For the last couple of weeks, reading, writing and arithmetic haven’t been the only lesson plans at Langley Middle School. To commemorate this Martin Luther King holiday, the students have undertaken two weeks of activities as a part of “MLK: A Reflection and Remembrance Project.”

Each day the students and staff take time for a little MLK 101, as the morning begins with Victoria Santos sharing King’s speeches and little-known facts about the civil rights leader.

“I had no idea his first name was actually Michael until I heard that,” said seventh-grader Azrael Rempa.

Class chalkboards bear famed King quotes such as: “Let freedom ring,” and “We cannot walk alone.”

Each class has designated time where they talk about topics such as segregation, inequality, freedom and peace. They learn of civil rights icons such as Rosa Parks, Ruby Bridges, Dr. King and others. Guest speakers such as Sylvia Hollis share their experiences; Hollis grew up a poor white girl in Brookhaven, Miss. where she saw segregation first-hand.

“Blacks were always treated different, and even as a poor girl they’d get off the sidewalks to let me walk,” she said. “The area of town in which they lived was called Dogtown and never had the same services whites were given.”

Martin Luther King is Hollis’ hero.

“He was brilliant and I can still remember the bulletin that came out announcing he’d been shot. It was the saddest day in my life,” Hollis said.

In response, Hollis wrote King’s mother a letter that included a song she wrote in reflection of the leader’s death. Hollis still holds dear the response letter dated from August 1968.

With each visit from Santos, or a guest speaker, the students review what they’ve learned and prepare to learn more.

“My family takes the holiday seriously because most of us are black,” said seventh-grader Jasmine O’Brochta. “Each year at school we all learn about Dr. King, but it’s always good to learn more about him and others.”

“He wouldn’t give up without a fight, and I think his dream has happened but not entirely the way he would have wanted it to. We’re not finished.”

Students have been busy designing and creating tiles for a mural that honors King’s personal commitment to freedom and equality. The design, inspired by M.C. Escher, evolves from square tiles that morph words, into symbols, into birds that fly away free.

Heading the tile mural project are community volunteer and the mural’s designer Carol Way, LMS art instructor Linda Racicot and student teacher Dave Adams.

Thursday morning seventh-grader Adam Schumacher was busy working on his bird tile, taking extra care to add texture to the tail feathers and clean up all the edges before it was ready for the kiln.

“This is their chance to be a part of something that will last long beyond their years at this school,” Racicot said.

Langley Middle School Principal Darrell Posch has been impressed by his school’s effort in honoring Martin Luther King.

“When we first started I didn’t understand the magnitude of it,” Posch said. “But, I’ve been in education for 38 years and never seen such great lengths.”

Posch said he’s glad to see the celebration breaking the mold of the typical hour-or-so assemblies that are the standard at schools.

“This breaks the repetition,” he said. “You walk into the classrooms now and see students engaged, really paying attention, and you know they are learning. It’s nice walking down the hall and hearing kids talk of the things they’ve learned.”

Students agree that the extended celebration has been positive.

“It’s a good thing, because he needs to be recognized for all that he did,” said seventh-grader Christina Spalding.

The school-wide project was supported by Learn and Serve America, local AmeriCorps volunteers, the LMS PTSA, Jenny Gochanour, the Community Engagement Center and numerous community volunteers who have donated their time to the school to make it all happen.

While much of the classwork is finished, and the final tiles and clay birds are being fired, the celebration is far from over.

Tuesday the school will welcome cultural ambassadors from Colombia for an assembly during which they will share their culture through dance, song and visits to classrooms. The program will also be presented to the public at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the South Whidbey High School Auditorium.

The tile installation at the middle school’s front hall is set to be unveiled Jan. 23.

DIFFERENT LOOK AT THE MAN

The students aren’t the only ones taking history lessons and preparing to honor King.

St. Augustines-in-the-woods Episcopal Church in Freeland plans to hold an event Monday afternoon to explore and remember a side of Dr. King not often in the limelight.

“We’re all familiar with a portion of his ‘I have dream’ speech and how he helped break segregation,” said Dick Hall, a member the event hosting St. Augustine’s Episcopal Peace Fellowship.

“But he had lots of different sides, including his work for economic justice and his stand against Vietnam.”

At the event Monday there will be readings from “Beyond Vietnam,” the speech given at Riverside Church in 1967 in which King spoke out against the Vietnam War. The Sophia Singers will lead those gathered in the singing of African American spirituals. Familiar and less familiar nonviolent peacemakers will also be honored, from Nelson Mandela to Ella Baker.

Bishop Sandy Hampton, a retired bishop with the Archdiocese of Olympia, will give the main talk, and much time for open discussion will be allowed.

The Rev. Nigel Taber-Hamilton, rector at St. Augustines, said that the Martin Luther King holiday stands for more than just remembering the man himself, but also the broader significance of the civil rights movement.

“If not for Martin Luther King, Jr., and people like him, it would have taken much longer to accomplish even the little progress that we have made,” Taber-Hamilton said.

Celebrating the holiday is not only about Martin Luther King, but also about “confronting the strength within yourself to address the issues of inequality and racism,” Taber-Hamilton said.

“This should not just be a reflection on the life of one man,” said the Rev. Nigel Taber-Hamilton, rector at St. Augustine’s. “It should leave us thinking about values and the issues that continue to need to be addressed.”