Lesson Plan
American Battlefield Trust

Life At War

For Teachers 9th - 12th
A thought-provoking lesson plan explores what life was like for Civil War soldiers. With a presentation, group discussion, and writing activity, academics learn about camp living conditions, what soldiers ate, and how they dressed. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Gettysburg Address

For Teachers 6th
Who was Abraham Lincoln, and what is the Gettysburg Address? Sixth graders participate in a seminar where they read and analyze the Gettysburg Address and its importance. The role of Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War is also...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

If You Lived at the Time of the Civil War.

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students investigate major characters of history that are represented in children's literature. They conduct research using a variety of resources and each character is put into a class book as a presentation. The character includes a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Secession: A Southern Perspective

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders determine how secession impacted South Carolina as well as the United States. In this American Civil War lesson, 8th graders examine selected primary and secondary sources in order to study the state's sovereignty and the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

“Will I or Won’t I?” Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, 54th Massachusetts Regiment

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students discover the story of the 54th Massachusetts Regiment. In this American Civil War lesson, students study the life of Robert Gould Shaw and the regiment he led. Students research primary and secondary sources to learn about the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Afghanistan Today: Civil War and Human Rights

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. They analyze the role of religion and cultural identity in shaping governments. They also examine the United States foreign policy.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Hoosier Soldiers at Vicksburg

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders examine the role of Indiana soldiers at the Battle of Vicksburg. In this American Civil War activity, 8th graders listen to a lecture about the involvement of Indiana soldiers in the battle and then analyze letters written...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Hoosier Perspective on the March to the Sea: The Diary of William Miller

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders take a closer look at Sherman's March to the Sea. In this American Civil War lesson, 8th graders analyze the diary entries of William Miller. Discussion questions are included with the entries. Students create illustrated...
Lesson Plan
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Facing History and Ourselves

The World the War Made

For Teachers 9th - 12th
The United States Civil War forced Northern and Southern societies, as well as the people who made up those societies, to reconstruct their vision of themselves and their identities. A series of video-based web lessons look at the great...
Lesson Plan
Center for History Education

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper: 19th Century African-American Writer and Reformer

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Although some African American abolitionists—such as Sojourner Truth and Frederick Douglass—are well known, others, like Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, remain in the shadows of history. Harper was a poet and activist who played an...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Ladies, Contraband, and Spies: Women in the Civil War

For Teachers 10th - 11th
Students use primary sources - diaries, letters, and photographs - to explore the experiences of women in the Civil War. By looking at a series of document galleries, the perspectives of slave women, plantation mistresses, female spies,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Civil War Through a Child's Eyes

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students focus upon the Civil War era using research methods of drawing information from primary sources. Literature and photographic images reflect, communicate, and influence human perspectives of historical events. The lesson helps...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Civil War: A Terrible Swift Sword

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students explore the Civil War. In this American History instructional activity, students use guiding questions and primary resources to better comprehend the events of the Civil War. This instructional activity actually includes 3...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Life of a Soldier after the Civil War Lesson Plan: What's in a Name

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students explore the concept of institutional bias. In this Civil War lesson, students read case studies on the treatment of Irish and African-American veterans who did not receive their pensions from the war. Students discuss their...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Not Just A Man's War

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Learners write 2 letters from a woman who may have lived during the Civil War and 2 letters from her relative which include factual information that they have research using the Internet and other resources, along with other activities.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Post-1865: Effects of the War

For Teachers 9th - 12th
An engaging lesson focuses on the impact of the war and Lincoln's plan for Reconstruction had on the United States. Historians analyze primary documents, such as Constitutional Amendments and newspaper experts. They also participate in...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

1864-1865: Bringing the War to an End

For Teachers 9th - 12th
An interesting lesson plan explains the last battles of the war and the terms of the Articles of Surrender. It also analyzes the election of 1864 with copies of the Baltimore and Chicago platforms. To conclude the instructional activity,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

War, What is it Good for?

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders examine aspects of the American Civil War related to West Virginia. In this research skills lesson, 8th graders collaborate to research Civil War topics and create electronic portfolios that feature their findings.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Abraham Lincoln: The Face of War

For Teachers 4th - 10th
Young scholars compare life masks and photos of Abraham Lincoln that were made before and at the end of the Civil War. In this "Faces of War" lesson, students analyze images of Lincoln in a historical context and create a timeline of event.
Lesson Plan
NPR

Civil Rights of Japanese-American Internees

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Prompted by a viewing of Emiko and Chizu Omori’s Rabbit in the Moon, a documentary about the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II, high schoolers examine a series of documents, including the Bill of Rights and the UN’s...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Images at War

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine American attitudes toward war as revealed in Civil War photographs and WWII homefront posters. They analyze and discuss photos, explore the National Archives website, and organize a statement of their findings.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

To Be Black and American: World War II

For Teachers 12th
Twelfth graders research wartime conditions African American had to endure during World War II. They explain what role African Americans played in World War II and describe what life was like for African Americans in the United States...
Lesson Plan
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media

War and Poetry

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
A band of brothers or the Devil's agents? Nobel warriors freeing the oppressed or mercenaries working for the military/industrial complex? Groups examine poems from the Civil War, World War I, and World War II to determine the poets'...
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

An African American Represents Alabama during Reconstruction

For Teachers 4th Standards
The era after the Civil War saw a flourishing of African Americans exercising their rights. Using graphic organizers and Internet research, pupils consider the legacy of Benjamin Sterling Turner, who sat in Congress. Afterward, they...

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