National Endowment for the Humanities
Factory vs. Plantation in the North and South
North is to factory as South is to plantation—the perfect analogy for the economy that set up the Civil War! The first lesson in a series of five helps teach beginners why the economy creates a driving force for conflict. Analysis of...
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Kensington Mansion: Plantation, Sharecroppers, Tenants
Eleventh graders investigate the significance of the Kensington Mansion. In this South Carolina history lesson, 11th graders take field trips to the mansion and research primary and secondary sources about plantations, sharecropping, and...
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Cotton Pickin' Before and After the Civil War
Students explore the impact of cotton. In this economics lesson, students listen to a lecture presented by their instructor on the Southern crop of cotton and its impact on the South prior to and following the Civil War. Students...
Crafting Freedom
Harriet Jabocs and Elizabeth Keckly: The Material and Emotional Realities of Childhood in Slavery
Through the journals written by Harriet Jacobs and Elizabeth Keckly, young readers gain insight into the lives of two enslaved children on nineteenth-century plantations.
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COTTON AND SLAVERY IN ARKANSAS
Fifth graders read about the cotton industry in America and demonstrate the roll of slaves picking and removing seeds from a boll of cotton. The relationship between slaves and cotton production is established.
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When Rice Was King
Students examine the origins of rice production in the South. They identify the steps involved in rice cultivation, examine photos of plantation life, conduct interviews, and research the economic base of their own community.
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Rice Plantation
Eighth graders study the importance of rice as a cash crop and the crop's dependency on slave labor during the settlement of coastal South Carolina. They explain the importance of the rice plantations to South Carolina's colonial economy.
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Images of Slavery
Middle schoolers analyze the ways slavery shaped social and economic life in the South after 1800, methods of passive and active resistance to slavery; escaped slaves and the Underground Railroad, and the ending of the Atlantic slave trade.
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Images from South Carolina Cotton Mills
Fifth graders write a paragraph comparing their lives to the lives of a child working in South Carolina during the early 1900's. In this Industrial Revolution lesson plan, 5th graders explore primary and secondary sources to teach them...
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Whitewashing Southern History
Students discuss the fact and fiction of slavery in the South. After viewing a video on two New Orleans plantations, they determine the accuracy of the facts presented. In the computer lab, they visit various sites and examine which ones...
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RAW HISTORY: USING PRIMARY SOURCES
Students analyze the ways slavery shaped social and economic life in the South after 1800, how slaves forged their own culture in the face of oppression; and the role of the plantation system in shaping slaveholders and the enslaved.
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Fugitive Slave Narratives
Students analyze the ways slavery shaped social and economic life in the South after 1800, the different economic, cultural, and social characteristics of slavery after 1800, and the ending of the Atlantic slave trade.
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Island Research
Students will work in small groups to gather information about the geography, history, economy, climate, culture, and other aspects of life on the island of Eleuthera. Lesson contains adaptations for all levels.
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Rituals/traditions with Gullah religion
Sixth graders discuss some of the earliest people who lived in each region in order to comprehend how humans interacted with the environmental conditions at that time. They make connections to present-day regions including...
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From Slave to Entrepreneur: The Life and Times of William Ellison
Eighth graders interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. For this South Carolina history lesson, 8th graders examine sources that require them to examine the life of William Ellison, a black slave owner.
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American Colonization Society Lesson Plan
Students read an article online "Colonization and Emigration" and break into debating groups. They research points that support their side, namely whether or not the American Colonization Society was for or against segregation. They...
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History: An African American Cultural Celebration
Students prepare and organize a cultural celebration of African migration and immigration. Working in groups or individually, they research topics and present the information, including dance demonstrations, instrumental or vocal...
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Denmark Vesey's Rebellion
Students research the slave, Denmark Vesey, and create a dramatic play depicting his life.
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A Nation Divided: Why Couldn't They Just Get Along?
Fourth graders examine both perspectives of the Civil War as related to the differing economies. In this nation divided lesson, 4th graders view primary sources, examine paper money and a political chart, and review recruitment posters.
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The Colonization of Liberia
Students analyze how slavery shaped social and economic life in the South. They study methods of passive and active resistance to slavery, and the similarities and differences between African-American and white abolitionists.
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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...
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Come One, Come All
High schoolers analyze information from core map and other sources and construct routes from New York and Boston to Cincinnati as they might have existed in 1835.
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Island Research
Students collaborate to gather information about the geography, history, economy, climate, culture, and other aspects of life on the island of Eleuthera.
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Madam C.J. Walker -- Leader in Philanthropy and Successful Business Woman
Learners examine the life of Madam C.J. Walker. They discover the impact her changes had on the community as a whole. They develop their own plan to impact and change their own community for the better.