12
On November 14, 1960, a little
girl named Ruby Bridges walked
to school past a screaming mob of
angry white people. She had to be
protected by four gun-toting U.S.
federal marshals.
Why? She was doing something
no other African American in her
hometown of New Orleans had
ever done before. She was going
to school with white children.
For months, Ruby quietly walked up the steps of William
Frantz public school, past youths who were chanting,
"Two, four, six, eight! We don't want to integrate," past a
woman threatening to "poison" her, past signs designed to
terrify her. One woman had a baby-sized coffin with a black
doll inside. "That really scared me," remembered Ruby.
Ruby's courage amazed and inspired people. Former First
Lady Eleanor Roosevelt sent Ruby a letter. Circle every
other letter to discover what she told Ruby in that letter.
For young Ruby, the isolation was even worse than the threats. When
the school's white parents pulled their children out in protest, she
was left alone, day after day, with her white teacher, Barbara Henry.
SEGREGATION means the practice of separating
people into groups, especially racial groups. Before 1960,
schools in America were segregated. Can you guess what
integration means?
Standards Link: History: Understand the accomplishments of ordinary people in
historical situations.
a. Remembering a name
b. Bringing people
together that used to
be separated
c. Excluding people
based on race
d. Organizing names
alphabetically
Despite the ___________ protests,
Ruby went to school every day.
She ___________ create the first
desegregated school in the Deep
South. After a few _________ of
protest, white children slowly began to
_________ to the school. A year later,
Ruby ___________ second grade
without the marshals, ____________
a class of white and black children.
Official Kids Mag www.kidscoop.comVicki WhitingDecember 2020
