Students read and discuss background material on several key decisions that played a role in the Civil War including the Missouri Compromise, the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the Dredd Scott Decision. They create a timeline and write an essay.

Concepts

slavery, the united states civil war, secession, the missouri compromise of 1850

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Additional Tags

civil war, kansas-nebraska act, slavery, social studies

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Instructional Ideas

• Have class members read the background information pages and the primary source documents as homework 

Classroom Considerations

• Designed for a 90-minute class period but can be adapted for a shorter class period or expand for a two-day exercise
• Documents downloaded from the site are more legible if printed on a laser printer
• Requires individual copies of the primary source documents