in poverty. Societal Factors -Societal factors, such as peer interaction, may also influence the child. Children with poor language skills may have a difficult time interacting with other children. However, interaction with children can be useful in child development due to imitation–the child learns to imitate the behaviour of peers. This can aid in motor skills and language development. Social isolation can negatively affect a child’s ability to play normally, due to the lack of imitation. According to Laurie A Couture, denial of  social interaction can be a form of abuse. Economical Factors -According to National Center for Children in Poverty, poverty can affect brain development in early childhood, due to the lack of proper nutrition and quality of care. Poverty can also increase risk factors in parents, such as depression, substance abuse and social isolation. Stressors placed on poor families increase occurrences of child abuse and neglect. Abuse affects a child’s ability to form healthy attachments and can lead to depression, anxiety and a propensity for violence. In addition, poor families tend to live in dangerous neighbourhoods and cannot afford proper child care. †¢The Impact of Nature on Development Nature, which is also known as heredity, is the genetic code you are born with. It is passed on to you from your parents. Some examples of nature or heredity could be your height, behavior, and IQ just to name a few. The issue of nature having a great impact on a child’s development can be illustrated in the studies of twins. Flanagan (2002) explored the Minnesota study in which a set of twins was raised separately. In one case, a set of identical twins was raised apart, known as the Jim twins. They did not meet until they were almost forty and had many similarities even though they were raised apart. There was no real explanation for all their similarities except that nature must play a crucial role in development. â€Å"The Minnesota twin study concluded that on multiple measures of personality and temperament, occupational and leisure-time interests and social attitudes, mono-zygotic twins reared apart are about as similar as are mono-zygotic twins reared together† ( Flanagan). This is a prime example that nature plays a significant role in our development.Another example of nature is the study of adopted babies. Families with adopted children share the same environment, but not the same genetic code (Flanagan, 2002).The Texas Adoption Project found â€Å"little similarity between adopted children and their siblings, and greater similarity between adopted children and their biological parents† (Flanagan). This example also shows how important the role of nature plays on a child’s development.Knowing that nature plays a role in a child’s development, educators can use this to determine possible disabilities. For example, if two parents have a reading disability, it is  more likely that their child may develop a reading disability as well. It gives teachers a heads up on what to look out for. This can help educators be proactive and intervene at earlier ages. The Impact of Nurture on Development The influence of a person’s environment on their behavior is a very commonly accepted factor. The question is how much can the environment affect the behavior and abilities of a person. Some basic factors such as nutrition can be shown to have an important influence on the abilities of a person. It has also been demonstrated that fears, through the experiences of children, can be learned. Most importantly, some behaviors, if not learned from the environment, will never develop. Environment plays a significant role in development as humans.When considering a person’s environment in influencing ability, nutrition plays an important example. In one study, a group of children were given vitamin and mineral supplements for eight months. They were given intelligence tests before and after the eight-month treatment. The result was improvements in scores as compared to another group whom we not given vitamin and mineral supplements (â€Å"Nature vs. Nurture†, 2001). The results suggest that environment plays a role in the intellectual ability of people. It is not an illogical leap to understand this will probably extend to physical abilities as well.nother example of environmental influences in the behavior of people comes from a study done to an infant of 11 months. The infant was subjected to a terrible noise whenever he attempted to touch a white rat in the room with him. The child later displayed fear whenever he came in contact with anything white or furry (â€Å"Nature vs. Nurture†, 2001).A last example of environmental influences in behavior comes from France in 1799. A boy of 12 or 13 was found running with wolves. When he was discovered he was brought back into society. He never developed as a normal human and had tremendous difficulties in society (â€Å"Nature vs. Nurture†, 2001). This suggests that much of what we consider human behavior is socially learned. While no one would suggest that nurture is the only factor that needs to be considered in discussing behavior, it is definitely a significant factor in how we behave as humans. By ignoring the environment, we would miss a large part of what shapes and guides us in life. In conclusion, both sides of the nature/nurture debate present evidence which  supports its impact on development. Studies have shown that heredity is a major factor in developmental similarities among twins raised separately (Flanagan 2002). Studies have also shown that nutrition plays a significant role in cognitive development (â€Å"Nature vs. Nurture†, 2001). Most experts agree that most aspects of a child’s development are a product of the interaction of both nurture and nature (Bee, 2004). Interestingly, in recent years, new technology has enabled scientists to gain a deeper understanding of the genetic component of development, increasing interest on this side of the debate (Bee). Although no longer an â€Å"all or nothing† issue, the extent to which nature and nurture affect development will likely be debated for years to come. †¢Having a good understanding of the normative measurements of the framework of developmental milestones can assist us in early identification of any delays or difficulties. This can then enable access to early interventions to support the child and family. If milestones are viewed too rigidly and do not take into account the variance of individual development children can be incorrectly perceived as â€Å"failing†, or worse, they can be set up to fail by over-expectation. Section 5: Planning Name of activity: Robins Setting: The setting consists of a Montessori preschool. It is a bright and spacious and perfect for the children to do their art activity. Number of Children: sixteen children did this play activity, including TC. Age of Children: 4 – 5 years old, TC is 4 Gender of Children: The gender of the children are a mixture of male and female. TC is male Timing: I spent approximately 15 minutes preparing and explain and about 45 minutes doing the actual activity with the children, and then had 10 minutes to clean up clean up at the end with the help of each child Materials needed and what I did with it: * Circular paper plate or white paper/carol or cereal box -> cut into circle * PVA glue (non-toxic) * Tones of sugar paper for e.g. brown (light brown, dark brown) * Red breast -> tissue paper (can use any colour) * Brush/glue stick * For eyes/beak/legs -> sugar paper * Cut out circular shape, can trace it from e.g. circular plate, use compass or top of circular stool * Get glue of brown sugar papers  * Draw a line for the breast curve the line to make him/her more 3D * Start with bottom section, use watered dawn glue. Stick on chosen colours of tissue paper , I used pink & purple, every child could choose any colour what they like. * Place tissue down on circular cut out shape and brush over with watery glue to stick- cover all this area. * For face/ layer brown sugar paper * Tear the sugar paper into small strips, then starting put a row of glue down and start to stick a row of sugar paper. * Next layer another raw of brown sugar paper on top of this one- keep going until you reach top of head * Depending on the ages- either use googly eyes or cut eyes, legs and beak from sugar paper . (My group was suitable for cutting eyes, legs and beak) Discussion with supervisor: I asked the teachers about this play activity as the children have done something like this before and they agreed to let me do it. Safety: This activity is safe for the children to undertake. The paint is non-toxic so the children will not be inhaling any harmful toxins. Equality of opportunity: An equal opportunity is offered to the children regardless of their race, colour, sex, ethnic background and religious beliefs. Preparation of space and materials: I spent 10 minutes preparing the activity. I prepared the paint, putting them into a container, getting bibs for the children to prevent any messing of their clothes. I put a plastic cover over the table to prevent the table from being messed up. I demonstrated the activity to the children first. Discussion with children: I talked to them at the end to see if they enjoyed it and to observe TC and to see if all five developments being used during this, and to see if he enjoyed himself. Learning Outcomes (PILES): TC learned about the colours they are painting, learned about Robins on what colour and shape and what type of animal they were. Physical: TC will further develop skills like fine motor skills, hand eye coordination and gross motor skills. Intellectual: TC learned about the colours of the paint and shapes. Emotional: TC got a thrill out of doing messy activities such as hand and finger painting.   Social: TC learned to share and clean up after themselves. Learning Theme (Aistear): The theme of Exploring and Thinking are about TC making sense of the things, places and people in their world by interacting with others, playing, investigating, questioning, and forming, testing and refining ideas. Evaluation My play activity took me one hour. I think that TC had a great time with doing a robin because he didn’t lose interest and I know that, cutting out, painting , sticking and playing with other in my case was working in the group, and for TC. I learn more about supervising TC during an activity and now I know how to make children interested in something. TC meets all the development skills in this play activity. TC by doing art activity can in easy way express his feelings. To the Physical development I can bring Aistear well-being theory, because everything was healthy and safe, the equipment that I used was non-toxic etc. Intellectual development during this activity TC had problems with proper holding scissors so my role was to show him how to do it. Vygotsky stressed the importance for development of someone who knows more than the child to learn something that would be too difficult for the child to do on his or her own. Also we can bring Vogotsky and Piagets theory about concentration and imagination, it will suit to Aistear, team exploring and thinking. Language development TC was well able to communicate with me and with other children in the group. Skinner says that behaviour thought that language had to be ‘put into’ children, because they are rather like empty vessels. But the Chomsky had different opinion on ‘empty vessels’ and he says that babies are born with the predisposition to learn, talk and listen. Children learn to talk because they are genetically equipped to do so. Language development is in Aistear in communicating team. Emotional development when TC was doing this activity he build a relationship with other children in group, they communicate with him. When they finish their work I praised them and also to TC who was thrilled with himself, this gives them self-esteem and has grown, so that build attachment between me and children (TC). I talk with children and to TC about good behaviour and I told them what consequences will be when they won’t listen me. In this part we can see Freud’s theory about ego. Definition of an ego is that the children begin to consider the consequences of their actions and  also start being able to plan the best way of meeting the powerful id’s demands. Also I can see here superego, because TC knows what is right and what is wrong. TC was a good team workers and built a friendships with others. It is in Identity & belonging team in Aistear. Reflection Recommendations I would need extra help, and I would change an age of children because some children were waiting for others. And also If I will have another chance to do it again I would do it in different time of the day (straight away in the morning), because in my opinion TC was tired and was hard to make him pay attention sometimes. I should have done my narrative earlier instead of doing it near the end of the play activity. I would recommend to do more play activity’s cause it’s a great way to develop all skills and TC finds it very enjoyable. Bibliography * http://www.termpaperwarehouse.com/essay-on/Attachment-Theory/52354 * http://www.extension.org/pages/25680/creative-art-helps-children-develop-across-many-domains * http://www.appleton-child-care.com/child-care-daily-schedule.shtml *http://www.pbs.org/wholechild/providers/little.html *www.ehow.com †º Parenting‎ *Bee, Helen (2004). Child and adolescent development (Section 1, pp. 3). Retrieved July 28, 2004, from University of Phoenix website: www.myresource.phoenix.edu *Flanagan, C. (2002). Nature and nurture: why are siblings so different? Psychology Review, 8(3), 23. Retrieved July 28, 2004, from the InfoTrac Database. *Nature vs. Nurture (2001). Planet Papers. Retrieved July 28, 2004, from the World Wide Web: http://www.planetpapers.com/Assets/3492.php

A Biography of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

In 1966, Martin Luther King Jr. was in Miami when he had a meeting with film producer Abby Mann, who was contemplating a movie biography about King. Mann asked the 37-year-old minister how the movie should end. King replied, It ends with me getting killed. Throughout his civil rights career, King was painfully aware that a number of white Americans wanted to see him destroyed or even dead, but he accepted the mantle of leadership anyway, assuming its heavy burden at the young age of 26. The 12 years the activist spent fighting first for civil rights and later against poverty changed America in profound ways and turned King into the moral leader of the nation, in A. Philip Randolphs words. Martin Luther Kings Childhood King was born on Jan. 15, 1929, to an Atlanta pastor, Michael (Mike) King, and his wife, Alberta King. Mike Kings son was named after him, but when little Mike was five, the elder King changed his name and his sons name to Martin Luther, suggesting that both had a destiny as great as the founder of the Protestant Reformation. The Rev. Martin Luther King Sr. was a prominent pastor among African Americans in Atlanta, and his son grew up in a comfortable middle-class environment. King Jr. was an intelligent boy who impressed his teachers with his efforts to expand his vocabulary and sharpen his speaking skills. He was a dutiful member of his fathers church, but as he grew older, he did not show much interest in following in his fathers footsteps. On one occasion, he told a Sunday school teacher that he did not believe that Jesus Christ was ever resurrected. Kings experience in his youth with segregation was mixed. On the one hand, King Jr. witnessed his father stand up to white policemen who called him boy instead of reverend. King Sr. was a strong man who demanded the respect he was due. But, on the other hand, King himself had been subject to a racial epithet in a downtown Atlanta store. When he was 16, King, accompanied by a teacher, went to a small town in southern Georgia for an oratorical contest; on the way home, the bus driver forced King and his teacher to give up their seats to white passengers. King and his teacher had to stand for the three hours it took to return to Atlanta. King later noted that he had never been angrier in his life. Higher Education Kings intelligence and excellent schoolwork led him to skip two grades in high school, and in 1944, at the age of 15, King began his university studies at Morehouse College while living at home. His youth did not hold him back, however, and King joined the college social scene. Classmates remembered his stylish mode of dress--a fancy sport coat and wide-brimmed hat. King became more interested in the church as he grew older. At Morehouse, he took a Bible class that prompted his conclusion that whatever doubts he had about the Bible, it contained many truths about human existence. King majored in sociology, and by the end of his college career, he was contemplating either a career in law or in ministry. At the start of his senior year, King settled on becoming a minister and started acting as assistant pastor to King Sr. He applied and was accepted into Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania. He spent three years at Crozer where he excelled academically--more so than he had at Morehouse--and began to hone his preaching skills. His professors thought he would do well in a doctoral program, and King decided to attend Boston University to pursue a doctorate in theology. In Boston, King met his future wife, Coretta Scott, and in 1953, they married. King told friends that he liked people too much to become an academic, and in 1954, King moved to Montgomery, Ala., to become pastor of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. That first year, he finished his dissertation while also building up his ministry. King earned his doctorate in June of 1955. Montgomery Bus Boycott Shortly after King finished his dissertation on Dec. 1, 1955, Rosa Parks was on a Montgomery bus when told to give up her seat to a white passenger. She refused and was arrested. Her arrest marked the beginning of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. The evening of her arrest, King received a phone call from union leader and activist E.D. Nixon, who asked King to join the boycott and host the boycott meetings at his church. King hesitated, seeking the counsel of his friend Ralph Abernathy before agreeing. That agreement catapulted King into the leadership of the civil rights movement. On Dec. 5, the Montgomery Improvement Association, the organization leading the boycott, elected King as its president. The meetings of Montgomerys African-American citizens saw the full realization of Kings oratorical skills. The boycott lasted longer than any had predicted, as white Montgomery refused to negotiate. Montgomerys black community withstood the pressure admirably, organizing car pools and walking to work if necessary. During the year of the boycott, King developed the ideas that formed the core of his non-violent philosophy, which was that the activists should, through quiet and passive resistance, reveal to the white community their own brutality and hatred. Though Mahatma Gandhi later became an influence, he initially developed his ideas out of Christianity. King explained that [t]his business of passive resistance and nonviolence is the gospel of Jesus. I went to Gandhi through him. World Traveler The bus boycott was successful in integrating Montgomerys buses by December of 1956. The year was a trying one for King; he was arrested and 12 sticks of dynamite with a burnt-out fuse were discovered on his front porch, but it also was the year that King accepted his role in the civil rights movement. After the boycott in 1957, King helped to found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which became a key organization in the civil rights movement. King became a sought-out speaker across the South, and though he worried about peoples overweening expectations, King began the travels that would take up the rest of his life. In 1959, King traveled to India and met with Gandhis former lieutenants. India had won its independence from Great Britain in 1947 due in large part to Gandhis non-violent movement, which entailed peaceful civil resistance--that is resisting the unjust government but doing so without violence. King was impressed by the incredible success of the Indian independence movement through the employment of non-violence. When he returned, King announced his resignation from Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. He felt it was unfair to his congregation to spend so much time on civil rights activism and so little time on ministry. The natural solution was to become co-pastor with his father at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. Nonviolence Put to the Test By the time King moved to Atlanta, the civil rights movement became full-fledged. College students in Greensboro, N.C., initiated the protests that formed this phase. On Feb. 1, 1960, four African-American college students, young men from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College, went to a Woolworths lunch counter that served whites only and asked to be served. When denied service, they sat silently until the store closed. They returned for the rest of the week, kicking off a lunch-counter boycott that spread across the South. In October, King joined students at a Richs department store in downtown Atlanta. It became the occasion for another of Kings arrests. But, this time, he was on probation for driving without a Georgia license (he had retained his Alabama license when he made his move to Atlanta). When he appeared before a Dekalb County judge on the charge of trespassing, the judge sentenced King to four months hard labor. It was presidential election season, and presidential candidate John F. Kennedy called Coretta Scott to offer his support while King was in jail. Meanwhile, Robert Kennedy, though angry that the publicity of the phone call might alienate white Democrat voters from his brother, worked behind the scenes to procure Kings early release. The result was that King Sr. announced his support for the Democratic candidate. In 1961, the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), which had been formed in the wake of the Greensboro lunch-counter protests began a new initiative in Albany, Ga. Students and Albany residents began a series of demonstrations designed to integrate the citys services. Albanys police chief, Laurie Pritchett, employed a strategy of peaceful policing. He kept his police force tightly controlled, and the Albany protesters were having trouble making any headway. They called King. King arrived in December and found his non-violent philosophy tested. Pritchett told the press that he had studied Kings ideas and that non-violent protests would be countered by non-violent police work. What became apparent in Albany was the non-violent demonstrations were most effective when performed in an environment of overt hostility. As Albanys police kept peacefully jailing protesters, the civil rights movement was being denied their most effective weapon in the new age of television images of peaceful protesters being brutally beaten. King left Albany in August 1962 as Albanys civil rights community decided to shift its efforts to voter registration. Though Albany is generally considered a failure for King, it was merely road bump on the way to greater success for the non-violent civil rights movement. The Letter from Birmingham Jail In the spring of 1963, King and the SCLC took what they learned and applied it in Birmingham, Ala. The police chief there was Eugene Bull Connor, a violent reactionary lacking the political skills of Pritchett. When Birminghams African-American community started mounting protests against segregation, Connors police force responded by spraying the activists with high-pressure water hoses and unleashing police dogs. It was during the Birmingham demonstrations that King was arrested for the 13th time since Montgomery. On April 12, King went to jail for demonstrating without a permit. While in jail, he read in the Birmingham News about an open letter from white clergy, urging civil rights protesters to stand down and be patient. Kings response became known as Letter from a Birmingham Jail, a powerful essay that defended the morality of civil rights activism. King emerged from the Birmingham jail determined to win the fight there. SCLC and King made the difficult decision to allow high-school students to join the protests. Connor did not disappoint--the resulting images of peaceful youths being brutally put down shocked white America. King had won a decisive victory. The March on Washington On the heels of success in Birmingham came Kings speech at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on Aug. 28, 1963. The march was planned to urge support for a civil rights bill, though President Kennedy had his misgivings about the march. Kennedy delicately suggested that thousands of African Americans converging on DC might hurt the chances of a bill making it through Congress, but the civil rights movement remained dedicated to the march, although they agreed to avoid any rhetoric that could be interpreted as militant. The highlight of the march was Kings speech that used the famous refrain I have a dream. King exhorted Americans, Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of Gods children. Civil Rights Laws When Kennedy was assassinated, his successor, President Lyndon B. Johnson, used the moment to push the Civil Rights Act of 1964 through Congress, which outlawed segregation. At the end of 1964, King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his success in so prominently articulating and demanding human rights. With that congressional victory in hand, King and the SCLC turned their attention next to the issue of voting rights. White Southerners since the end of Reconstruction had come up with various ways to deprive African Americans of suffrage, such as outright intimidation, poll taxes and literacy tests. In March of 1965, SNCC and SCLC tried to march from Selma to Montgomery, Ala., but were violently rebuffed by police. King joined them, leading a symbolic march that turned around before heading over the Pettus Bridge, the scene of the police brutality. Though King was criticized for that move, it presented a cooling-down period, and activists were able to complete the march to Montgomery on March 25. In the midst of the troubles at Selma, President Johnson gave a speech urging support for his voting rights bill. He ended the speech by echoing the civil rights anthem, We Shall Overcome. The speech brought tears to Kings eyes as he watched it on television--it was the first time his closest friends had seen him cry. President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law on Aug. 6. King and Black Power As the federal government endorsed the causes of the civil rights movement--integration and voting rights--King increasingly came face-to-face with the  growing black power movement. Non-violence had been enormously effective in the South, which was segregated by law. In the North, however, African Americans faced de facto segregation, or segregation kept in place by custom, poverty due to years of discrimination, and housing patterns that were difficult to change overnight. So, despite the enormous changes coming to the South, African Americans in the North were frustrated by the slow pace of change. The black power movement addressed these frustrations. Stokely Carmichael of SNCC articulated these frustrations during a 1966 speech, Now we maintain that in the past six years or so, this country has been feeding us a thalidomide drug of integration, and that some negroes have been walking down a dream street talking about sitting next to white people; and that that does not begin to solve the problem . . . that people ought to understand that; that we were never fighting for the right to integrate, we were fighting against white supremacy. The black power movement dismayed King. As he began speaking out against the Vietnam War, he found himself having to address the issues raised by Carmichael and others, who were arguing that non-violence was not enough. He told one audience in Mississippi, Im sick and tired of violence. Im tired of the war in Vietnam. Im tired of war and conflict in the world. Im tired of shooting. Im tired of selfishness. Im tired of evil. Im not going to use violence, no matter who says it. The Poor Peoples Campaign By 1967, in addition to becoming outspoken about the Vietnam War, King also began an anti-poverty campaign. He broadened his activism to include all poor Americans, seeing the achievement of economic justice as a way to overcome the sort of segregation that existed in cities like Chicago but also as a basic human right. It was the Poor Peoples Campaign, a movement to unite all impoverished Americans regardless of race or religion. King envisioned the movement as culminating in a march on Washington in the spring of 1968. But events in Memphis interfered. In February of 1968, Memphis sanitation workers went on strike, protesting the mayors refusal to recognize their union. An old friend, James Lawson, pastor of a Memphis church, called King and asked him to come. King could not refuse Lawson or their workers who needed his help and went to Memphis at the end of March, leading a demonstration that turned into a riot. King returned to Memphis on April 3, determined to help the sanitation workers in spite of his dismay at the violence that had erupted. He spoke at a mass meeting that night, encouraging his listeners that we, as a people, will get to the Promised Land! He was staying at the Lorraine Motel, and on the afternoon of April 4, as King and other SCLC members were readying themselves for dinner, King stepped onto the balcony, waiting on Ralph Abernathy to put on some aftershave. As he stood waiting, King was shot. The hospital pronounced his death at 7:05 p.m. Legacy King was not perfect. He would have been the first to admit this. His wife, Coretta, desperately wanted to join the civil rights marches, but he insisted that she stay at home with their children, unable to break out of the rigid gender patterns of the era. He committed adultery, a fact that the FBI threatened to use against him and that King feared would make its way into the papers. But King was able to overcome his all-too-human weaknesses and lead  African Americans, and all Americans, to a better future. The civil rights movement never recovered from the blow of his death. Abernathy tried to continue the Poor Peoples Campaign without King, but he could not marshal the same support. King, however, has continued to inspire the world. By 1986,  a federal holiday  commemorating his birthday had been established. Schoolchildren study his I Have a Dream speech. No other American before or since has so clearly articulated and so determinedly fought for social justice. Sources Branch, Taylor. Parting the Waters: America in the King Years, 1954-1964. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1988. Frady, Marshall. Martin Luther King. New York: Viking Penguin, 2002. Garrow, David J. Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.. New York: Vintage Books, 1988. Kotz, Nick. Lyndon Baines Johnson, Martin Luther King Jr., and the Laws that Changed America. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2005.