Out of the Mouths of Babes...

Fifth Grade Mamou High Green Demon Band Members Hailey and Chloe created this poster to share their beliefs about human relations.  They asked me if they could carry their poster in Mamou's Martin Luther King Day parade. Classmate Hannah joined them as we walked the parade route on Saturday.  We were blessed with warm weather and wonderful plates of red beans, hot spicy sausage, and rice when we finished!

For the first time in our town's history, part of our Mamou High School Green Demon Marching Band led Mamou's annual Martin Luther King Parade on Saturday.  I can remember the days in Louisiana when the Federal Government celebrated this holiday, but the state did not.  So, school children did not always have the opportunity to reflect on the civil rights contributions made by Dr. King and by so many families in Louisiana who supported the Civil Rights movement.

How times have changed!  Today, we do celebrate Martin Luther King's birthday as a state and federal holiday.  Our children receive comprehensive instruction in social studies, science, language arts, mathematics, and of course, the fine arts -- even in our high-poverty communities.

Our state has aligned its curriculum and invested in textbooks that are very current, reflecting all of the important civic issues up to the 2004 election.  Textbooks appeal to our diverse communities, and connect students with the story of Louisiana's great history.  Our students are state-tested on their knowledge of US and Louisiana History, beginning in the fifth grade.

With such deliberate strategies to educate all of Louisiana's children, is it any wonder that my students would have such a grasp of the most critical need of our time: to learn how to get along "as brothers" ... and sisters? 

I love teaching in public schools as part of my ministry, because I learn from my students every day.  But this day had extra special lessons for me.  To paraphrase the great Southern comic philosopher, Jeff Foxworthy, wouldn't it be nice if all the grownups in the world were as smart as, if not smarter than ... our fifth graders?