Students need to see past heroes as real people who struggled with ordinary problems in order to see the relevancy of studying history and to act practically upon the lessons that each leader teaches them. This study attempts to answer two questions relating to Martin Luther King, Jr.: (1) What do we teach our children about King? and (2) Can we do it better? A brief biographical sketch of King is included. Current beliefs about King and popular misconceptions about his life support the assertion that something is wrong in what is taught about Martin Luther King, Jr. Identifying inaccuracies and deficits in curriculum material related to King requires an investigation of textbooks and other resources accessible to students and teachers. By reviewing an exhaustive list of commercially produced resource packages on King, researchers can make some general conclusions. Most materials jump from King's "I Have a Dream" speech to his assassination with little or nothing in between. His views on poverty and his objections to the Vietnam War largely are overlooked. Since curriculum deficiencies exist in most books or teaching resources devoted to King, the need for alternative resources arises. Using computers, interactive videodiscs, and multimedia resources as the means for instruction, a program is offered that can address shortcomings in curriculum materials with videocassettes and laserdiscs. Moving beyond the design of a unit on King, this study also reports and analyzes the findings after the curriculum was field tested with a seventh grade class. (DK)