The Election of 1860 Primary Source and Political Cartoon Analysis Activity

Students will read and analyze excerpts from the Republican (Lincoln), Constitutional Union (Bell), Northern Democratic (Douglas), and Southern Democratic (Breckinridge) platforms from the election of 1860 by answering 33 questions. They will then answer 3 overarching questions and complete 2 extension tasks. Lastly, they will analyze 6 political cartoons by answering 12 questions. This can be divided into stations, completed as a full packet, or used as a pairs/small group activity.

The answers are included and this would be great for a sub!

Sample questions include:
--Give 2 examples from the historical context that support item 1.
--Why have Republicans essentially lost faith in the current administration?
--In what way could it be said that current Americans had turned their backs on the Founding Fathers?
--Would the same groups of people support both items 12 and 13, why or why not?
--On what grounds could someone disagree with item 16?
--Write a contextually appropriate synonym for fidelity.
--What do they hope to achieve if they win this election?
--Does a document’s length influence its effectiveness or impact its message, why or why not?

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