Worksheets and No Prep Teaching Resources Reading Comprehension Worksheets Black History and Blacks in U.S. History

Muhammad Ali Black History and Blacks in U.S. History

---

Muhammad Ali
Print Muhammad Ali Reading Comprehension with Fifth Grade Work

Print Muhammad Ali Reading Comprehension with Sixth Grade Work

Print Muhammad Ali Reading Comprehension

Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 5 to 7
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	7.4

Vocabulary

	challenging words:		evasion, objectors, unpatriotic, controversy, heavyweight, agenda, conscientious, further, religion, fighter, refused, medal, refuses, status, division, fans
	content words:		Muhammad Ali, Rome Olympics, Cassius Clay, Now I'm, Vietnam War, When Muhammad, US Army, Sonny Liston, Supreme Court, Joe Frazier

---

Muhammad Ali By Sharon Fabian

---

¹     In 1960, Muhammad Ali won a gold medal for boxing at the Rome Olympics. He was 18 years old at the time, and his medal was in the light heavyweight division. At that time, he was known as Cassius Clay, not Muhammad Ali.
 
²     He went on to win many other boxing matches, but boxing was not the only thing on Cassius Clay's agenda. According to him, boxing was what made him famous, but fighting for freedom was his real mission. He said, "The fighting was a vehicle to make me popular. Now I'm fighting for freedom, for people's rights, . . ."
 
³     His career mixed boxing, showmanship, his campaign for freedom and respect, and controversy over his religion.
 
⁴     After the Olympics in 1960, Cassius Clay began his pro fighting career. Before one of his matches, he predicted that he would win by a knockout in the second round. His prediction came true. After that, Clay kept making predictions, often in rhyme. These predictions made the boxing matches more interesting for his fans.
 
⁵     In 1963, Cassius Clay joined the Muslim faith. He changed his name to Muhammad Ali. This was during the time of the Vietnam War, and Muhammad's Muslim faith opposed the war. When Muhammad was drafted into the US Army, he refused to go, claiming the status of a conscientious objector. A conscientious objector is someone who refuses to fight because his beliefs are opposed to war. People who opposed the Vietnam War were often looked down on at that time. People who had been in the war, or who had had a family member in the war, called the conscientious objectors unpatriotic. They called them traitors. Muhammad Ali and his refusal to fight in the war became big news.

Paragraphs 6 to 12:
For the complete story with questions: click here for printable

---

Weekly Reading Books

Create Weekly Reading Books Prepare for an entire week at once!

---

Feedback on Muhammad Ali

Leave your feedback on Muhammad Ali   (use this link if you found an error in the story)

---

Black History and Blacks in U.S. History

Black History and Blacks in U.S. History

---

United States

United States

American Government         Black History and Blacks in U.S. History         Children in History         Government Careers         Hispanic Heritage         How Can I Help?

Immigration         National Parks and Monuments         Native Americans         Presidents of the United States         Women's History

---

United States History

A Nation Divided (1840-1861)         A New Nation (1776-1830)         After the Civil War (1865-1870)         American Revolution         Cold War (1947-1991)         Colonial America (1492-1776)         Lewis and Clark (1804-1806)         Pearl Harbor         Spanish American War (1898)         The 1890's         The 1900's         The 1910's         The 1920's         The 1930's

The 1940's         The 1950's         The 1960's         The 1970's         The 1980's         The 1990's         The 2000's         The Civil War (1861-1865)         The Great Depression (1929-1945)         The United States Grows (1865-1900)         The War of 1812         Wild, Wild West         World War I (1914-1918)         World War II

---

50 States

Fifty States Theme Unit

---

Document Based Activities

Document Based Activities

Copyright © 2025 edHelper