The Story of Ruby Bridges

welcome to teacher reads I'm miss s today we are going to read the story of ruby bridges written by robert coles and illustrated by george ford this book was suggested by Miss Ann castles third-grade class Thank You Ruby Bridges was born in a small cabin near Tylertown Mississippi we were very poor very very poor Ruby said my daddy worked picking crops we just barely got by there were times when we didn't have much to eat the people who owned the land were bringing in machines to pick the crops so my daddy lost his job and that's when we had to move I remember us leaving I was four I think in 1957 the family moved to New Orleans Ruby's father became a janitor her mother took care of the children during a day after they were tucked in bed Ruby's mother went to work scrubbing the floors and a bank every Sunday the family went to church we wanted our children to be near God's Spirit Ruby's mother said we wanted them to start feeling close to him from the very start at that time black children and white children went to separate schools and New Orleans the black children were not able to receive the same education as the white children it wasn't fair and it was against the nation's law in 1960 a judge ordered for black girls to go to two white elementary schools three of the girls were sent to McDonough nineteen six year old Ruby Bridges was sent to first grade in the William Frantz elementary school Ruby's parents were proud that their daughter had been chosen to take part in an important event in American history they went to church we sat there and prayed to God Ruby's mother said that we'd all be strong and we'd have courage and we get through any trouble and Ruby would be a good girl and she'd hold her head up high and be a credit to her own people and a credit to all the American people we pray long and we prayed hard on Ruby's first day a large crowd of angry white people gathered outside the Frantz elementary school the people carried signs that said they didn't want black children in a white school people called Ruby names some wanted to hurt her the city and state police did not help Ruby the President of the United States ordered federal marshals to walk with Ruby into the school building the marshals carried guns every day for weeks that turned into months Ruby experienced that kind of school day she walked into the France school surrounded by marshals wearing a clean dress and a bow in her hair and carrying her lunch pail Ruby walked slowly for the first few blocks as Ruby approached the school she saw a crowd of people marching up and down the street men and women and children shouted at her they pushed towards her the marshals kept them from Ruby by threatening to arrest them Ruby would hurry through the crowd and not say a word the white people in the neighborhood would not send their children to school when Ruby got inside the building she was all alone except for her teacher Miss Henry there were no other children to keep Ruby company to play with and learn with to eat lunch with but every day Ruby went into the classroom with a big smile on her face ready to get down to the business of learning she was polite and she worked well at her desk Miss Henry said she enjoyed her time there she didn't seem nervous or anxious or irritable or scared she seemed as normal and relaxed as any child I've ever taught so Ruby began learning how to read and write in an empty classroom in an empty building sometimes I look at her and wonder how she did it said Miss Henry how she went by those mobs and sat here all by herself and yet seem so relaxed and comfortable Miss Henry would question Ruby in order to find out if the girl was really nervous and afraid even though she seemed so calm and confident but Ruby kept saying she was doing fine the teacher decided to wait and see if Ruby would keep on being so relaxed and hopeful or she gradually began to wear down or even decide that she no longer wanted to go to school then one morning something happened miss Henry stood by a window in her class as she usually did watching Ruby walked towards the school suddenly Ruby stopped right in front of the mob of howling and screaming people she stood there facing all those men and women she seemed to be talking to them Miss Henry saw Ruby's lifts moving and wondered what Ruby could be saying the crowd seemed ready to kill her the marshals were frightened they tried to persuade Ruby to move along they try to hurry her into the school but Ruby wouldn't budge then Ruby stop talking and walked into the school when she went into the classroom Miss Henry asked her what happened miss Henry told Ruby that she'd have been watching and that she was surprised when Ruby stopped and talked with the people in the mob Ruby became irritated I didn't stop and talked with them she said Ruby I saw you talking Miss Henry said I saw your lips moving I wasn't talking said Ruby I was praying I was praying for them every morning Ruby had stopped a few blocks away from school to say a prayer for the people who hated her this morning she forgot until she was already in the middle of the angry mob when school was over for the day Ruby hurried through the mob as usual after she walked a few blocks and the crowd was behind Ruby said the prayer she repeated twice a day before and after school please God try to forgive those people because even if they say those bad things they don't know what they're doing so you could forgive them just like you did those folks a long time ago when they said terrible things about you by the time Ruby was in second grade the mobs have given up their struggle to scare Ruby and defeat the federal judges ordered that New Orleans schools be desegregated so that children of all races might be in the same classroom year after year Ruby went to the France school she graduated from then went on to graduate from high school the end I hope you enjoyed reading the story of ruby bridges with me today please subscribe to the channel and write in the comments section which book would you like to see next thank you for listening

Channel: The Teacher's Library

Views: 1,027,932

Rating: 4.436584 out of 5

Keywords: Teacher Reads Channel, The Story of Ruby Bridges, Ruby Bridges

Id: U8D4ldGY41s

Length: 7min 58sec (478 seconds)

Published: Thu Feb 18 2016