Free Printable Martin Luther King Jr. Coloring Pages

These free printable Martin Luther King Jr. coloring pages have been selected for their educational value and their appeal to children. As teacher myself, I know how difficult it is to find quality material to supplement the curriculum or to complete a unit. As a quick activity to reinforce concepts, these coloring pages provide independent work for the youngest of children. As a jumping off point, they provide a good visual image and hands on activity to activate learning.

DLTK's Crafts for Kids offers a nice selection of coloring pages featuring quotes from Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. Each page features one quote and a black line image to color. Although the drawings are simplistic and can easily be completed by young children, the quotes require higher level thinking skills and are appropriate for upper elementary students. This would make a great project for buddy groups. Older students can be challenged with discussions of the quote while younger students complete the coloring. These make a wonderful set of posters for hallways or classroom display. Also appropriate for middle school to spur discussion or as writing response prompts.

Enchanted Learning provides a simple black line drawing of Martin Luther King Jr. for children to color. It includes a quote from his speech and brief biographical material to accompany the picture.

Free Printable Coloring Pages offers a simple coloring page featuring Martin Luther King Jr. in front of the American flag with broken chains. This one is suitable for use in Social Studies Units for older children.

Holidays on the Net provides five printable images of Martin Luther King Jr. and one of Rosa Parks. These black and white photos allow some room for coloring activities but are primarily for display or to spark discussion. They may appeal to older children but do not provide interest for the youngest students.

Preschool Coloring Book offers five large black and white images suitable for coloring. Use discretion with these as the graphic representation is questionable in some.

A Kid's Heart provides two cute printables designed for young children. One features multicultural children to color and the other is a Happy Martin Luther King Day card with bears to color. Also available from a Kid's Heart are two email cards and an interactive timeline of major events in MLK's life.

Display student work on bulletin boards or in the hallway to serve as visual reminders of concepts taught and to instill confidence and pride in students. For older students, quotes from Martin Luther King Jr.'s speeches provide the perfect transition to setting classroom guidelines and reminders of how we should treat others. Print off extra Martin Luther King Jr. coloring pages to have on hand for transition times when you need a quick activity, or for the last few minutes of the day as a reward for working hard all day.