- Timelines - Timelines are a great way to outline the important days of an event. As a class we will be looking at a number of resources to great our own timeline for the classroom. This will serve as a resource for students as it will hang on the wall. A visual like this well help the students to see the whole picture.
- People and events in time – It is important to understand the people and the events that took place during the Civil War. We will take a detailed look at the people who influenced the outcome and made their mark in history during this time. As a class, we will also discover events that changed the way our country runs forever.
- Context of Events - As we study the Civil War, we will study the social life, economics, and politics in order to better understand the circumstances of the war. It is important for the students to understand that there are a number of factors that influence the outcome of the war.
- Data in historical and contemporary maps, graphs and tables (geomapping and Gettysburg) – Using exciting new developments in technology, we will travel to the places where the Civil War took place. We will look at places such as Gettysburg on the map and discuss their relation to where we live today. Together we will take a virtual look at modern day cities and towns that were involved in the Civil War.
- Multiple Points of Views - One of the state standards requires that students learn to use multiple points of views to interpret an event. The way that the sixth grade will be doing this is by examining real letters from soldiers, civilians, politicians, and slaves. After reading a number of these primary sources they will pretend that they are traveling back in time and will write a series of letters from a variety of perspectives.
- Causes and results – In many of our subjects we look at the causes and effects of what we are studying. This unit is no different. We will apply our expert “cause and effect” skills to determine the event that took place and its impact. The Civil war is a great place to explore causes and effects; we are living some of the current effects!
- Facts, Folklore, and Fiction - For this section of the unit we will be focusing on literature from the time period. We will study the definition of these literary terms and classify different works under each category.
- Primary Sources – There are many sources of information about the Civil War. Thanks to technology and our brains, we could research this topic until the end of time! It is such an interesting point in our history and it has truly made us who we are as a country today. It is important to understand and look at as many sources as we can in order to get varying perspectives. By going to our library and using the computer, we will be able to dig deep into our country’s past, leaving no rock unturned!
- Gettysburg - The Battle of Gettysburg was a turning point in the Civil War and is a great resource at our fingertips. We will use the World Wide Web and video clips to experience the battle field. There will be a group project for this lesson. The class will be divided up into the different battles of Gettysburg and will collaboratively create a Wiki page about Gettysburg.
- Conclusion/Review: Create a project demonstrating your knowledge of the Civil War – At the end of our journey through the Civil War, I will ask all sixth graders to present a project that shows their new knowledge on the Civil War. We will spend plenty of class time preparing and researching together. Students will have the option of working together or by themselves. In order to stray from the monotony of the same information over and over, students will all be assigned specific topics from the Civil War era. We look forward to learning from each other!
As a teacher, I expect that this unit will be one that impacts our thoughts and views for a long time to come. Exploring our history as a nation builds us as a person and will bring us together as a class. It is my hope that we will work together to learn about what our country has come through for our rights and freedoms that we have today. I expect students to work diligently and honestly while keeping an open mind. We will work responsibly and with respect to ourselves and others as well as the property we are being trusted to use in our research. Thank you in advance for all your hard work and cooperation. I believe that if we work together as a class, we can truly experience this time in our history and what it means to us.
