Classroom Resources Infographic: New States in the Union Government and Civics 9, 10, 11, 12 View this infographic as a downloadable PDF.
Lesson Plan Who Was John Brown? Government and Civics 6, 7, 8 "Did John Brown fail? John Brown began the war that ended American slavery and made this a free Republic." —Frederick Douglass Background The late 1840s and the 1850s were a turbulent and complex time in American history as the...
Lesson Plan Lincoln’s Reconstruction Plan Government and Civics 9, 10, 11, 12, 13+ Essential Question To what degree was Abraham Lincoln successful in achieving his goals? Background The Civil War was perhaps the most momentous event that the United States endured in its history. Author and historian Shelby Foote...
Lesson Plan What Events Led to Lincoln’s Assassination? 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 Overview Fourth-grade students often associate Abraham Lincoln with three things: He wore a tall hat, he issued the Emancipation Proclamation, and he was assassinated. The murder of Lincoln, whom most historians consider one of the...
Lesson Plan The Supreme Court and the Fourteenth Amendment Government and Civics, Religion and Philosophy 9, 10, 11, 12 Overview: The Founding Fathers created the Supreme Court in Article III of the Constitution of the United States. The most influential role of the Court, however, was defined later through the appeal process, in cases involving the...
Lesson Plan An "Unconstitutional" Act? The Suspension of the Writ of Habeas Corpus Government and Civics 9, 10, 11, 12 Background At the beginning of the Civil War, as the number of dead increased daily, a force of opposition to the war efforts began to intensify in the Congress and in the voices of the American people. Abraham Lincoln, in an effort...
Lesson Plan Traitors and Spies in the Time of War: How the Supreme Court Determined Who Would Live and Who Would Die Government and Civics 9, 10, 11, 12 Overview In April 1865 over 600,000 Americans lay dead from battle wounds and other causes directly related to their service in the armies of the Confederacy and Union during the four-year Civil War. If we adjusted the number of dead...
Lesson Plan Travels Through Time: The Impact of Supreme Court Decisions on the Struggle for African American Equality Government and Civics 9, 10, 11, 12 Overview After the Civil War, African Americans were under attack as they struggled for equal rights in America. Laws were put in place during Reconstruction to assure Freedmen basic civil rights. The Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and...
Lesson Plan Lincoln and Presidential Power 9, 10, 11, 12 Introduction When Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States in 1860, his experience in politics and government included serving in the Illinois legislature and the US House of Representatives. He had also studied law...
Lesson Plan Lincoln and Civil Liberties Government and Civics 9, 10, 11, 12 Overview The tension between individual rights and a government’s need to preserve and protect national security during times of war has represented a constant theme throughout American history. During the John Adams administration, a...