Teaching Guide
Events Leading Up To The Civil War
produced by Alfred Dean
[List team participants here]
Web Institute for Teachers, Summer, 2001
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Introduction
This period of history, 1850 - 1860, along with the Civil
War and Reconstruction are vital components in understanding how
the beginnings of our nation link to those eras and to the present. Slavery
and the American conception of race affected how we started as a fledgling
country. It affected how we developed as a young nation. It affected how
our nation nearly tore itself asunder.
Aim
To look at some laws and events which increased the tensions
between North and South and brought the nation to the brink of war.
Rationale
The Civil War was one of the most devastating events in American
history. Some people blame this tragedy on the fact that our nation, in
its infancy, refused to live up to the ideals in the Declaration of Independence
and allowed slavery to become an integral part of our political system.
The founding Father who described slavery as a snake coiled beneath the
table where the Constitution was written proved prophetic. It is important
therefore that students of history understand the role that this " peculiar
institution " played in bringing about this most bloody conflict.
Goals and Objectives
Upon completion of this lesson the student should be able
to:
1. Understand
and explain how the Compromise of 1850 changed the law that existed as
a result of
Missouri Compromise.
2. Explain the fugitive
Slave Act
3.Explain the controversy
brought about by Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, "Uncle Tom's Cabin"
and its influence in the North
4. Explain the Kansas -
Nebraska Act
5. Be able to debate either
side of the Lincoln - Douglass Debate issues
6. Explain the Dred Scott
Decision and its affect on Afro - Americans
7. Explain John Brown's
Raid and its consequences
8. Explain the South's
position on the Election of 1860
Audience
This lesson has been prepared for seventh through ninth grade
students studying A.merican History
Prerequisites
Students should know how to maneuver on the computer.
Subject-Matter
The students will look at eight areas that increased tensions
between North and South and brought the nation to the brink of war:
a) Compromise
of 1850 b) Fugitive Slave Act c) Uncle
Tom's Cabin d) Kansas - Nebraska Act
e) The Lincoln - Douglass
Debates f) Dred Scott Decision g) John
Brown's Raid
h) Election of 1860
Instructional Plan
Materials
The students will need the following: a)computer
b) American History text
c) social studies notebook
Assessment and Evaluation
1. Students will write a composition
explaining how each of the laws or events brought the nation to
the brink of war.
2. Students will pass with
80% accuracy the several tests covering each area.
Appendices (optional, if needed)
Resources
Video: "Uncle Tom's Cabin"
Glossary