Curated OER
I Am Freedom Bound!
Upper elementary and middle school learners engage in this awesome lesson plan on the Civil War. In it, they watch streamed video, perform Internet research, engage in hands-on activities, and use their geography skills to locate...
C3 Teachers
Uncle Tom’s Cabin: Can Words Lead to War?
"Words, words, words." Despite Hamlet's opinion, words can be significant. In this inquiry lesson, middle schoolers learn how the words in Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, in the view of many, lead to the American Civil War. To...
Curated OER
Civil War Medicine
Eighth graders discover details about medical care during the American Civil War. In this medical advancements lesson, 8th graders participate in classroom station activities that require them to study doctors, amputation, medical...
Curated OER
Civil War and Beyond
Sixth graders play a game. In this Civil War lesson, 6th graders discuss the beginnings of the Civil War and define vocabulary words associated with the war such as abolitionist and Emancipation Proclamation. Students play a game of...
Curated OER
Underground Railroad/Quilts
Students explore the Underground Railroad communication system. In this cross curriculum fine arts and United States history Civil War lesson, students view several websites that feature quilts constructed by slaves during the...
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 informational...
Curated OER
African Americans in World War II: Staging a Double V Campaign in the Classroom
The feelings and attitudes of African-Americans during World War II are examined by high schoolers. After watching various clips from "The War," they answer comprehension questions for each section. In groups, they create their own...
Curated OER
Life During the Civil War for Women and Civilians
Students follow an overview of the American Civil War from a film, the text and/or teacher direct instruction. They create a timeline with a large map of the U.S. in the 1860's available for student reference as they do the spider activity.
Curated OER
UN Conference on the Impact of Civil War on the Common Person
Students simulate understanding of conflict or civil war they researched, and role play character they developed at model UN conference on the impact of civil war on the common person.
Center for History Education
Maryland During the Secession Crisis
While many think the United States was neatly divided between Northern and Southern states during the Civil War, border states like Maryland are more complicated. Using hands-on activities to measure distance and primary sources,...
American Battlefield Trust
United States Colored Troops
The debate over slavery contributed to the Civil War, but it didn't stop African Americans from joining the military. Academics complete a series of worksheets, read original letters, and analyze a photo of an African American soldier to...
Mr. Nussbaum
Fort Sumter Reading Comprehension
The Battle of Fort Sumter was both the first and the least deadly battle of the American Civil War, with no soldiers lost during the lengthy bombardment. Learn more about the first shots of the Civil War with a short reading passage and...
American Battlefield Trust
Life at War
It looks like a cracker, but hardtack was anything but. The staple of the Civil War soldier's diet is one of many aspects of military life that scholars consider using letters from soldiers back home and images from slavery. A PowerPoint...
American Battlefield Trust
Life At War
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.
Curated OER
Economics during the Civil War
Students synthesize the concepts of scarcity, supply, and demand, pertaining to the Civil War time period. In this economics lesson, students gain understanding of economic terms through read-alouds, Venn diagrams, (comparing lifestyles...
Curated OER
The Civil War
Students, examine The Civil War, from a variety of perspectives and assignments. After taking notes, they can choose from creating a front page newspaper article describing the fall of Fort Sumter, discuss the pros and cons of fighting,...
Curated OER
Analyzing Civil War Pictorial Envelopes
Students explore the power of political messages contained in visual artifacts and examine the political messages conveyed by the illustrations that appeared on personal stationery used during the Civil War. They create and describe a...
Curated OER
Faces of the Past: Boys in the Civil War
Students investigate the role of boys during the American Civil War. In this Civil War Research lesson plan, students study the contributions of young Union and Confederate men to the war effort. Students also make classroom...
Curated OER
The Civil War as Photographed by Mathew Brady
Learners gain historical background on the Civil War era from textbooks, encyclopedias, or supplemental material. Assign at least two photographs for each student to analyze using the Photograph Analysis Worksheet which is imbedded in...
Curated OER
Civil War
Historical poetry is lyrical in form and rich with content. After examining the differences between the Northern and Southern states before and during the U.S. Civil War, learners complete a Venn diagram and create an illustration of the...
Curated OER
Claiming Common Ground? The Civil War and the Preservation of Claiming Common Ground? The Civil War and the Preservation of George Washington's Mount Vernon
Students explore how people viewed George Washington in the 19th Century. In this U.S. History lesson, students create a timeline of events during the Civil War, including government and court decisions. Following this activity,...
Curated OER
Historical Events of the Civil War
Fifth graders research the Civil War through the use of primary documents. In this historical events of the Civil War lesson, 5th graders write about the information gotten from the primary document. Students answer critical thinking...
Curated OER
What Were the Political & Social Views of People During the Civil War
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....
Curated OER
Civil War and Reconstruction
Students examine the differences between the North and South during the pre-Civil War era. In this Civil War era lesson plan, students spent 7 days looking at things that were different between the Union and Confederate state before the...