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Resources tagged with American history and Civil War are also tagged with these keywords. Select one to narrow your search or to find interdisciplinary resources.

Civil War journals
This lesson integrates creative writing with Social Studies and enhances knowledge of the effects of the Civil War on people.
Format: lesson plan (grade 8 English Language Arts and Social Studies)
By Gwen A. Jones.
Civil War Tribune
This lesson focuses on student creativity along with the writing process. Art is also incorporated in a unique way. Students will use their research skills to complete a creative writing project on the Civil War.
Format: lesson plan (grade 5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)
By Aimee Adkins.
Confederate currency: An inflation simulation
Using primary sources from the Documenting the American South collection, students will engage in a brief simulation of inflation during the Civil War while learning about issues faced on the home front in North Carolina.
Format: lesson plan (grade 8 Social Studies)
By Lewis Nelson.
Diary of a Tar Heel Confederate soldier
Students read the account of a private from Charlotte who served in the Civil War and grew tired of only hearing about the war from the perspectives of officers. After reading his experiences as a “man behind the gun” students will write their own point-of-view piece. They also have the opportunity to read other diary accounts from the war available through Documenting the American South.
Format: lesson plan (grade 8 Social Studies)
By Meghan Mcglinn.
Exploring first-person female narratives related to Sherman's march to the sea
This lesson plan uses first-person narratives from the Documenting the American South collection to demonstrate differences in perspective related to historical events, in this case, Sherman's march to the sea. It encourages students to compare the views of two southern ladies with that of a Union soldier.
Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 English Language Arts and Social Studies)
By Meghan Mcglinn.
Plan for a panel discussion regarding the validity of the Lincoln Administration
This lesson encourages students to investigate all sides of the issues within the context of the Civil War era. Students will become “experts” on the Lincoln administration and accept the responsibility of sharing their expertise with their classmates through oral communication in a panel discussion.
Format: lesson plan (grade 8–12 Social Studies)
Who started the Civil War? Comparing perspectives on the causes of the war
This lesson plans presents the account of Rose O'Neal Greenhow, a confederate spy during the Civil War. Students are encouraged to find confirming and refuting evidence of her perspective on what caused the Civil War by browsing the Documenting the American South Collection of digitized primary sources.
Format: lesson plan (grade 11–12 English Language Arts and Social Studies)
By Meghan Mcglinn.

Resources on the web

Attitudes toward emancipation
The Emancipation Proclamation carried Americans across an important frontier in the political growth of the nation. Through the Internet, students can return to this frontier and explore the many obstacles and alternatives we faced in making this passage... (Learn more)
Format: lesson plan (grade 11 Social Studies)
Provided by: ESITEment
The Digital Classroom
Resources and guides to using the primary history materials of the United States in research and teaching. Links to the wealth of materials held in the National Archives and Records Administration collection. (Learn more)
Format: website/lesson plan
Provided by: The National Archives and Records Administration
EDSITEment - Lesson Plans for History and Social Studies
The lesson plans available on this site are organized into U.S. History and World History, with subcategories within each group. The main History and Social Studies page is divided into two content area tabs: Lesson pLans and Websites. The Subject Navigator... (Learn more)
Format: website/lesson plan
Provided by: National Endowment for the Humanities
Engaging students in a collaborative exploration of the “Gettysburg Address”
In this lesson, students work together on inquiry-based projects in order to understand the message of Abraham Lincoln's “Gettysburg Address”. In this multi-genre activity, students will: explore the history and meaning of... (Learn more)
Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)
Provided by: ReadWriteThink
Historical fiction: Using literature to learn about the Civil War
In this lesson, the teacher reads aloud a section of Connie Porter's Meet Addy, a book from The American Girls Collection® that tells the story of a young girl who escapes from slavery during... (Learn more)
Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)
Provided by: ReadWriteThink
Lincoln goes to war
This lesson plan explores the decision-making process that precipitated the Civil War, focusing on deliberations within the Lincoln administration that led to the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter in April 1861. Students first review the situation... (Learn more)
Format: lesson plan (grade 11 Social Studies)
Provided by: EDSITEment
Myth and truth: The Gettysburg Address
By exploring myths surrounding the “Gettysburg Address,” this lesson asks students to think critically about commonly believed “facts” about this important speech and the Civil War. Students participate in a pre-reading writing activity... (Learn more)
Format: lesson plan (grade 11 English Language Arts and Social Studies)
Provided by: ReadWriteThink
Teaching With Documents: Lesson Plans
A collection of lesson plans which use NARA primary resource documents spanning eras from the 1750s to the present. (Learn more)
Format: website/lesson plan
Provided by: National Archives and Records Administration
We must not be enemies: Lincoln's first inaugural address
The focus for this EDSITEment lesson plan unit is on the address given by Abraham Lincoln at his first inauguration as U.S. President. His address reflected contemporary events and set the tone for his presidency. This series of lesson plans aims to help... (Learn more)
Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)
Provided by: EDSITEment