williams_textset

							Wynter Williams

Dr. Kern

2/16/12

Guiding Questions:

    -   What was living during the American Civil War like?
    -   How did the American Civil War change the United States?
    -   Why was slavery such an important issue?

Offline Texts:

Ayers, De La Teja, Schulzinger, and White. American Anthem. Holt Rhinehart Winston, 2007.

          This textbook gives a detailed account on not just the American Civil War, but other American
  History topics as well. In the chapter on the American Civil War however, it gives important
  information on significant people, terms students should know, battles, documents, African
  Americans, the involvement of women, and also has colored pictures which the students would enjoy.
  I would not use this textbook as the sole teaching resource, rather I would use it so the students have
  additional information.

Fleischner, Jennifer. Introduction. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. By Harriet Jacobs. Boston:
        Bedford/ St. Martins, 2010.

        Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is a well written, personal slave narrative of Harriet Jacobs,
a woman slave who lived during the 1800s. The narrative gives a detailed description of how difficult
life was for slaves and gives a detailed account on not only her life, but other slaves’ as well. This
book would capture the attention of high school students and give them an insight on how harsh life
was for slaves. For a regular history class, I would most likely have them read a few chapters
including chapter 3, 5, and 18. For an honors class, I would most likely have them read the entire
book. The reading is somewhat higher level, however not too difficult for an 11th grade student.

        “Civil War Pickers”. American Pickers. History Channel. Cineflix (AP) INC. , 2011. DVD.

         This DVD is not like other informative Civil War documentaries or movies. I particularly enjoy
        this American Pickers episode because it takes place in the present. Students can understand
        that what they learn in my class is not just about the past. This episode can show students actual
        soldiers’ uniforms, hats, and even weapons that were used. The language and content is also
        appropriate for high school students. Students may even find a greater interest in the subject.

Online Texts:
"Avalon Project - Constitution of the Confederate States; March 11, 1861." Avalon Project - Documents
       in Law, History and Diplomacy. Web. 14 Feb. 2012.
       <http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/csa_csa.asp>.

        The Confederate Constitution laid out a set of laws for the South after
they seceded from the United States. The language is somewhat difficult,
written in “government language”, however I would only have the students
read article one of the Constitution to give them a basic idea of what it is about.
I would also read the Constitution out loud as a class so that we could all
analyze and interpret the meaning of each point.

"Featured Document: The Emancipation Proclamation." National Archives and Records Administration.
       Web.                            14                      Feb.                         2012.
       <http://archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/emancipation_proclamation/transcript.html

          Abraham Lincoln’s, “The Emancipation Proclamation” laid out the president’s decision to end
slavery in the Confederate States. Lincoln decided that ending slavery in the South would be the only
solution to ending the war and the issue over Slavery. The language in this document is also somewhat
difficult, however I would either read this as a class or put the students in groups to have them
underline important points.

"The Kansas-Nebraska Act, 1854." TeachingAmericanHistory.org -- Free Seminars and Summer Institutes
       for       Social       Studies      Teachers.        Web.         14        Feb.      2012.
       <http://www.teachingamericanhistory.org/neh/interactives/sectionalism/lesson3/>.

                            This map portrays the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 which decided what states
                  would be free and which would be slave states during the Civil War era. I particularly
                  like this map because it is interactive, which the students would like. The states pop up
                  in order of when they were added to the United States and after clicking on the state,
                  also gives detail of the population, percentage of blacks and whites, and whether the
                  state was free or slave. This gives a lot of important information of the United States
                  during the mid-1800s.



"Civil War Today on IPad — History.com Interactive Games, Maps and Timelines." History.com — History
        Made Every Day — American & World History. Web. 14 Feb. 2012.
        <http://www.history.com/interactives/civil-war-today>.

                           If my school had the resources to let each student use an IPad, I would have
                    students look at the History.com American Civil War App that lets students interact
                    with the learning material. They can explore photo galleries, diaries, maps,
                    newspapers, as well as important people. Even if we do not have the IPad at school,
                    some students may have access to it at home which they can still explore. This will
get students more involved and illustrate the American Civil War through another perspective.



"Map 9: Volume and Direction of the Transatlantic Slave Trade from All African to All American
       Regions." Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. Web. 15 Feb. 2012.
                       <http:// www.slavevoyages.org/tast/assessment/intro-maps/09.jsp>.

        This map not only shows the movement of slaves, but gives details of the amount of
slaves as well as what continents they were being sent to. I think the students would be
surprised to see the amount of slaves leaving Africa to be sold elsewhere. The map also lets
the students expand their map reading skills.

"SparkNotes: The Civil War 1850–1865: Key People & Terms." SparkNotes: Today's Most Popular
        Study Guides. Web. 15 Feb. 2012.
<http://www.sparknotes.com/history/american/civilwar/terms.html>.

       This Spark Notes website contains a summary of important information of the American Civil
War. Not only does it contain a summary of important events such as Lincoln’s election, the Kansas-
                  Nebraska Act, and the South’s secession, but it also gives a short summary of
                  important people. The students could use this website as a study guide to review or
                  could use it to get a better understanding of events or people. The site also has
                  quizzes and study questions to help students prepare for one of my tests.




"Bonnie Blue Flag Song Lyrics Confederate Civil War Song." American Civil War History Timelines Battle
       Map Pictures. Web. 15 Feb. 2012.
       <http://americancivilwar.com/Civil_War_Music/song_lyrics/bonnie_blue_confederate_song.ht
       ml>.

         The “Bonnie Blue Flag” song lyrics portray the South’s lifestyle during the American Civil War.
The song is about the formation of the Confederacy and the goals they have in fighting in the war. This
would give students a different kind of text to read and analyze. I could even have the song playing as
they walk into the classroom or have them listen to it before completing the activity. They will also have
the lyrics in front of them so they can find the meaning behind the words.