American Slavery, Civil War and Reconstruction 2 Unit Bundle, including text

The recent debacle at Charlottesville demonstrates that many Americans simply do not understand the history of slavery, the Civil War, and its lasting legacy. Now more than ever, it is imperative that we teach our children what happened, why it happened, and what it means for our national psyche.

This double unit bundle covers the ante-bellum struggle over slavery, the Civil War, and Reconstruction. This is a “warts and all” examination of this period of history; it is both a story of triumph and tragedy as well as one of heroes and villains – some of whom were both, depending on how one looks at them. Both units are based upon and complement my textbook “We Take Nothing by Conquest”, and are designed for both the novice and experienced classroom teacher as both contain everything needed for each unit. All the included materials have been extensively field tested in my own eighth grade classroom.

The first included unit, a 15 day complete unit entitled “The Wolf by the Ears,” covers the country’s growing economic, social, and political split over the spread of slavery in the first half of the 19th century, which eventually led to the secession of most of the Southern states, the bombardment of Fort Sumter, and the start of the Civil War. The unit covers: the development of the different economic systems in the North and South, examining the Industrial Revolution in the North and “King Cotton” in the South; the political compromises which attempted (unsuccessfully) to keep the North and South together; the Abolition movement; Bleeding Kansas; the Dred Scott decision; John Brown; and the Election of 1860. The materials for this unit include:

*a 70 page Teacher’s Guide which provides day-by-day and step-by-step instructions how to teach the unit and use all of the materials;
*46 pages of informative and interesting text, divided into eight chapters (the complete ninth unit of the textbook);
*an inquiry based study guide for each chapter to focus students on the main points and supporting details;
*quizzes for each chapter;
*PowerPoints with answers to the study guides for review, and including pictures and maps to stimulate discussion and enhance understanding;
*a Cloze activity for one chapter;
*two primary source activities: one on the Dred Scott Supreme Court decision, and one on slave life, including narratives, pro-slavery arguments, and an abolitionist speech;
*an activity analyzing the results of the Election of 1800;
*a flowchart activity to enhance understanding of the Kansas-Nebraska Act;
*a Slave Life poster/PowerPoint project, complete with instructions and a sample poster and PowerPoint presentation;
*a PowerPoint Quiz Show review game;
*a test prep study guide;
*and a unit test (with answers).

The second included unit, a 15 day complete unit entitled “War and Reconstruction,” covers the Civil War and the period of Reconstruction, 1861-1876. This unit examines: the political, military, economic and social strategies, triumphs and failures of the War itself; the Emancipation Proclamation; the experiences of African-Americans and women in the War; Presidential Reconstruction; Congressional Reconstruction; and the ultimate failure of Reconstruction and the birth of segregation and the Jim Crow South. This is a “warts and all” examination of this period of history; it is both a story of triumph and tragedy as well as one of heroes and villains – some of whom were both, depending on how one looks at them. The materials for this unit include:

*a 74 page Teacher’s Guide which provides day-by-day and step-by-step instructions how to teach the unit and use all of the materials;
*47 pages of informative and interesting text, divided into nine chapters (the complete tenth and final unit of the textbook);
*an inquiry based study guide for each chapter to focus students on the main points and supporting details;
*quizzes for each chapter;
*PowerPoints with answers to the study guides for review, and including pictures and maps to stimulate discussion and enhance understanding;
*a fun board game activity for one chapter concerning the impact of the War on African-Americans and women;
*Seven Cloze activities for seven chapters;
*four primary source activities: one on the Gettysburg Address; one on the Emancipation proclamation; one on the Reconstruction Constitutional Amendments; and one on the Plessy v. Ferguson and Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decisions;
*a PowerPoint Quiz Show review game;
*a test prep study guide;
*and a unit test (with answers).

Answer keys and grading guides for all study guides, activities, quizzes, and project are included in the Teacher’s Guides. Materials are provided as word documents and PDFs in one zip file.

Created by Cliff Baker - Ye Olde History Emporium