Goals & Objectives
Students will learn about major leaders of the North and South during the Civil War. Students will explain how major leaders of the North and South influenced the outcome of the Civil War. Students will analyze three different actions (battles, laws, speeches, etc.) by their chosen leader.
California State Content and Common Core Standards
8.10 Students analyze the multiple causes, key events, and complex consequences of the Civil War.
8.10.5 Study the views and lives of leaders (e.g., Ulysses S. Grant, Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee) and soldiers on both sides of the war, including those of black soldiers and regiments.
8.10.6 Describe critical developments and events in the war, including the major battles, geographical advantages and obstacles, technological advances, and General Lee’s surrender at Appomattox.
CCSS Reading Literacy in History/Social Studies 6-8.2 Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.
CCSS Reading Literacy in History/Social Studies 6-8.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary specific to domains related to history/social studies.
CCSS Reading Literacy in History/Social Studies 6-8.6 Identify aspects of a text that reveal an author’s point of view or purpose.
CCSS Reading Literacy in History/Social Studies 6-8.7 Integrate visual information with other information in print and digital texts.
8.10.5 Study the views and lives of leaders (e.g., Ulysses S. Grant, Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee) and soldiers on both sides of the war, including those of black soldiers and regiments.
8.10.6 Describe critical developments and events in the war, including the major battles, geographical advantages and obstacles, technological advances, and General Lee’s surrender at Appomattox.
CCSS Reading Literacy in History/Social Studies 6-8.2 Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.
CCSS Reading Literacy in History/Social Studies 6-8.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary specific to domains related to history/social studies.
CCSS Reading Literacy in History/Social Studies 6-8.6 Identify aspects of a text that reveal an author’s point of view or purpose.
CCSS Reading Literacy in History/Social Studies 6-8.7 Integrate visual information with other information in print and digital texts.
Lesson Introduction
Students will be asked to think about one of their favorite books or movies (if there is a common book being read in Language Arts, students will be asked to consider that book). They will imagine how the plot would have changed if the main character had done something different at the climax of the plot. They will then discuss their thoughts with their partner.
Vocabulary
Since students will be choosing and researching their own topics, vocabulary will vary for each group. The will be asked to study one of the following four leaders:
- Abraham Lincoln
- Ulysses S. Grant
- Jefferson Davis
- Robert E. Lee
Content Delivery
The teacher will assign the students to groups of three. The teacher will explain that students will doing a project to analyze the impact one of these four leaders had on the course of the Civil War: Lincoln, Grant, Davis, and Lee. This project is not a biography; the groups will choose three specific actions or events associated with their chosen leader and analyze how these actions affected the war. Although it is a group project, each student will be responsible for gathering the research related to one specific event. Each student is responsible for writing a two-paragraph summary describing their event and its significance; included with the summary is a bibliography of the sources used. Groups may choose which leader they will research and also which medium they want to use for their project. Suggestions include: poster, PowerPoint/Prezi presentation, newspaper, scrapbook, talk show. Students will be instructed to use Sweet Search as their search engine for any online research they do, and the teacher will do a sample search on the Battle of Gettysburg.
Student Engagement
Day 1: Student will be assigned groups by the teacher. The class will go to the library to begin research. By the end of the first class, each group must have identified their chosen leader, the three events they will research, and which person in the group will cover each event.
Day 2: Students will continue their research in the library. They may also begin working on their two-paragraph summary which will be due at the beginning of Day 3.
Day 3: Students will present their summaries to the other members of their group (the teacher will quickly check to make sure they are complete). The group will decide what type of product/performance they want to do based on the results of their research and begin working on it. By the end of class, each group must have their product/performance approved by the teacher.
Here is a sample outline of what the students need to have approved by the teacher by the end of Day 3:
Day 2: Students will continue their research in the library. They may also begin working on their two-paragraph summary which will be due at the beginning of Day 3.
Day 3: Students will present their summaries to the other members of their group (the teacher will quickly check to make sure they are complete). The group will decide what type of product/performance they want to do based on the results of their research and begin working on it. By the end of class, each group must have their product/performance approved by the teacher.
Here is a sample outline of what the students need to have approved by the teacher by the end of Day 3:
Day 4: Students will continue working on their projects in class.
Day 5: Each group will present their completed project to the class. Students will also turn in their individual summaries.
Day 5: Each group will present their completed project to the class. Students will also turn in their individual summaries.
Lesson Closure
Students will write a reflection about the project. They will discuss what was interesting and/or surprising about both the information they learned and the experience of working in a group. They will identify the best part of working in a group and one thing they would do differently the next time they work in a group.
Assessment
Formative—The teacher will check their progress on Day 1 and Day 3 and make sure the groups are working on a project that is feasible and addresses the content. The teacher will also walk around to each group throughout the process to answer questions and offer suggestions.
Summative—The teacher will grade each project according to a rubric. Students will receive a group grade based on the final product and an individual grade based on their summaries of their specific event.
Here are two rubrics. The first is the rubric for the group project (specifically for a poster, but the categories being assessed will be similar for each product). The second is the rubric for the individual summary of research. Both are combined for the total project grade.
Summative—The teacher will grade each project according to a rubric. Students will receive a group grade based on the final product and an individual grade based on their summaries of their specific event.
Here are two rubrics. The first is the rubric for the group project (specifically for a poster, but the categories being assessed will be similar for each product). The second is the rubric for the individual summary of research. Both are combined for the total project grade.
Accommodations
The teacher will form groups that are as heterogeneous as possible, mixing ELs and students with special needs with mainstream students. By giving students a choice of product/performance, students who struggle with a traditional presentation format can choose a product/performance that plays to their strengths.