draft lesson plan
A House Divided: Reliving the Civil War
Janet Tilley and Kathleen Wells-Morgan
In 1858 Abraham Lincoln, like many other Americans of the time believed that, "A house divided against itself cannot stand...."
The division of the national "house" exploded into warfare which reached every home and family in the country.
Students will create an exhibit for the American Studies Living History Museum which reflects their informed understanding of the complex issues, causes, and consequences of the American Civil War. This project will engage students in research, analysis, interpretation, and construction of understandings, artifacts, and personas from the Civil War era which will be presented in an interactive, multimedia museum format.
Objectives
During the construction of this exhibition, students' lives will be changed forever through a series of intellectually rigorous, but creatively engaging multimedia activities designed to meet the needs of a diverse student population.
· Students will identify and analyze the issues, causes, and consequences of the Civil War.
· Students will interpret how this cultural division affected the lives of individuals and their families.
· Students will practice essential social studies and language arts skills in designing and creating their exhibits.
· Students will engage in an ongoing critique of the project process and products.
Time Required
This unit should be completed in 2-3 weeks within a two period daily block format.
Recommended Grade Level
Grades 9-11.
Curriculum Fit
We have constructed this lesson for an 11th grade American Studies class which integrates the American literature and history curricula.
Resources Used
· African American Perspectives
· African American Odyssey
· Architecture and Interior Design for 20th Century America: Photographs by Samuel Gattscho and William Schleisner 1935-1955
· By Popular Demand: Jackie Robinson and Other Baseball Highlights, 1860s-1960s
· "California As I Saw It": First Person Narratives of California's Early Years, 1849-1900
· Selected Civil War Photographs
· America's First Look into the Camera: Daguerreotype Portraits and Views, 1839-1862
· An American Ballroom Companion: Dance Instruction Manuals, ca. 1490-1920
· Words and Deeds in American History: Selected Documents Celebrating the Manuscript Division
· American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1940
· American Landscape and Architectural Design, 1850-1920
· A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation:
U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774-1873
· Mr. Lincoln's Virtual Library
· Map Collections: 1544-1996
· Panoramic Maps
· Taking the Long View: Panoramic Photographs, 1851-1991
· By Popular Demand: Portraits of the Presidents and First Ladies, 1789-Present
· An American Time Capsule:
Three Centuries of Broadsides and Other Printed Ephemera
· Railroad Maps, 1828-1900
· Historic American Sheet Music, 1850-1920
· The Thomas Jefferson Papers at the Library of Congress
· Pioneering the Upper Midwest:
Books from Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, ca. 1820-1910
· Votes for Women:
Selections from the National American Woman Suffrage Association Collection, 1848-1921
· By Popular Demand: "Votes for Women" Suffrage Pictures, 1850-1920
· Poet at Work: Recovered Notebooks from the Thomas Biggs Harned Walt Whitman Collection
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· Write a print (non-online) resource here.
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Procedure
1. Groups of
5 or 6 students will represent a family unit affected by the Civil War.
Each individual will be given specific cooperative learning roles in order to facilitate the group process.
2. Collectively these family units will reflect the demographic diversity of the United States during the Civil War era
Families can be based on actual individuals from the time or students may create fictional families inspired by research.
Each individual will assume the role of one family member.
3. Teachers will model the desired process and sample exhibit products with a presentation of
the Anne Hawkins Gentry family.
The Gentry family resided in Columbia, Missouri during the Civil War and suffered the divided loyalties of a border state--one son chose the Confederacy, yet the family remained with the Union.
4. Whole class will brainstorm possible types of family units.
Groups will build on those ideas to select family unit characteristics.
5. Individual students will continue the process by researching and constructing
a written character sketch of their specific family member.
This sketch will flesh out the details of the character's background, physical attributes, socio-economic status, beliefs, etc.
6. Through group collaboration, students will work with the family unit character sketches to create relevant artifacts, images, documents, and multimedia presentations for inclusion in the exhibition.
Suggested products include:
· maps locating family members at various times
· photographs
· cards, letters, diaries, telegrams, official documents, recipes
· personal possessions
· music and dance
· literature with explanatory connection to family member(s)
· costume, furniture, tools, machinery
7. Through intergroup collaboration, students will design and construct a living history exhibit, using appropriate museum guidelines and methods.
Promotional materials consisting of an exhibition poster and catalogue will focus on the "House Divided" theme and be constructed from representative visuals contributed by each group.
8. The American Studies Living History Museum will hold a private showing of its House Divided exhibit for parents and designated members of the public at project's end.
Evaluation and Extension
This is the part we are still working on; however, we know that we will do a series of process assessments and a product evaluation at project's' end.
Students will be asked to provide metacognitive reflection upon completion of the exhibition.
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jtilley100@aol.com
wellsmo@socket.net
July 19, 1999