Fifth Grade
Worksheets
Charlayne Hunter-Gault
Charlayne Hunter-Gault
Reading Comprehension for February 27
It takes courage to be the first one or two to do something. Changing history has never been easy. Charlayne Hunter-Gault was one of two people who changed American history.
There was a time when schools in America were segregated. This meant that African-American children and white children could not go to school together. American colleges and universities were also segregated. Hunter-Gault grew up during this period. She was born on February 27, 1942, in Due West, South Carolina. She was the oldest of three children. Her parents were Althea Ruth Brown and Charles Hunter. Hunter-Gault and her family moved a lot during her childhood. Her father was an army chaplain. She lived briefly in California, Ohio, Indiana, and Alaska. Most of the time she and her two brothers lived in Georgia. They lived with her mother and grandmother in Covington and Atlanta, Georgia.
Hunter-Gault's grandmother influenced her love of journalism. Her grandmother taught herself to read. She would sit each day and read three newspapers. Hunter-Gault would sit beside her grandmother and read comic strips. Her favorite was Brenda Starr. Starr was a reporter who worked hard to get her story. Hunter-Gault had never seen black newspaper reporters. She did not see black reporters on television. However, she was determined to become a journalist.
Hunter-Gault started eighth grade in 1954 at Henry McNeal Turner High School in Atlanta. It was one of the top black high schools in Atlanta. During this year, she moved with her family to Alaska. Her father was stationed there. Hunter-Gault, her mother, and brothers returned to Atlanta after nine months. Her parents eventually got a divorce. She went back to Turner High School. She was a very active student. Hunter-Gault was in school clubs, on the student council, and on the school newspaper. She was also a top student and in the honor society. During her senior year she became homecoming queen. Hunter-Gault graduated third in her class in 1959.
