The Civil War Lesson Plan
Content Standards for WI:
Time, Continuity, and Change: Students in Wisconsin will learn about the history of Wisconsin, the United States, and the world, examining change and continuity over time in order to develop historical perspective, explain historical relationships, and analyze issues that affect the present and the future.
B.8.3. Performance Standard:
Describe the relationships between and among significant events, such as the causes and consequences of wars in United States and world history
Classroom Materials and Resources:
Page 10-13 for Classroom Play Turning Point at Gettysburg
Engagement/Hook
1. Ask: What is your favorite thing to do? Have students their response on a sticky note and put the note on a sheet of chart paper labeled “Our Favorite Things.”
2. Read aloud a few of these items.
3. Tell students to consider no longer being able to do the things they like the most.
4. On a new sticky note, have students write how losing things makes them feel.
5. Put these on a separate sheet of chart paper labeled “Losing Our Favorite Things,” and have several students discuss their feelings.
6. Ask the students to think about what it might be like to never have the opportunity to do a favorite activity again- or how their lives may be different if they could no longer play with or use something they love. Example: What might it be like to never be able to play with your best friend again, or how would you feel if there were no more television
shows to watch or video games to play?
7. Now we are going to learn about a time when some people felt they were losing their way of life, while others who never had the opportunity to experience certain things were able to for the first time.
2. Read aloud a few of these items.
3. Tell students to consider no longer being able to do the things they like the most.
4. On a new sticky note, have students write how losing things makes them feel.
5. Put these on a separate sheet of chart paper labeled “Losing Our Favorite Things,” and have several students discuss their feelings.
6. Ask the students to think about what it might be like to never have the opportunity to do a favorite activity again- or how their lives may be different if they could no longer play with or use something they love. Example: What might it be like to never be able to play with your best friend again, or how would you feel if there were no more television
shows to watch or video games to play?
7. Now we are going to learn about a time when some people felt they were losing their way of life, while others who never had the opportunity to experience certain things were able to for the first time.
Introductory Lesson
Have students work individually for the introductory lesson on the Civil War. They will interact with peers during certain parts of the lesson as prompted on the site.
Civil War Timeline
- Use the Disunion Discussion Cards for a moving body timeline of events that lead up to the Civil War.
- Cut out the 10 cards and give to select students and have them meet in the middle of the room.
- Have students work together to put themselves in chronological order.
- Then have students read aloud what their card says.
- The other students not part of the moving body timeline will fill out the Pre- 1861: Disunion worksheet as they are listening to the other students read aloud the information.
- The students with the cards will pick a partner with a worksheet and then work together as a pair (some groups of 3) to complete the task.
- Another set of the Disunion Discussion Cards should be placed in various areas around the room so the pairs of students can rotate from card to card (station) as they complete the task.
- After students have went to all ten stations, have the students combine into three or four larger groups and sit or stand in a circle.
- Have them take turns reading aloud the questions and answers as other students will agree or disagree with answers.
- Teacher's role will be to make sure students rotate from station to station, on task, monitor behavior, provide assistance, group students as needed, and make sure the discussion is lively with various questions that scaffold learning as needed.
- The role is to be a guide on the side for this activity.
