Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Bridges for All: Better Way

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners explore organizations founded for the common good. For this character education lesson, students read about organizations that developed for the common good during the Civil War and Reconstruction. In small groups, learners...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Was Reconstruction a Revolution?

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. In this Reconstruction lesson plan, students research details pertaining to Congress's role in Reconstruction. Students use the provided worksheets...
Lesson Plan
Center for History Education

Northern Racism and the New York City Draft Riots of 1863

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Just how racist were some people in the North during the American Civil War? Using excerpts of the Conscription Act, as well as graphic images of lynchings, young historians consider why white people in New York City rioted and killed...
Lesson Plan
Center for History Education

The Freedmen's Bureau: Success or Failure?

For Teachers 6th - 9th Standards
What is freedom? The United States grappled with the question at the end of the Civil War after four million enslaved people were freed. Using circulars and images from the Reconstruction period, individuals examine how successful the...
Lesson Plan
1
1
US House of Representatives

“‘The Negroes’ Temporary Farewell,” Jim Crow and the Exclusion of African Americans from Congress, 1887–1929

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Despite some advances made during the Reconstruction Era following the Civil War, the period from 1887 through 1929, African Americans serving in Congress suffered severe setbacks due to Jim Crow Laws and voter suppression. Class members...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Reconstruction and "All Men Are Created Equal"

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners examine the time after the Civil War known as Reconstruction. In groups, they role play a Senate Subcommittee Hearing on Reconstruction in which some members are senators and others are witnesses. They share their ideas on how...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Is Seeing Believing?

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Pupils study different photographers who started the concept of battlefield photography.  In this media activity students explore how to "read" a photograph and relate the use of photography during the Civil War to current use...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Treasure in the Trash

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Learners decode archaeological artifacts in order to recreate an event, using discarded objects as a model for real-life artifacts. They apply this model to reconstructing historical or literary events from artifacts they create.
Lesson Plan
1
1
Center for History and New Media

Growing Up in a Segregated Society, 1880s–1930s

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
What did segregation look like in the beginning of the 20th century? Middle and high schoolers view images of segregated areas, read passages by Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois, and come to conclusions about how the influence of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Resistance to African American Education During and After the Civil War

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Learners research a web site of primary documents to determine the level of support among whites in for the education of African Americans during Reconstruction.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Robert Smalls: Warrior and Peacemaker

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students research the events that led to the Civil War and the Reconstruction. In this Civil War history lesson, students study images of Robert Smalls and research his role in the Civil War. Students review the South Carolina...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Bridges for All

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Learners describe how the brave word of one female Quaker served as a lifeline for fugitives before the Civil War. In this research lesson, students research several examples of the philanthropic work of individuals and organizations...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Election of 1860

For Teachers 7th - 11th
Students determine how the presidential election of 1860 led to the American Civil War. In this election of 1860 lesson, students discover details regarding the election and hold their own mock debate and election. Students also write an...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Why Was It Difficult To "reconstruct the South"?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine problems faced by the states of the Confederacy following the Civil war. They predict how Lincoln wanted to handle the problem of reconstruction by listening to his words. They describe conditions in the South...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Red Badge of Courage: A New Kind of Realism

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students research the Civil War and make connections between the war and the interpretation of the war in the novel The Red Badge of Courage to help them understand realism. In this Civil War recounting lesson plan, students complete...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

To Be or Not to Be: A Marriage of Civil War Descendants

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students examine primary documents related to the burning of Chambersburg during the Civil Way. In this Civil War era history instructional activity, students study numerous primary documents relating to the burning of the town of...
Lesson Plan
PBS

The Meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The Fourteenth Amendment was extremely important to civil rights and is a crucial one to remember. The resource teaches about the Supreme Court decisions related to the amendment through writing exercises, reading, and working in small...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Portraits of History

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders research the Post-Revolution to Pre-Civil War era by investigating the life and contributions of a notable person. They create silhouettes which are framed with timeline. Also, they add the research information to the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sgt. Humiston, Where are You?

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students become familiar with the events of the Civil War.  In this identification lesson, students use deductive reasoning to understand how the deceased soldier was identified.  Students view primary documents for information...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Reconstruction on Life in Virginia

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders study the life style of Virginians during the Reconstruction Period after the Civil War. They examine how the infrastructure, the economy, and the agricultural status of Virginia and the other Confederate states changed...
Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

The Bank Of Justice: Civil Rights In The US

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
To launch a study of racial segregation and integration, young historians first watch a news video about a prom in Georgia that was first integrated in 2013. They then compare the goals in Lincoln's Gettysburg Address to King's "I Have a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Look at Virginians During Reconstruction

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students study U.S. History. For this Virginia focused lesson, students study how the period of Reconstruction after the Civil War affected various people in that area. They will listen to lectures and work independently to find gather...
Lesson Plan
City University of New York

Jim Crow and Voting Rights

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
Class groups examine primary source documents to determine how the voting rights of African Americans were restricted after the failure of Reconstruction, and how African American participation in World War II lead to change.
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Analyzing Experiences: Carlotta Walls

For Teachers 8th Standards
What was life like in the American South following the Civil War? Scholars watch a video that discusses the aftermath of the Civil War and the events during the Reconstruction Period. Additionally, they continue reading Carlotta Walls...

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