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K–12 teaching and learning · from the UNC School of Education

Plantation Life in the 1840s: A Slave's Description

This lesson introduces students to a description of life on the plantation and the cultivation of cotton from the perspective of a slave. It focuses on the use of slave narratives made available by the Documenting the American South collection.

A lesson plan for grades 11–12 Social Studies

By John Schaefer and Victoria Schaefer

About the authors

This lesson plan was created at the 2004 Documenting the South Summer Writing Institute and made possible through funding provided by NC ECHO, Learn NC, the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Education, and the UNC-Chapel Hill library system.

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Learning outcomes

Students use a primary source to investigate plantation life from the slave perspective. In addition, this first-hand account of the slave experience should foster discussions about the slave trade within the United States in the 1800s, as well as spur discussion about the abolitionist movement.

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

1 hour

Materials/resources

Students will need both the selected pages from the Solomon Northrup Narrative and the guided reading, both of which are attached.

Technology resources

Optional: Students may use the Internet for access to the Solomon Northrup Narrative at the DocSouth website. http://docsouth.unc.edu/fpn/leon/menu.html

Pre-activities

Students should have an understanding of slavery in the United States as well as knowledge of the abolitionist movement.

Activities

  1. Provide an introduction to Solomon Northrup, explaining that he was a free black that was kidnapped and sold into slavery. His portrait is provided here: http://docsouth.unc.edu/fpn/northup/portrait.html
  2. Explain that after gaining his freedom twelve years later, he wrote his incredible story. They’re going to read parts of it for this lesson. They’ll learn from him what plantation life was really like.
  3. Provide students with access to the Solomon Northrup Narrative (either online or hard-copy as attached). Give students a copy of the attached guided reading.
  4. Students may work on the guided reading independently or in groups, subject to teacher’s discretion. (This may be a homework assignment if desired.)
  5. Teacher should discuss the selected text with students, using the guided reading questions. Challenge students to engage in stimulating discussions, encouraging them to think about the implications of day after day after day…leading this life as a slave. Include discussions about the abolitionist movement and ask students how such a story may have helped the movement.
  6. (optional) Ask students to pretend to be Solomon Northrup writing a letter to his wife in the mid 1840s trying to explain what has happened to him. What might he have felt like? What are the emotions he must have experienced and wanted to share with his family?

Assessment

Teachers may grade the guided reading and/or the creative writing assignment.

Supplemental information

The teacher may be interested to know that Solomon Northrup also described his work on the plantation growing sugar cane as well as his experiences at the annual holiday celebration. (See attached document) The teacher may choose to use this part of the narrative as a homework reading assignment for a followup class discussion and/or for a creative writing assignment.

Related websites

http://docsouth.unc.edu/fpn/northup/menu.html

Comments

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North Carolina Curriculum Alignment

Social Studies (2003)

Grades 11–12 — African American Studies

  • Goal 2: The learner will develop an understanding of the justifications and ramifications of slavery between 1619 and 1860.
    • Objective 2.03: Analyze the role of African Americans in the development of the United States as a new nation.
    • Objective 2.05: Trace the development of the abolitionist movement and its impact on slavery and the nation.
  • Goal 3: The learner will demonstrate an understanding of African American life and cultural contributions through 1860.
    • Objective 3.01: Compare and contrast African American urban and rural communities in the North and the South.
    • Objective 3.02: Discuss and analyze the black family in antebellum America.
    • Objective 3.04: Identify the contributions of African Americans in science and the arts.

Grades 11–12 — United States History

  • Goal 1: The New Nation (1789-1820) - The learner will identify, investigate, and assess the effectiveness of the institutions of the emerging republic.
    • Objective 1.01: Identify the major domestic issues and conflicts experienced by the nation during the Federalist Period.
    • Objective 1.02: Analyze the political freedoms available to the following groups prior to 1820: women, wage earners, landless farmers, American Indians, African Americans,and other ethnic groups.
  • Goal 2: Expansion and Reform (1801-1850) - The learner will assess the competing forces of expansionism, nationalism, and sectionalism.
    • Objective 2.04: Assess political events, issues, and personalities that contributed to sectionalism and nationalism.
    • Objective 2.05: Identify the major reform movements and evaluate their effectiveness.
  • Goal 3: Crisis, Civil War, and Reconstruction (1848-1877) - The learner will analyze the issues that led to the Civil War, the effects of the war, and the impact of Reconstruction on the nation.
    • Objective 3.01: Trace the economic, social, and political events from the Mexican War to the outbreak of the Civil War.
    • Objective 3.02: Analyze and assess the causes of the Civil War.