Ruby Bridges One Little Girl’s Brave Act Compiled by Marka Carson

Would you like to have a classroom all to yourself, with the teacher just for you?  Ruby Bridges did, when she was in First Grade.  She was in New Orleans.  The year was 1960.

 Where Ruby lived, black and white children went to separate schools.  This was called segregation.  Many people, including Ruby’s parents, did not believe in segregation.  They took their case to court where a judge ruled that Ruby would attend William Frantz Public School, a school of white students.

 Some people were angry about the Judge’s decision.  They wouldn’t send their children to Ruby’s school.  Some of them yelled and waved signs at Ruby when she went to school.

“The Problem We All Live With” Painting by Norman Rockwell, 1964, Look Magazine

“Our Ruby taught us all a lot. She became someone who helped change our country. She was part of history, just like generals and presidents are part of history. They’re leaders, and so was Ruby. She led us away from hate, and she led us nearer to knowing each other, the white folks and the black folks.” -Ruby’s Mother

Discussion Questions  How do you think Ruby felt going to that school? Why?  How do you think she felt in her classroom? Why?  Would you have done the same thing that Ruby did? Why or why not?  Why did some people yell at Ruby outside the school? What else could they have done?

Resources Through My Eyes Ruby Bridges, Scholastic Press, New York 1999 The Story of Ruby Bridges Robert Coles, Illustrated by George Ford, Scholastic, Inc