Download Civil War Lesson Plan Differences Between the North and the South

Civil War Lesson Plan
Differences Between the North and the South
http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=265168
Lesson Plan adapted from http://www.discoveryeducation.com/teachers/free-lesson-plans/the-civil-war-anation-divided.cfm
Overview of
Lessons
Description
of Learners
Learning
Objectives
Standards
This is a three day unit. Students will learn about the American Civil War. They will
learn about the major differences between the North and the South. Students will also
see what lead to the start of the civil war. A major focus of this unit will be the
conflicting opinions about Abraham Lincoln between the North and the South. The
Gettysburg Address will also be read aloud in class.
 8th grade students.
 Honors class.
 These students want to learn and are willing to put in extra effort.
After viewing The Civil War: A Nation Divided, having class discussion, and reading
the Gettysburg Address; students should be able to write an essay where they discuss
the major differences between the North and South and how those differences led to the
Civil War.
Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL) Standards

U.S. History: Era 5-Understands the causes of the Civil War; Understands
the course and character of the Civil War and its effects on the American
people
The National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) Standards
American History

Time, Continuity, and Change

Individuals, Groups, and Institutions
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Civil War Lesson Plan
Required
Materials
Procedure

Power, Authority, and Governance

Production, Distribution, and Consumption

The Civil War: A Nation Divided (can be purchased at
http://www.amazon.com/The-Civil-War-Nation-Divided/dp/B004VGFRJS)
 Computer
1) Watch The Civil War: A Nation Divided (This will take one class period)
2) Ask your students to reflect on the movie and ask them the following questions:
a. How did the economies of the North and South differ before the
Civil War? (The North was industrialized; the South was
agricultural.)
b. Why was slavery so important to the South? (Landowners
depended on slaves to work in the fields; the South's economy
was entirely dependent on slavery.)
c. How did the addition of new states to the Union create dispute?
(Free states and slave states both worried about the other side
having an advantage. The Missouri Compromise, for example,
was designed to maintain a balance of power.)
3) Review some of the significant events that, from 1860 to 1861, led 11 Southern
states to secede from the Union. For example:
a. Compromise of 1850
b. Fugitive Slave Act
c. Publication of Uncle Tom's Cabin
d. Dred Scott Decision
e. Kansas-Nebraska Act
f.
John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry, Virginia
4) Discuss conflicting opinions of Abraham Lincoln during the war. Ask students:
Did most Northerners and Southerners feel the same way about the President?
What was the Emancipation Proclamation? How did it affect peoples' feelings
towards Lincoln? How did it change the war? Help students understand that the
Confederates were angered by this edict to abolish slavery, believing it would
ruin the Southern economy. The Emancipation Proclamation also shifted the
emphasis of the war from keeping the nation together to a struggle to free the
slaves.
5) Have the students read the Gettysburg Address.
6) To help students with historical context, remind them that the war began April
12, 1861, when Confederate forces attacked Fort Sumter, South Carolina, and
that it ended on April 9, 1865, when General Robert E. Lee surrendered to
Union General Ulysses S. Grant at the village of Appomattox Courthouse,
Virginia. For other important dates, direct them to this online Civil War
Timeline:http://www.historyplace.com/civilwar/index.html.
7) Discuss what the Gettysburg Address meant for both the North and South.
8) Have the students write an essay about: Once students have read through their
speech or writing, ask them to write a brief essay that addresses the following.
American History
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Civil War Lesson Plan

When did Lincoln make this speech or present this writing?

Briefly summarize Lincoln's message.

Describe the tone or language he used, giving at least one significant
quote as an example.

How do you think most Northerners and most Southerners responded to
the speech or writing. Why?

What reaction do you imagine Americans today would have to the speech
or writing?

How do you think this speech or writing affected the Civil War?
Assessment2. Students should write a brief essay that addresses the following.

When did Lincoln make this speech or present this writing?

Briefly summarize Lincoln's message.

Describe the tone or language he used, giving at least one significant
quote as an example.

How do you think most Northerners and most Southerners responded to
the speech or writing. Why?

What reaction do you imagine Americans today would have to the speech
or writing?

How do you think this speech or writing affected the Civil War?
Students will get full points if they were active in class discussions;
demonstrated a strong understanding of differences between the North and
South, significant events leading to the Civil War, and conflicting opinions about
Abraham Lincoln; wrote a thorough, engaging essay about Lincoln's speech or
writing.
References




American History
http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/gettysburg.htm
-Multiple versions of Gettysburg Address
http://www.mcrel.org/ - McREL Standards
http://www.socialstudies.org/standards/strands/ - NCSS Standards
http://www.historyplace.com/civilwar/index.html - US Civil War Timeline
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Civil War Lesson Plan
Reference Page
I adapted the lesson plan from http://www.discoveryeducation.com/teachers/free-lesson-plans/thecivil-war-a-nation-divided.cfm.
I vastly re-tooled the whole thing and I made it much easier to read and understand.
American History
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