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English · Year 3e · Learning Journey 3 · Theme 4 Language and media · B1

Great speeches that changed history: I have a dream

On 28 August 1963, in front of 250,000 people, Martin Luther King repeated “I have a dream”. I discover the secrets of a great speech and I write my own to convince people.

B1rhetoricemphasis · linking words
Yellow card · January → February · 6 lessons

Persuading an audience

A speaker repeats, insists, links ideas and talks to the audience. Tap the cards.

Friends, I do believe that every young person deserves a chance. On the one hand, our school is a great place to learn; on the other hand, too many students feel alone. We must listen. We must act. We must change. Moreover, if we work together, nobody will be left behind. As a result, our school will become a place where everyone belongs.
emphasis
Emphasis: do / does / did + base form.
I do believe in you.
repetition
Repetition at the start of sentences hammers the idea home.
We must listen. We must act.
on the other hand
on the one hand… on the other hand to contrast two ideas.
On the one hand it's hard; on the other hand, it's worth it.
indirect question
Indirect question: no inversion, no do.
I wonder why he was so popular.

My words → tap a card: it turns over and I hear the word

Culture → the civil rights movement

Black and white photo: Martin Luther King in the crowd at the March on Washington
Rowland Scherman, Martin Luther King at the March on Washington, 28 August 1963 (National Archives) · Rowland Scherman / Adam Cuerden, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

In the South of the United States, after the end of slavery (1865), laws imposed segregation: separate schools, buses and restaurants for Black and white people. In the 1950s, the civil rights movement fought peacefully for equality: the Montgomery bus boycott (1955-1956) after Rosa Parks was arrested.

On 28 August 1963, the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom brought together about 250,000 people. In front of the Lincoln Memorial, the minister Martin Luther King improvised part of his speech and repeated “I have a dream”.

In 1964, the Civil Rights Act banned segregation, and King received the Nobel Peace Prize. He was killed on 4 April 1968 in Memphis. Since 1986, a national holiday has honoured him, on the third Monday in January.

Did you know? → tap a card

I listen → a student's speech

Listen to this student's speech. Find the repetition, the group of three, two linking words and the emphasis with do.

I watch

Video: “Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" Speech” · channel HISTORY · watch on YouTube. The video only loads when you tap (youtube-nocookie player).

My mission during the video
  1. Write down the context: date, place, audience.
  2. Write down two techniques that make the speech powerful.
  3. Explain in one sentence why this speech is still famous.
The lessons in this learning journey (6)
  1. What makes a great speech?
  2. Segregation in the USA: the context.
  3. August 28, 1963: the March on Washington.
  4. Rhetoric: repetition, rhythm, images.
  5. Grammar: emphasis and linking words.
  6. Final task: my one-minute speech.
Sentence starters → for my final task
  • “I am here today to talk about…”
  • “What I want is…”
  • “It is… that…”
  • “First of all, … Moreover, …”
  • “That is why…”
For the teacher → goals and official curriculum
  • Theme 4 “Language and media” → topic: great speeches and great speakers who changed history. Link with theme 5 “Forms of commitment”. 2020 theme: languages.
  • Understand a historical document and a video; spot the tools of rhetoric (repetition, groups of three, images).
  • B1 grammar: emphasis with auxiliaries (I do believe), linking words (moreover, on the one hand / on the other hand, as a result), indirect questions.
  • Final task: a one-minute speech to defend a cause.

Texts and materials: A photo of the March on Washington (National Archives); a HISTORY video about the speech; key facts about the civil rights movement.

Theme 4 “Language and media”. Source: French national curriculum for modern languages, cycle 4, BO no. 31 of 30 July 2020 (in force in 3e in 2026-2027); matching theme of the English curriculum, BO no. 22 of 29 May 2025, which will apply in 3e from September 2028.

Worksheet to fill in (paper or ENT)

The same learning journey, to print or to put on the ENT. For a PDF, choose “Save as PDF” in the print window.