The Underground Railroad
This unit of study focuses on slaves and the Underground Railroad centering on the
concept of relationships that the fugitive slaves encountered. Students will learn how slaves
interacted with slave owners, abolitionists, Quakers, slave hunters and Northerners as they escaped
from the South. During this journey for freedom, slaves were assisted by people who developed the
system that became known as The Underground Railroad. Students will understand how this system
worked and the people associated with the Underground Railroad who assisted fugitive slaves. This
unit has been developed for fourth grade and should take approximately four weeks to cover.
Concept Based Title-Relationships Fugitive Slaves Encountered.
Relationships
Abolitionist, emancipation, fugitive slaves, Underground Railroad, biography, slavery
1. Students will develop an understanding of how slaves interacted with different types of
people in the 1800’s
2. Students will understand the function of the Underground Railroad as it aided slaves on
the road to freedom.
3. Students will know important people who aided fugitive slaves on the Underground
Railroad.
Hook: Simulation to get students excited about the unit.
Learning Outcome 1: Students will develop an understanding of how slaves interacted with different types of people
in the 1800’s.
 Vocabulary
 Vocabulary Strategies: Bingo, Crossword Puzzles, Graphic Organizers
 Comprehension Strategies: RAN chart
 Economic Strategies: T-chart, Poem Interpretation
 Writing Strategies: RAFT, Poster-Analysis
 Standards
 Resources
Learning Outcome 2: Students will understand the function of the Underground Railroad as it aided slaves on the
road to freedom.
 Readings
 Vocabulary Strategies: Poems
 Comprehension Strategies: Simulation, Field trip, Create a poster, Venn Diagram, Map making.
 Writing strategies: Digital Storytelling
 Standards
 Resources
Learning Outcome 3: Students will know important people who aided fugitive slaves on the Underground Railroad.
 Readings
 Vocabulary Strategies: Mural, Role Play
 Writing Strategies: Biography/Live report
 Entrepreneurial Strategies: Interactive Bulletin Board, Picture drawing
 Standards
 Resources
Following the unit, there is a list of various strategies and descriptors that can be used during this unit. They are
listed as types of strategies:
 Writing Strategies
 Vocabulary Strategies
 Role play/Simulations
 Comprehension Strategies
Assessments
Resources: A complete list of resources and information about the resources are listed at the end of the unit.
First I will put together 4 desks forming a small table. 4 students will be randomly selected to pose as fugitives. I
will place a sheet over the desks so they cannot be seen. The task: The principal or another adult is going to
come into the room and read a read aloud to the students. The adult is not going to know that there are any
students under the sheet. These students will be told that they have to sit under the desks and stay completely
quiet. If at any time during the reading they are discovered, the class will lose their recess for the day. If on the
other hand, the reader does not realize that they are under the sheet, they can earn the class an extra recess.
Once the reader leaves, the class will discuss the simulation.
How hard was it to be completely quiet?
How did you feel being cramped up under the desk?
How did you feel about possibly causing punishment for the whole class?
We will then discuss how this relates to fugitive slaves as they left their families in danger and tried to escape to
freedom on the Underground Railroad.
This unit will be taught to 4th graders and will last approximately 4 weeks.
Learning Outcome 1. Students will develop an understanding of how slaves interacted with different types of
people in the 1800’s. (different types include: slave owners, abolitionists, Quakers, slave hunters, Northerners )
Listed below is a collection of strategies that can be used to achieve Learning Outcome 1. The strategies do not
need to be taught in order and can be substituted with other strategies listed at the end of the unit if desired.
Vocabulary –Students will be introduced to the following vocabulary and people associated with the
Underground Railroad.
Abolitionist
Colonization
Conductor
Drinking Gourd
Bounty Hunter/slave
hunter
Emancipate
Free Colored
Free-Labor Goods
Manumission
North Star
Fugitive
Canaan
Quaker/Society of
Friends
Underground Railroad
Station
Biography
Person of Color
Warrant
Vocabulary Strategies:
Bingo—Using the Key-concepts and Definitions from the Underground Railroad, play Bingo.
Crossword puzzles—Students will use a computer program to generate a crossword puzzle of their own
using words from the word bank. They will have to come up with their own clues to show their
understanding of the vocabulary.
Graphic Organizers—For words such as abolitionists and fugitives, students will use graphic organizers
that have them list the word in the middle, give the definition, write it in a sentence that shows
meaning, give a synonym for it and an antonym for it. (I have these organizers at school that I can use)
Comprehension Strategies:
RAN Chart—Students tell what they think they know, as they study they confirm their knowledge, they
also note mis-understandings, and then they write down new learning that occurs during the unit. This
will be done at the beginning of the study to see what background children have on the Underground
Railroad. Each child will have his/her own, and then they will make a large one as a class that they can
add to as the unit goes along.
Economic Strategies:
T-Chart--I will read passages selected passages from web sites that debate the issue of slavery and how
it impacted the South economically. Students will make a t-chart with their small group and list ways
that Slavery helped the South and ways that it had a negative impact. We will then come together as a
group and make a class t-chart over , ”The Pros and Cons of Slavery’s impact on the South’s economy.”
Poem Interpretation—After doing the class T-Chart above, students will go back with their groups and
will be given a stanza from the poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson. Each group will interpret their stanza in
their own words. What do they think Emerson is trying to say to his readers? The class will come
together to go over the entire poem.
Writing Strategies:
RAFT—Students will learn about the fact that slaves had to travel at night so they would not be seen or
caught by slave catchers looking to cash in on the fugitive slave law. The RAFT activity will be as follows:
(Transportation)
R
Moon
A
Sun
F
Friendly Letter
T
Explaining how all the
slaves got past the
Mason-Dixon line to
Canada without the Sun
knowing it.
Poster Analysis—primary source (national)
1. “Let the North Awake!!” Abolition Poster from the Indiana Historical Society’s Digital Image Library.
Item ID: BROADSIDE_LET_THE_NORTH_AWAKE. Students will analyze a primary source document from
the antebellum era. This will help them understand reasons for supporting abolition. (primary source -national)
2.”Slaves for sale-Emergence of Advertising in America, 1850-1920” Students will analyze a primary
source document exposing children to how slaves were bought and sold. This will help them understand
how slaves were treated by slave owners.
View Website-primary source (national)
1. Students will hear narratives from American Slaves taken in 1936-38 about first- hand accounts of
their life on plantations, in cities, and on small farms in the south.
2. After listening, students and teachers would have a class discussion about the feelings these
narratives evoked in them personally.
3. Students would use exit tickets stating how their feelings of slavery have changed after listening to
these narratives.
Standards:
Social Studies:
4.1.6, Explain how key individuals and events influenced the early growth of and changes in
Indiana.
4.1.7, Explain the roles of various individuals, groups and movements in the social conflicts
leading to the Civil War. (Individuals, Society and Culture)
4.2.7 Use a variety of information resources* to take a position or recommend a course of action
on a public issue relating to Indiana’s past or present.
Language Arts:
4.1.2 Apply knowledge of synonyms (words with the same meaning), antonyms (words with
opposite meanings), homographs (words that are spelled the same but have different
meanings), and idioms (expressions that cannot be understood just by knowing the
meanings of the words in the expression, such as couch potato) to determine the meaning
of words and phrases.
4.2.1, Use the organization of informational text to strengthen comprehension.
Example: Read informational texts that are organized by comparing and contrasting ideas,
by discussing causes for and effects of events, or by sequential order and use this
organization to understand what is read. Use graphic organizers, such as webs, flow charts,
concept maps, or Venn diagrams to show the organization of the text.
4.2.3, Draw conclusions or make and confirm predictions about text by using prior knowledge
and ideas presented in the text itself, including illustrations, titles, topic sentences,
important words, foreshadowing clues (clues that indicate what might happen next), and
direct quotations.
4.4.2, Select a focus, an organizational structure, and a point of view based upon purpose,
audience, length, and format requirements for a piece of writing.
Resources:
Poster—“Let the North Awake!!” Abolition Poster from the Indiana Historical Society’s Digital Image
Library. Item ID: BROADSIDE_LET_THE_NORTH_AWAKE.
http://images.indianahistory.org/cdm4/item_viewer.
Php?CISOROOT=/dc008&CISOPTR=204&CISOBOX=1&REC=10
http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/eaa/?keyword=slaves&keyword=for&keyword=sale
(accessed April 24, 2011).
Digital History www.digitalhistory.uh.edu
Slavery In The Civil War Era
www.civilwarhome.com/slavery.htm
Learning Outcome 2. Students will understand the function of the Underground Railroad as it aided slaves on
the road to Freedom.
Listed below is a collection of strategies that can be used to achieve Learning Outcome 2. The strategies do not
need to be taught in order and can be substituted with other strategies listed at the end of the unit if desired.
Readings:
Follow the Drinking Gourd—This song and read aloud book was important to slaves as it was a symbol
of the “Big Dipper” The Big Dipper is a group of stars where the bowl of the big dipper points to the
Little Dipper. At the end of the Little Dipper’s handle is the North Star. The North Star is always above
the North Pole so, if the enslaved Africans could find the North Star, they could find the path to
freedom. There is a version that Morgan Freeman narrates. (Communication-National)
The Economy-Cabin Creek Short Branch and Some of Its Operations, A Description of One Section of
the Underground Railroad System by C.E. Charles. This is document #11 located in the Underground
Railroad file1 at Morrison Reeves Library. It tells how Barnabas Coffin, a Quaker that lived in Economy,
IN aided fugitive slaves. He ran a pork-packing plant that ran pork to the Cincinnati waterfront and
brought back salt and merchandise. His cousin, Levi Coffin, would press colored passengers on the
northbound drivers of Barnabas. So whether he knew it or not, his wagons transported fugitive slaves
along the Underground Railroad. (Transportation –State)
Coffin House— This is document #23 located in the Underground Railroad file at Morrison Reeves
Library. The source is the Palladium, Nov. 13, 1968, p26, c.1. This article describes the wagon
nicknamed “Palace Coach” that Levi Coffin had made for transporting escaping slaves. The increase in
the number of runaway slaves caused Coffin to provide transportation facilities that would be available
for use at a moment’s notice. (Transportation –State)
Vocabulary Strategies:
Poems—Students and Teacher will brainstorm a large list of any words that they can associate with the
Underground Railroad to make a word bank. After compiling the word bank, students write them in
their writer’s notebook or social studies notebook. Using the word bank, students can generate
different types of poetry such as Haikus or Diamantes.
Assessments: Students will be assessed on accuracy of poem structure and correct usage and definition
of terms.
Comprehension Strategies:
Simulation—Students will role play doing the simulation “Riding the Underground Railroad”. The
simulation has slaves escaping from the South to the North. They travel from different designated spots
until they reach their destination—or until a slave hunter captures them. Roles include: Quakers,
abolitionists, conductors, slaves, and slave hunters. They then reflect on the simulation.
Field Trip--Students will take a field trip to the Levi Coffin House to see an actual station on the
Underground Railroad. During the trip, they will take digital photos of the house.
Create a poster—Students will create their own poster incorporating ideas and phrases associated with
the abolition movement.
Assessment—Students will be assessed on their poster on ability to get a clear message about abolition
across in their drawing.
Venn Diagram—Given a list of Goals and Beliefs, students will place the goals on a Venn diagram under
Abolitionist’s beliefs or Colonization’s Beliefs.
Assessment—Venn diagram will be assessed on accuracy of placement.
The Underground Railroad Map—This is located on the web site titled Underground Railroad American
Civil War History. It is a great map that has a national map of all the routes believed to be used on the
Underground Railroad. Students then could use a map of the United States and color the states that
had slavery and the states that did not and then mark the routes the Underground Railroad followed.
(Transportation-National)
Writing Strategies:
Digital Storytelling—After going to the Levi Coffin House students will use photographs to retell stories
that they learned from the field trip. They can either do these on paper, or by making a PowerPoint.
(State)
Assessment: Students will be assessed using a checklist and accuracy of facts.
Standards:
Social Studies:
4.1.6, Explain how key individuals and events influenced the early growth of and changes in
Indiana.
4.1.7, Explain the roles of various individuals, groups and movements in the social conflicts
leading to the Civil War. (Individuals, Society and Culture)
4.2.7 Use a variety of information resources* to take a position or recommend a course of action
on a public issue relating to Indiana’s past or present.
Language Arts:
4.1.1, Read aloud grade-level-appropriate literary and informational texts with fluency and
accuracy and with appropriate timing, changes in voice, and expression.
4.2.1, Use the organization of informational text to strengthen comprehension.
Example: Read informational texts that are organized by comparing and contrasting ideas,
by discussing causes for and effects of events, or by sequential order and use this
organization to understand what is read. Use graphic organizers, such as webs, flow charts,
concept maps, or Venn diagrams to show the organization of the text.
4.2.2, Use appropriate strategies when reading for different purposes.
Example: Read and take notes on an informational text that will be used for a report. Skim
a text to locate specific information. Use graphic organizers to show the relationship of
ideas in the text.
4.2.3, Draw conclusions or make and confirm predictions about text by using prior knowledge
and ideas presented in the text itself, including illustrations, titles, topic sentences, important
words, foreshadowing clues (clues that indicate what might happen next), and direct
quotations.
4.2.4, Evaluate new information and hypotheses (statements of theories or assumptions) by
testing them against known information and ideas.
4.2.5, Compare and contrast information on the same topic after reading several passages or articles.
4.3.3 Use knowledge of the situation, setting, and a character’s traits, motivations, and feelings to
determine the causes for that character’s actions.
4.7.1, Ask thoughtful questions and respond orally to relevant questions with appropriate
elaboration.
4.7.2, Summarize major ideas and supporting evidence presented in spoken presentations
Resources:
Follow the Drinking Gourd—This song was important to slaves as it was a symbol of the “Big Dipper”
and the big dipper is a group of stars where the bowl of the big dipper points to the little dipper. At the
end of the little dipper’s handle it the North Star. The North Star is always above the North Pole so if the
enslaved Africans could find the North Star, they could find the path to freedom. (National)
The Economy-Cabin Creek Short Branch and Some of Its Operations, A Description of One Section of
the Underground Railroad System by C.E. Charles. This is document #11 located in the Underground
Railroad file1 at Morrison Reeves Library.
Coffin House— This is document #23 located in the Underground Railroad file at Morrison Reeves
Library.
Simulation—“Riding the underground railroad”
http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/lessonplan.jsp?id=887
Students will take a field trip to The Levi Coffin House , located in Fountain City, IN. to see an actual
station on the Underground Railroad. During the trip, they will take digital photos of the house. (State)
Underground Railroad American Civil War History.
http://americancivilwar.com/underground_railroad.html
Learning Outcome 3. Students will know important people who aided fugitive slaves on the Underground
Railroad.
Listed below is a collection of strategies that can be used to achieve Learning Outcome 3. The strategies do not
need to be taught in order and can be substituted with other strategies listed at the end of the unit if desired.
Readings:
Sweet Clara and The Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson. This book is about a woman named Ozella
from Charleston, South Carolina. Ozella explains the quilt patterns used to communicate on the
Underground Railroad. A quilt would be hung on a dry like to indicate safety, danger, clues and
landmarks. The stiches could be sewn as a map for a runaway slave to memorize. (CommunicationNational)
Vocabulary Strategies:
Mural—Students will be given a list of vocabulary words and people that pertain to the Underground
Railroad and make a mural that illustrates a scene. They will label the scene with the vocabulary words.
Assessment: Students will be assessed by the accuracy of their mural.
Comprehension Strategies:
Role Play—Students will read and act out the Readers Theater piece: “ Harriett Tubman and the Road to
Freedom.” (Transportation, communication—national)
Writing Strategies:
Biography/Live report—Students research and write a biography about a figure in the abolition
movement or the Underground Railroad. Students could then give the biography in the form of a live
talk as their person.
Assessment: Students will be assessed with a rubric over accurate information and understanding their
role as it pertained to the Underground Railroad.
Possible Biography Subjects:
Henry Ward
Beecher
Henry Clay
Harriet Tubman
Stephen Douglas
Levi Coffin
Jonathan Jennings
Frederick Douglass
Harriet Beecher
Stowe
William Still
Lucretia Mott
Sojourner Truth
Susan B. Anthony
John Brown
Nat Turner
William Lloyd
Garrison
Entrepreneur Strategies:
Using two Letter Transcripts that are on file at the Wayne County Historical Society, I will read to them
excerpts that tell about how the Ladies Anti-Slavery Society in Newport (now Fountain City, IN)
adopted the plan of manufacturing articles for sale in order to buy materials to make clothes for
slaves that passed through using the Underground Railroad.
Interactive Bulletin Board—As we study this topic, we will make an interactive bulletin board that has a
map of the United states during this time period. We will identify the Mason-Dixon Line and the states
that were free and the states that were slave states. As we study we will mark routes that slaves took,
show stations on the Underground Railroad and put up pictures of persons associated with it as well.
We will depict slaves as they are in each setting showing what they took with them when they left their
masters, what they looked like when they arrived across the Mason-Dixon Line, and then how they
looked after getting help from the people who aided them on their journey.
Picture drawing—As an Isolated strategy, students could listen to the two letters and then using details
from the letters, draw a before and after picture. One as they arrived at Newport, and one after they
received their new clothes.
Standards:
Social Studies:
4.1.6, Explain how key individuals and events influenced the early growth of and changes in
Indiana.
4.1.7, Explain the roles of various individuals, groups and movements in the social conflicts
leading to the Civil War. (Individuals, Society and Culture)
Language Arts:
4.1.1, Read aloud grade-level-appropriate literary and informational texts with fluency and
accuracy and with appropriate timing, changes in voice, and expression.
4.2.4, Evaluate new information and hypotheses (statements of theories or assumptions) by
testing them against known information and ideas.
4.2.5, Compare and contrast information on the same topic after reading several passages or
articles.
4.4.1, Discuss ideas for writing. Find ideas for writing in conversations with others and in books,
magazines, newspapers, school textbooks, or on the Internet. Keep a list or notebook of ideas.
4.4.2, Select a focus, an organizational structure, and a point of view based upon purpose,
audience, length, and format requirements for a piece of writing.
4.4.3, Write informational pieces with multiple paragraphs that:







provide an introductory paragraph.
establish and support a central idea with a topic sentence at or near the beginning of the
first paragraph.
include supporting paragraphs with simple facts, details, and explanations.
present important ideas or events in sequence or in chronological order.
provide details and transitions to link paragraphs.
conclude with a paragraph that summarizes the points.
use correct indention at the beginning of paragraphs.
4.4.7, Use multiple reference materials and online information (the Internet) as aids to writing.
4.4.11, Proofread one’s own writing, as well as that of others, using an editing checklist or set of rules,
with specific examples of corrections of frequent errors.
4.5.3, Write or deliver a research report that has been developed using a systematic research process
(defines the topic, gathers information, determines credibility, reports findings) and that:



includes information from a variety of sources (books, technology, multimedia) and
documents sources (titles and authors).
demonstrates that information that has been gathered has been summarized.
organizes information by categorizing it into multiple categories (such as solid, liquid,
and gas or reduce, reuse, and recycle) or includes information gained through
observation.
4.5.4 Write summaries that contain the main ideas of the reading selection and the most significant
details.
4.7.1,
Ask thoughtful questions and respond orally to relevant questions with appropriate elaboration.
4.7.2, Summarize major ideas and supporting evidence presented in spoken presentations.
4.7.11, Make narrative presentations that:


relate ideas, observations, or memories about an event or experience.
provide a context that allows the listener to imagine the circumstances of the event or
experience.
 provide insight into why the selected event or experience should be of interest to the
audience.
4.7.12, Make informational presentations that:



focus on one main topic.
include facts and details that help listeners focus.
incorporate more than one source of information (including speakers, books, newspapers,
television broadcasts, radio reports, or Web sites).
Resources:
Sweet Clara and The Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hoplinson. This book is about a woman named Ozella
from Charleston, South Carolina. Ozella explains the quilt patterns used to communicate on the
Underground Railroad. A quilt would be hung on a clothes line to indicate safety, danger, clues and
landmarks. The stiches could be sewn as a map for a runaway slave to memorize. (National)
Readers Theater: Harriett Tubman and the Road to Freedom
http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id+3751241
Transcript of Achsah Thomas Letter Recalling UGRR Days, Original letter at the Wayne County
Historical Society.
Lacey Letter Transcript from Wayne County Historical Society of the Slaves and the stirring of
reconstruction.
*****************************************************************************************
First Person Journal—As we study the Underground Railroad, students will acquire information about the
Underground Railroad and how the fugitive slaves escaped to the North in order to obtain freedom. Students
will then write a first person narrative depicting their escape as they travel through the state of Indiana. They
will include the kind of situation they are escaping from, stations of the Underground Railroad that aided them
in their escape, as well as rivers and land types crossed and traveled.
RAFT—Students will learn about the fact that slaves had to travel at night so they would not be seen or caught
by slave catchers looking to cash in on the fugitive slave law. The RAFT activity will be as follows:
R
Moon
A
Sun
F
Friendly Letter
T
Explaining how all the
slaves got past the
Mason-Dixon line to
Canada without the Sun
knowing it.
Poems—Students and Teacher will brainstorm a large list of any words that they can associate with the
Underground Railroad to make a word bank. After compiling the word bank, students write them in their
writer’s notebook or social studies notebook.
Biography/Live report—Students research and write a biography about a figure in the abolition movement or
the Underground Railroad. Students could then give the biography in the form of a live talk as their person.
Using the word bank, Students can generate different types of poetry such as Haikus or Diamantes.
Graphic Organizers—For words such as abolitionists and fugitives, students will use graphic organizers that have
them list the word in the middle, give the definition, write it in a sentence that shows meaning, give a synonym
for it and an antonym for it. (I have these organizers at school that I can use)
Mural—Students will be given a list of vocabulary words that pertain to the Underground Railroad and make a
mural that illustrates a scene. They will label the scene with the vocabulary words.
Charades/ Pictionary—Students are in 2 teams. One student from each team will be given a word from the
teacher and then the teacher rolls a die. If the die lands on an even number, they have to act out the word. If it
lands on an odd number, they have to draw a picture for their team.
Bingo—Using the Key-concepts and Definitions from the Underground Railroad, Play Bingo.
Crossword puzzles—Students will use a computer program to generate a crossword puzzle of their own using
words from the word bank. They will have to come up with their own clues to show their understanding of the
vocabulary.
Simulation—Students will role play doing the simulation “Riding the Underground Railroad” . The simulation
has slaves escaping from the South to the North. They travel from different designated spots until they reach
their destination—or until a slave hunter captures them. Roles include: Quakers, abolitionists, conductors,
slaves, and slave hunters. They then reflect on the simulation.
Role Play—Students will read and act out the Readers Theater piece on Harriet Tubman titled “A Guide To
Freedom”
Digital Storytelling—After going to the Levi Coffin House students will use photographs to retell stories that they
learned from the field trip. They can either do these on paper, or by making a PowerPoint.
Newspaper Making—Students will be put into groups of four. They will be given the task to construct a
newspaper that has the following: Feature stories (2) Want ads—describing runaway slaves (4) Letter to the
editor from an abolitionist and a letter to the editor from a pro-slave person. Advertisement (1). And one other
item of your choice.
RAN Chart—Students tell what they think they know, as they study they confirm their knowledge, they also note
mis-understandings, and then they write down new learning that occurs during the unit. This will be done at the
beginning of the study to see what background children have on the Underground Railroad. Each child will have
their own, and then they will make a large one as a class that they can add to as the unit goes along.
Memory Box—Students will have a box (small shoebox). Slaves had to leave most all of their things behind
when they escaped on the Underground Railroad. In order for students to try and understand this, students will
get to choose 3 items that they would take with them if they had to flee their homes for some reason. They will
put 3 items that are important to them. (If it is too valuable to bring to school, students may put a picture of the
item rather than the actual item but the actual item must be able to fit in the box with the other 2 items) They
will share the items with the class explaining why they were important to them.
Interactive Bulletin Board—As we study this topic, we will make an interactive bulletin board that has a map of
the United states during this time period. We will identify the Mason-Dixon Line and the states that were free
and the states that were slave states. As we study we will mark routes that slaves took, show stations on the
Underground Railroad and put up pictures of persons associated with it as well. We will depict slaves as they
are in each setting showing what they took with them when they left their masters, what they looked like when
they arrived across the Mason-Dixon Line, and then how they looked after getting help from the people who
aided them on their journey.
Timeline\Graphs—(working on this concept) Could graph the time it would take slaves to travel from certain
places in the south to destinations in the North.
T-chart—After discussing the risks involved with aiding fugitive slaves, students will be able to construct a Tchart showing the reasons a person would not help runaway slaves and the reasons a person would help
runaway slaves.
Poster Analysis—“Let the North Awake!!” Abolition Poster from the Indiana Historical Society’s Digital
Image Library. Item ID: BROADSIDE_LET_THE_NORTH_AWAKE. Students will analyze a primary
source document from the antebellum era. This will help them understand reasons for supporting
abolition.
Create a poster—Students will create their own poster incorporating ideas and phrases associated
with the abolition movement.
Venn Diagram—Given a list of Goals and Beliefs, students will place the goals on a Venn diagram under
Abolitionist’s beliefs or Colonization’s Beliefs.
All strategies that require students to produce a piece of writing will be graded with the 6 Traits plus 1
rubric. The Biography/Live Report, which is the final product the students will produce, will be graded
with a rubric developed by our class. All other assessments are listed with the strategy.
The Underground Railroad Map—This is located on the web site titled Underground Railroad
American Civil War History. It is a great map that has a national map of all the routes believed to be
used on the Underground Railroad. Students then could use a map of the United States and color the
states that had slavery and the states that did not and then mark the routes the Underground Railroad
followed. (national) http://americancivilwar.com/underground_railroad.html
The Economy-Cabin Creek Short Branch and Some of Its Operations, A
Description of One Section of the Underground Railroad System by C.E.
Charles. This document is located in the Underground Railroad file, document
#11 at Morrison Reeves. It tells how Barnabas Coffin, a Quaker that lived in Economy, IN aided fugitive slaves.
He ran a pork-packing plant that ran pork to the Cincinnati waterfront and brought back salt and merchandise.
His cousin, Levi Coffin, would press colored passengers on the northbound drivers of Barnabas. So whether he
knew it or not, his wagons transported fugitive slaves along the Underground Railroad. (State)
Coffin House— This document is located in the Underground Railroad file, document #23 at Morrison Reeves.
The source is the Palladium, Nov. 13, 1968, p26, c.1. This article describes the wagon nicknamed “Palace Coach”
that Levi Coffin had made for transporting escaping slaves. The increase in the number of runaway slaves
caused Coffin to provide transportation facilities that would be available for use at a moment’s notice. (State)
Under Ground R.R. Mr. J. H Tablit of Mound Valley Kansas. A Letter written in 1884 to E. Nicholson—This
letter is written by a white man as he remembers of his encounters with fugitives from slavery. This is a primary
source and is hand written. It covers areas in the Midwest. (State)
Sweet Clara and The Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson. This book is about a woman named Ozella from
Charleston, South Carolina. Ozella explains the quilt patterns used to communicate on the Underground
Railroad. A quilt would be hung on a clothes line to indicate safety, danger, clues and landmarks. The stiches
could be sewn as a map for a runaway slave to memorize. (National)
Follow the Drinking Gourd—This song was important to slaves as it was a symbol of the “Big Dipper” and the big
dipper is a group of stars where the bowl of the big dipper points to the little dipper. At the end of the little
dipper’s handle it the North Star. The North Star is always above the North Pole so if the enslaved Africans could
find the North Star, they could find the path to freedom. (National)
Readers Theater: Harriett Tubman and the Road to Freedom
http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id+3751241
Riding the underground railroad” http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/lessonplan.jsp?id=887
Transcript of Achsah Thomas Letter Recalling UGRR Days, Original letter at the Wayne County Historical Society.
Lacey Letter Transcript from Wayne County Historical Society of the Slaves and the stirring of reconstruction.
Digital History www.digitalhistory.uh.edu
Slavery In The Civil War Era
www.civilwarhome.com/slavery.htm This is a typed document about slavery in the Civil War
era. It gives a lot of back ground information about slave life during this time period.
Slavery, the Economy, and Society. This gives information about how the slaves impacted the
economy of the South. CliffsNotes.com. Slavery, the Economy, and Society. 21 July, 2011
http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/topicArticleId-25073,articleId-25050.html
Students will take a field trip to the Levi Coffin House to see an actual station on the Underground Railroad.
During the trip, they will take digital photos of the house. (State)
Poster—“Let the North Awake!!” Abolition Poster from the Indiana Historical Society’s Digital Image Library.
Item ID: BROADSIDE_LET_THE_NORTH_AWAKE.
http://images.indianahistory.org/cdm4/item_viewer.php?CISOROOT=/dc008&CISOPTR=204&CISOBOX=1&REC=
10
“Levi Coffin House State Historic Site.” http://www.waynet.org/nonprofit/coffin.htm.
National Park Service. “Aboard the Underground Railroad.” http://www.nationalgeographic.com/railroad.
Slaves for Sale Posters. Several different primary sources are available at this website.
http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/adaccess
(accessed July 21, 2011).
Narrative of Follow the Drinking Gourd: The Story of the Underground Railroad. Directed by American
Heroes and Legends. Produced by Inc. Rabbit Ears Productions. Performed by Narrated by
Morgan Freeman.
Book: Stein, R. Conrad. The Underground Railroad. New York: Children's Press, Division of Grolier,
1997.