National Endowment for the Humanities
Life Before the Civil War
American life before the Civil War was very different from American life today. To show this difference in a full spectrum, learners compare two communities that illustrate the differences between Northern and Southern life. Throughout...
PBS
Civil War: Blacks on the Battlefield
Imagine a war being fought to free slaves, with slaves on the front line. Scholars use primary documents, videos, and research in the second installment of a three-part series to guide their analysis of the first African-Americans on the...
Civil War Trust
The Gathering Storm: The Coming of the Civil War
Take a longer look at a formative time in history with a lesson that explores the causes of the American Civil War. After viewing a series of images and explanations for various forces at play, middle schoolers choose the images that...
Curated OER
Civil War Photography Worksheet
Prepare your class for analyzing Civil War photography with this instructional activity. Have your class research online about Matthew Brady as well as view several of Alexander Gardner's Civil War photos and read critical analysis of...
American Battlefield Trust
The Common Civil War Soldier
If it were possible to step back in time, what would learners want to know about the Civil War? With the aid of discussion prompts, they now have that chance. Invite a Civil War re-enactor to your classroom and have all their questions...
Curated OER
African-American Communities in the North Before the Civil War
Middle schoolers examine what life was like in free African-American communities before the Civil War. They analyze maps, identify elements of everyday life in these communities, explore various websites, and complete a chart.
Civil War Trust
Contrasting the North and South before the War
Learners create a standing cube with four panels that display information on the North and South's economy, geography and climate, society, and means of transportation before the Civil War. Through discussion and reading...
Curated OER
Civil War Timeline
Seventh graders identify the major events before, during and after the Civil War. In groups, they use the events to create a timeline and research the figures and places involved in their specific event. They present their information to...
Curated OER
Civil War Photojournalism: A Record of War
Learners view photographs of the Civil War. In this photojournalism lesson, students look at Mathew Brady's photographs of the Civil War. They discover the evolution of photographic equipment and analyze Civil War photographs.
Curated OER
Homer's Civil War Veteran: Battlefield to Wheat Field
Students examine Civil War-themed artwork. In this visual arts lesson, students compare and contrast paintings by Winslow Homer and Timothy O'Sullivan. Students analyze the symbolism in the artwork representing Civil War...
Curated OER
Civil War Photographs: What Do You See?
A study of an image from The Library of Congress collection Civil War Photographs 1861-1865 launches an investigation of the connection between the Civil War and American industrialization. After analyzing “Petersburg, Va. The...
Curated OER
Lincoln and the War’s Larger Meaning
Students analyze Abraham Lincoln's view of the Civil War. In this American Civil War lesson, students read excerpts of Lincoln's speeches to determine whether he had a dual view of the war. Students respond to discussion questions about...
Curated OER
Civil War "Who Am I?" Worksheet
For this American Civil War figures worksheet, students create 20 questions that they will ask to find out the identity of the mystery war figure they are assigned.
Curated OER
Civil War Reader's Theater Lesson Plan
Students participate in a reader's theater about the Civil War. In this performing arts instructional activity, students review the Civil War through a reader's theater. They practice reading their parts to work on expression and...
Curated OER
Photojournalism: A Record of War
Learners explore who has photographed war and why. They examine Mathew Brady's process for photgraphing the Civil War. Students investigate how photographic equipment has changed and improved through time. They analyze primary source war...
Curated OER
Civil War Essay
Upper graders explore equality by writing an essay. They read the story Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco, and discuss the meaning of the story and its relevance to Civil War events. Learners investigate the five writing process steps and...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
Alabama's Economic Contribution to the Confederacy
With a presentation and guided questions, help elementary historians understand the role Alabama played in the Confederate economy during the Civil War. The resource concludes with a newspaper article writing assessment.
Alabama Department of Archives and History
African American Life After the Civil War - Sharecropping
What is the sharecropping system? What role did it play in the post-Civil War economy of the South? Who were the sharecroppers? Who employed them? How were they paid? To answer these questions, kids examine a series of sharecropper...
Curated OER
Lessons in Looking: Contraband in Paintings
Using the paintings On to Liberty and A Ride for Liberty, 10th graders analyze historical perspectives on life after the Civil War. They attempt to determine what the Civil War meant for free slaves, then read a paragraph highlighting...
Curated OER
Who Fought for the Confederacy?
Did the Confederate Army really consist of southern volunteers? Using primary sources, historians examine the story behind the "Twenty Negro Law" and realities of conscription during the Civil War. A letter and a lithograph (included as...
Curated OER
The Red Badge of Courage: A New Kind of Realism
Is it possible to tell a true war story? Tim O’Brien says that fiction is for “getting at the truth when the truth isn’t sufficient for the truth.” To get at the truth about war, class members examine primary source materials from the...
Curated OER
Sequence, Predict, Infer: Pink and Say
Practice sequencing with your 2nd graders via Patricia Polacco's Civil War book Pink and Say. Begin with a blindfold and a bag of mystery items. Connect their use of clues to identify what they can't see with the skill of making...
DocsTeach
Confronting Work Place Discrimination on the World War II Home Front
Before the Civil Rights Movement was in full swing, FDR's executive order helped promote fair employment. The activity uses primary documents to explore FDR's executive order to help minorities gain equal employment and pay during the...
Curated OER
Civil War Letters
Students put themselves in the shoes of American Civil War soldiers. In this Civil War lesson, students examine letters from the time period written by soldiers, edit the letters for grammatical errors, and then present the letters to...