Effective or ineffective? As part of a study of post Civil War America, young historians analyze a series of primary sources to evaluate the effectiveness of the Freedmen's Bureau in addressing the challenges faced by the slaves freed by...

Students fill out "Effects of the Civil War" question and answer sheet and discover that Vernors was created as a direct result of the Civil War.

The role women played in the Civil War, especially in relief efforts, is the focus of this seven-page resource. Groups examine primary source materials to determine how this work reflected and expanded the traditional roles women held in...

Students examine the battle of Gettysburg as they write news articles. In this Battle of Gettysburg lesson, students become familiar with the job of the news reporter as they report on the events of the Battle of Gettysburg as they...

Fifth graders explore both the causes of and the actual events of the Civil War. They write essays and descriptive paragraphs and explore a variety of websites. They create a series of skits highlighting the key points of the Civil War era.

Did the Emancipation Proclamation free all slaves during the Civil War? Why was it written, and what were its immediate and long-term effects? After reading primary source materials, constructing political maps representing information...

Check out this simple and organized viewing guide for the film Glory! Questions prompt learners to consider the evolution of characters over the course of the film, and to analyze the effects of the film and the efforts of the 54th...

In this American Civil War worksheet, students read assigned textbook pages about the causes of the war and then respond to 35 short answer questions about how the war began.

Learners explore the events of Reconstruction after the Civil War.  In this US History lesson, students complete several activities and worksheets that reinforce challenges and social upheaval experienced in the South after the...

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...

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...

Anti-democratic violence is not new in the United States. Learners watch videos and then compare and contrast the 1873 Colfax and the 1898 Wilmington massacres. They then watch a video about the Capitol Hill insurrection of 2021 and...

To gain an understanding of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, class members investigate the Jim Crow Laws, the Emancipation Proclamation, the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments of the US Constitution, and the 1898 Supreme Court case,...

Eighth graders study the Civil War. In this US history lesson, 8th graders discuss the causes for fighting for the North and the South showing that there was no good side or evil side just people believing in what they were fighting for....

The war on drugs doesn't have definite results. An interesting lesson examines the social, political, and economic effect of the war on drugs. Academics learn how the war on drugs has led to mass incarcerations and negatively affected...

Even though American slaves were officially emancipated in 1865, the effects of slavery perpetuated throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Middle and high schoolers learn about the ways that discrimination and the Jim Crow laws...

Sixth graders play a game.  In this Civil War lesson plan, 6th graders discuss the beginnings of the Civil War and define vocabulary words associated with the war such as abolitionist and Emancipation Proclamation.  Students...

Fourth graders research soldiers in the Civil War. In this Civil War lesson, 4th graders listen to the story Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco and identify the main events. They read facts about "Hoosiers in the Civil War" and create...

Eighth graders examine the role of Indiana soldiers in the Civil War. In this American Civil War lesson, 8th graders listen to a lecture about the involvement of Indiana soldiers in the war and then analyze letters written home by the...

Students demonstrate how the American Civil War affected black Kentuckians socially and politically. They identify and discuss the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which forced the end of slavery in Kentucky months after the...

Students investigate the role of boys during the American Civil War. In this Civil War Research lesson, students study the contributions of young Union and Confederate men to the war effort. Students also make...

Eighth graders write an essay describing one of the main causes of the Civil War. In this Civil War lesson plan, 8th graders discuss the Civil War and then write an essay on it.

US Commanding General William S. Rosecrans led the Union soldiers and Confederate Commanding General Braxton Bragg led the rebel army at the Battle of Stones River. Young historians compare how the leadership styles of these two...

The assassination of Abraham Lincoln was a pivotal moment in American history, but what were the immediate effects throughout the newly unified country? A document-based question focuses on the consequences of the first...