LESSON PLAN.docVIP

LESSON PLAN “HOW DO MEN LIKE YOU BECOME GREAT?” The Early Years of Dr. Ralph J. Bunche Creator: Deidre Robinson, St. John Chrysostom School / Grade 8 Grade level recommendation: 4–8 Time required: 14 days Unit Overview Dr. Ralph Bunche was an educator, scholar, leader, diplomat, and statesman, He spent his life studying race relations and aiding the struggle of oppressed people in the United States and abroad. Bunche. In 1950, he became the first African American to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, yet he is unknown to most Americans. This unit explores who Bunche was and how he was able to accomplish so much during the height of Jim Crow laws and segregation in the United States. Historical Background Dr. Ralph Bunche spent his life studying race relations and aiding the struggle of oppressed people in America and abroad. In 1950, Bunche — an educator, scholar, leader, diplomat, and statesman — became the first African American to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Who was Ralph Bunche, and how was he able to accomplish so much during the height of Jim Crow laws and segregation in the United States? Why is he unknown to most Americans today? Ralph Johnson Bunche was born on August 7, 1903. His parents, Fred Bunch, a barber, and Olive Johnson Bunch, a homemaker, lived in a modest one-story house on Anthon Street in Detroit, Michigan. In pursuit of a job, Fred Bunch moved his family around: Cleveland, Ohio; Knoxville, Tennessee; and Toledo, Ohio. Grace, Ralph’s only sibling, was born in Toledo in 1909. His mother became very ill, so they moved back to Detroit to live with her family. Doctors discovered that Olive had tuberculosis. Her brother Charlie, who was Ralph’s favorite uncle, also had the disease. Charlie relocated to Albuquerque, New Mexico, hoping the warmer climate would ease his condition. Fred Bunch left Detroit to look for a job. He never returned. Olive’s mother, Lucy Taylor Johnson, moved the family to Albuquerque to be with Charlie and to help Olive recov