Whitman-Hanson Regional High School provides all students with a high- quality education in order to develop reflective, concerned
citizens and contributing members of the global community.
Course Number 615
Course Description
Instructional Strategies
Title American Studies I Honors
10
120 Days
This intensive survey in American History is designed for the highly motivated student who enjoys history
and is interested in studying important people, events, and themes in more depth than the Academic level.
This course will follow the development of our nation from Colonial times to Reconstruction. It will include
an in-depth study of the founding documents that helped to shape American democracy as well as a close
examination of the political, social, and cultural trends that defined the new nation. Special emphasis will be
placed on the rights and responsibilities of citizenship and how ordinary Americans interpreted their role in
the political process during the first hundred years of the republic. All students will be required to write a
historical research paper. Alternative forms of assessment will evaluate students’ ability in a variety of areas
while emphasis will be placed an analytical essay writing and approaching complex problems in American
history with intelligence and understanding.
Instructional Strategies include but may not be limited to the following:
Lecture/Note taking
Discussion
Debate
Document analysis
Power Point and SmartBoard presentations
Research/writing/peer-editing
Creative projects
Public speaking
Cooperative group activities
Student Learning
Expectations
Grade
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Read, write and communicate effectively.
Utilize technologies appropriately and effectively.
Apply critical thinking skills.
Explore and express ideas creatively.
Participate in learning both individually and collaboratively.
Demonstrate personal, social, and civic responsibility.
1
Unit 1 Empire Under Strain
MA Standard/Strands:
USI.1
Time Frame:
2 weeks
Text
(Chapter/Pages)
Bennett, William J. America: The Last Best Hope. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2006
Chapter 2 Sections4 and 5
Chapter 3 Sections 1 and 2
Downey, et al. United States History: In the Course of Human Events. New York: West Publishing Company, 1997
Other Resources:
The American President. Produced by Kunhardt Productions in conjunction with PBS Video, 2000. 10 videocassettes.
History Alive: Colonial Life and the American Revolution. Palo Alto, CA: Teacher’s Curriculum Institute
Choices for the 21st Century: “A More Perfect Union: Shaping American Government”.
Providence RI: Brown University, 2001.
MindSparks Daily Life in Colonial America - History Unfolding , 2009
Caliguire, Augustine, et al. US History Book 1. The Center for Learning, 1991
Unit Outline
Essential Questions
Concepts, Content:
Road to Revolution, 1754—1775
A. Anglo-French rivalries and Seven Years’ War
1. Colonies freed from outside threat
2. Proclamation 1763
3. Growing debt in England
B. Imperial reorganization of 1763
1. Stamp Act
2. Declaratory Act
3. Townshend Acts
4. Intolerable Acts
C. Colonial Response
D. Philosophy of the American Revolution
E. Massachusetts’ Role
1. Boston Massacre
2
2. Boston Tea Party
3. The Battles at Lexington and Concord and Bunker Hill
F. Leaders; S. Adams, J. Adams and J. Hancock
Essential Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Compare and contrast the Southern, Middle and New England Colonies.
Explain the economic relationship between England and its colonies with regards to salutary neglect.
Who fought in the French and Indian War and why?
In what ways did the British offend the colonists? (cite two examples)
Was the Boston Massacre a massacre?
What were the Intolerable Acts and why were they called that?
What were the results of fighting at Lexington and Concord?
Targeted Skill(s):
See Appendix A, Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies 6 – 12
Writing:
See History/Social Studies sections of Appendix B, Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science,
and Technical Subjects6 – 12
Assessment Practices:
Formative Assessments; Summative Assessment in the form of objective and open response questions
Unit 2 The American War for Independence
MA Standard/Strands:
USI.2-5
Time Frame:
2 weeks
3
Text
(Chapter/Pages)
Other Resources:
Bennett, William J. America: The Last Best Hope. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2006
Chapter 3 Sections 3-7
The American President. Produced by Kunhardt Productions in conjunction with PBS Video, 2000.
Choices for the 21st Century: “A More Perfect Union: Shaping American Government”.
Providence RI: Brown University, 2001
MindSparks How "Radical" was the American Revolution? - The Historian's Apprentice 2009
John Adams. HBO Films 2008
Caliguire, Augustine, et al. US History Book 1. The Center for Learning, 1991
Objectives
Essential Questions
Concepts, Content:
The students will be able:
1. examine efforts made to avoid bloodshed as the colonies hovered between peace and war
2. summarize the philosophical and political background of the Declaration of Independence
3. contrast the attitudes of the Loyalists and the Patriots
4. compare and contrast the strengths and weaknesses of the British and colonial military resources
5. trace the progress of the war through the turning point at Saratoga and the winter at Valley Forge
6. examine the colonial economy and civilian life during the revolution
7. describe the contributions of European allies
8. trace the Revolution in the Southern colonies
9. summarize the British surrender at Yorktown
10. recognize the symbolic value of the Revolution
Unit Outline
I. The American Revolution, 1775—1787:
A. Continental Congress
1.Radicals v. Conservatives
2.Committees of Correspondence
B .Declaration of Independence
1. European philosophers Locke and Montesquieu
2. Franklin, Adams, and Jefferson
3. British Response
C. The War
1. French alliance
2. War and society; Loyalists
3. War economy
4. Major Battles
D. Treaty of Paris
4
Essential Questions
1. Compare and Contrast the Loyalists and Patriots.
2. What effect did Thomas Paine’s Common Sense have on the colonists?
3. In what ways did John Locke influence Thomas Jefferson?
4. What was the purpose of the Declaration of Independence?
5. What did Jefferson mean, and not mean, by the phrase, “all men are created equal.”
6. How would American government be different from existing forms of government?
7. What was the importance of the French alliance?
8. What was the role of the Continental Congress?
9. List the importance of the battles of Breed’s Hill, Trenton, Saratoga and Yorktown.
10. Explain the conditions of the Treaty of Paris of 1783.
Targeted Skill(s):
See Appendix A, Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies 6 – 12
Writing:
See History/Social Studies sections of Appendix B, Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science,
and Technical Subjects6 – 12
Assessment Practices:
Formative Assessments; Summative Assessment in the form of objective and open response questions
Unit 3 Shaping a New Nation
MA Standard/Strands:
USI.6-16, 19-21
Time Frame:
2-3 weeks
Text
(Chapter/Pages)
Other Resources:
Bennett, William J. America: The Last Best Hope. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2006
Chapter 4 Sections 1-3, Chapter 5 Section 2
Hefner, Richard. A Documentary History of the United States.New York: Penguin Books, 2002
Downey, et al. United States History: In the Course of Human Events. New York: West Publishing Company, 1997
5
The American President. Produced by Kunhardt Productions in conjunction with PBS Video, 2000. 10 videocassettes.
Choices for the 21st Century: “A More Perfect Union: Shaping American Government”.
Providence RI: Brown University, 2001
Social Studies School Service Writing the Constitution: Backwards Planning Curriculum Unit 2008
John Adams. HBO Films 2008
Caliguire, Augustine, et al. US History Book 1. The Center for Learning, 1991
Objectives
Essential Questions
Concepts, Content:
The students will be able:
1. identify three basic issues the Continental Congress debated in drafting the Articles of Confederation
2. describe the political and economic problems faced by the Confederation
3. identify events that led nationalist leaders to call for a convention to strengthen the government
4. summarize the key conflicts at the Constitutional Convention and explain how they were resolved through
compromise
5. compare and contrast the feudalism system of Great Britain to open land ownership provided for by the Land
Ordinance 1785
6. explain how and why the Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution
7. argue how the Bill of Rights applies to life in the twenty-first century
8. identify on a map the first thirteen states to ratify the Constitution
9. summarize the framework and functions of the Constitution
10. describe why the U.S. government is labeled as a democratic government and how it provides opportunities to
participate in the political process
11. identify the roles and responsibilities of the federal government including taxation, economic policy, foreign
policy and common defense
12. identify the three branches of government, their responsibilities, and how they check and balance one another
Unit Outline
A. Mayflower Compact
B. Articles of Confederation
1. Structure
2. Strengths/weaknesses
C. Philadelphia Convention: Drafting of the Constitution
6
1. Roles of Founding Fathers
a. Benjamin Franklin
b. Alexander Hamilton
c. James Madison
d. George Washington
2. Compromises
a. Great Compromise
b. 3/5 Compromise
c. Federalism
D. Basic Guiding Principles
1. Greek and Roman Influences
2. Locke, Hobbes, Montesquieu, Rousseau
3. Madison and Examples of different forms of government
a. Democracy
b. Monarchy
c. Oligarchy
d. Theocracy
e. Autocracy
E. Ratification of Constitution
1. Federalist Papers
a. federalism
b. factions
c. checks and balances
d. importance of an independent judiciary
2. Anti-Federalists
F. Ratification Process
1. Bill of Rights as a condition for ratification
2. States’ ratification (ratification map)
G. Framework of the Constitution
1. Powers of the three branches
2. Checks and Balances
3. Electoral College
4. Amending the Constitution
5. Landmark Supreme Court Cases
Essential Questions
1. What was the relevance of the Mayflower Compact to the framers of the Constitution?
7
2. In what ways was the Articles of Confederation too weak to handle the new nation’s problems?
3. In what ways did the Land Ordinance of 1785 and Northwest Ordinance of 1787 provide for the orderly and
affordable development of the Northwest Territory?
4. How was the form of government under the Constitution an improvement over that which existed under the
Articles of Confederation?
5. Briefly explain the separation of powers established by the Constitution.
6. What were the arguments for and against ratifying the Constitution?
7. What were the freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights?
8. What are the requirements for and powers granted to the three branches of government?
9. What’s the role that the Electoral College plays in the election of the President?
10. Define Federalism.
Targeted Skill(s):
See Appendix A, Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies 6 – 12
Writing:
See History/Social Studies sections of Appendix B, Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science,
and Technical Subjects6 – 12
Assessment Practices:
Formative Assessments; Summative Assessment in the form of objective and open response questions
Unit 4 Massachusetts Constitution
MA Standard/Strands:
USI.17-18
Time Frame:
2-3 days
Text
(Chapter/Pages)
Other Resources:
Massachusetts League of Women Voters website online (http://www.lwvma.org/government.shtml)
Essential Questions
Concepts, Content:
Objectives
8
The students will be able:
1. Explain the roles and major components of state government in Massachusetts including the roles of the
governor, the state legislature and other constitutional officers.
2. Explain the roles and major components of local government in Massachusetts including the functions of the
school committee, town meeting, board of selectmen, mayors and city councils.
3. Compare and contrast liberal v. conservative political ideology as it pertains to political parties of today.
Identify ways in which political parties and special interest groups impact the political process today.Unit Outline
A. Political Process
1. Ideologies
a. liberal v. conservative
b. Democrat v. Republican
2. Function of Political Parties US I.19 & 1.20
a. elections
b. special interest groups
B. Functions of state and local government US I.15
1. State government
a. governor
b. state legislature US I.17
c. Massachusetts court system
2. Local government
a. School Committee
b. Town Meeting US I.18
c. Board of Selectmen
d. Mayor and City Council
Essential Questions
1. What are the fundamental differences between liberal and conservative ideologies?
2. List the major political parties in the United States and explain their political platforms.
3. What are the similarities and difference between the Massachusetts’ state government and the federal
government?
4. What are the roles of state and local officials?
5. How might you, as an individual voter, influence the political process on the local level? The state level? The
federal level?
Targeted Skill(s):
See Appendix A, Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies 6 – 12
Writing:
9
See History/Social Studies sections of Appendix B, Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science,
and Technical Subjects6 – 12
Assessment Practices:
Formative Assessments; Summative Assessment in the form of objective and open response questions
Unit 5 A Strong Start for the New Nation
MA Standard/Strands:
USI.22
Time Frame:
2-3 weeks
Text
(Chapter/Pages)
Other Resources:
Bennett, William J. America: The Last Best Hope. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2006
Chapter 5 Sections 1, 4-7, Chapter 6 Sections 1-6
Danzer, Gerald A. et. al The Americans. Evanston: McDougal Littel Inc., 2003
Hefner, Richard. A Documentary History of the United States.New York: Penguin Books, 2002
Downey, et al. United States History: In the Course of Human Events. New York: West Publishing Company, 1997
The American President. Produced by Kunhardt Productions in conjunction with PBS Video, 2000. 10 DVDs
Choices for the 21st Century: “Challenges to the New Republic: Prelude to the War of 1812”.
Providence RI: Brown University, 2001
10
MindSparks The Journey of Lewis and Clark - History Unfolding 2009
John Adams. HBO Films 2008
Caliguire, Augustine, et al. US History Book 1. The Center for Learning, 1991
Objectives
Essential Questions
Concepts, Content:
The students will be able:
1. explain how the United States confronted the difficult task of forming a new government.
2. show how the political ideas of Hamilton and Jefferson differed.
3. describe how political differences evolved into a two-party system.
4. summarize developing foreign policy with France, Great Britain, and Spain.
5. summarize the importance of the Louisiana Purchase and the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
6. explain the events that led to the War of 1812
7. summarize the events of the war
8. trace the influence and ideas of Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall and the importance of the doctrine
of Judicial Review as manifested in Marbury v. Madison (1803).
9. summarize foreign policy under Monroe.
Unit Outline
A. Washington’s presidency
1. Hamilton’s financial programs and Jefferson’s
opposition
2. Foreign and domestic difficulties
3. Beginnings of political parties
B. John Adams’ presidency
1. Alien and Sedition Acts
2. Election of 1800
C. Jefferson’s presidency
1. Jeffersonian Democracy
2. Louisiana Purchase and Louis and Clark
3. Embargo Act
4. The Supreme Court under John Marshall
D. War of 1812
1. Causes
11
2. Invasion of Canada
3. Hartford Convention
4. Conduct of the war
5.Treaty of Ghent
6. New Orleans
E. Missouri Compromise
F. Foreign Policy Under Monroe
1. Convention (1818)
2. Purchase of Florida (1819)
3. Monroe Doctrine (1823)
Essential Questions
1. What were the first steps taken and precedents set by the Washington administration in building the new
nation?
2. List the differences between the Democrat–Republicans and Federalists. Who were their leaders?
3. What were the problems faced by the Adams’ administration?
4. What were the significant accomplishments under the Jefferson administration?
5. What ruling came out of the case Marbury v. Madison (1803)?
6. What were the causes and effects of the War of 1812?
7. How did the Monroe Doctrine make the United States a more powerful nation?
8. How did the U.S. acquire Florida?
Targeted Skill(s):
See Appendix A, Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies 6 – 12
Writing:
See History/Social Studies sections of Appendix B, Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science,
and Technical Subjects6 – 12
Assessment Practices:
Formative Assessments; Summative Assessment in the form of objective and open response questions
Unit 6 Jacksonian America and Early Social and Economic Developments
MA Standard/Strands:
USI.23-28, 30, 32,33, 34
Time Frame:
2 weeks
12
Text
(Chapter/Pages)
Other Resources:
Bennett, William J. America: The Last Best Hope. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2006
Chapter 6 Sections 7-11, Chapter 7 Sections 1-8
Danzer, Gerald A. et. al The Americans. Evanston: McDougal Littel Inc., 2003
Hefner, Richard. A Documentary History of the United States.New York: Penguin Books, 2002
Downey, et al. United States History: In the Course of Human Events. New York: West Publishing Company, 1997
The American President. Produced by Kunhardt Productions in conjunction with PBS Video, 2000. 10 DVDs.
MindSparks Henry Clay's American System - Debating the Documents 2008
Mill Times. PBS Home Video 2001
Caliguire, Augustine, et al. US History Book 1. The Center for Learning, 1991
Essential Questions
Concepts, Content:
Objectives
The students will be able:
1. describe the importance of canals, roads, bridges, turnpikes, steamboats, railroads and their impact they had on a
market economy.
2. describe the development and impact of the textile manufacturing industry in New England
3. describe the expansion of suffrage and Jackson’s appeal to the common citizen.
4. explain the spoils system as practiced by Jackson.
5. summarize the effects of the Indian Removal Act of 1830.
6. explain why the protective tariff laws raised the issue of states’ rights.
7. summarize how Jackson destroyed the Bank of the United States.
8. identify some of the results of Jackson’s economic policies.
9. describe a new philosophy that offered an alternative to traditional religion.
10. explain the reforms demanded in education, mental hospitals, and prisons.
Unit Outline
A. Economic Development
1. Transportation revolution
2. Textile industry in New England
a. inventions
b. immigration
c. role of women
13
B. Democracy and the “common man”
1. Expansion of suffrage
2. Spoils system
C. Indian Removal Act
1. Worcester v. Georgia, (1832)
2. Trail of Tears
D. The Nullification Crisis
1. Tariff issue
2. The Union: Calhoun and Jackson
E. The Bank War: Jackson and Biddle
F. Social Reforms
1. Education (Horace Mann)
2. Religion
a. Second Great Awakening
b. Changes in the Protestant and Catholic denominations
3. Women’s Movement
a. The 1848 Seneca Falls Convention
b. Susan B. Anthony
c. Margaret Fuller
d. Lucretia Mott
e. Elizabeth Cady Stanton
4. Transcendentalist Movement
a. Ralph Waldo Emerson
b. Henry David Thoreau
Essential Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
What technological and manufacturing changes spurred the Industrial Revolution?
How did the common man have an impact on the election of Andrew Jackson?
What was Andrew Jackson’s policy on Indian Removal and what was its outcome?
Why did South Carolina threaten to secede and what did Jackson do in response?
Why did Jackson consider the National Bank a hydra-headed beast?
Who were the authors and what was the outcome of the Seneca Falls Declaration?
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7. List the leaders and contributions of the education and religion reform movements.
8. Who were the Trancendentalists and what were their new philosophies?
Targeted Skill(s):
See Appendix A, Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies 6 – 12
Writing:
See History/Social Studies sections of Appendix B, Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science,
and Technical Subjects6 – 12
Assessment Practices:
Formative Assessments; Summative Assessment in the form of objective and open response questions
Unit 7 Manifest Destiny
MA Standard/Strands:
USI.26
Time Frame:
2 weeks
Text
(Chapter/Pages)
Other Resources:
Bennett, William J. America: The Last Best Hope. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2006
Chapter 7 Sections 9-11
Hefner, Richard. A Documentary History of the United States.New York: Penguin Books, 2002
Downey, et al. United States History: In the Course of Human Events. New York: West Publishing Company, 1997
The American President. Produced by Kunhardt Productions in conjunction with PBS Video, 2000. 10 videocassettes.
MindSparks Happy Trails: The Appeal of the Frontier in 19th-Century America - The Historian's Apprentice 2009
Social Studies School Service Westward Expansion: Backwards Planning Curriculum Unit 2008
Social Studies School Service Analyzing Visual Primary Sources: Westward Expansion 2006
Caliguire, Augustine, et al. US History Book 1. The Center for Learning, 1991
Objectives
Essential Questions
15
Concepts, Content:
The students will be able:
1. summarize the reasons American settlers headed west during the mid- 1800s.
2. identify the westward trails and some of the people who used them.
3. explain why Mexico encouraged American settlement of Texas.
4. describe the struggle between Mexico and the Anglo settlers over Texas.
5. summarize the conflicting attitudes on waging war with Mexico.
6. describe the key battles that helped the United States win the war with Mexico.
7. list the U.S. territories gained from Mexico and identify them on a map of the U.S.
Unit Outline
Manifest Destiny (1845-1860)
A. Manifest Destiny and mission
B. Texas annexation, the Oregon boundary, and California
C. James K. Polk and the Mexican War; slavery and
the Wilmot Proviso
D. The North
1. Northeast industry
2. Northwest agriculture
E. Westward expansion
1. Territorial acquisition map
2. Westward Trails ( Santa Fe & Oregon trails)
Essential Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
What were the benefits and drawbacks to the belief in Manifest Destiny?
What major events led to Texas joining the Union?
What developments caused the United States to go to war with Mexico and what were the results?
What effects did the Gold Rush have upon the growth of California?
What were the motivations of the travelers on the Oregon, Sante Fe and Mormon Trails?
Was James K. Polk an underrated President?
Targeted Skill(s):
See Appendix A, Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies 6 – 12
Writing:
16
See History/Social Studies sections of Appendix B, Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science,
and Technical Subjects6 – 12
Assessment Practices:
Formative Assessments; Summative Assessment in the form of objective and open response questions
Unit 8A Union in Danger
MA Standard/Strands:
USI.29, 31, 35, 36
Time Frame:
2 weeks
Text
(Chapter/Pages)
Other Resources:
Bennett, William J. America: The Last Best Hope. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2006
Chapter 8
Hefner, Richard. A Documentary History of the United States.New York: Penguin Books, 2002
Downey, et al. United States History: In the Course of Human Events. New York: West Publishing Company, 1997
The American President. Produced by Kunhardt Productions in conjunction with PBS Video, 2000. 10 DVDs
Slavery and the Making of America. PBS Home Video 2004
Caliguire, Augustine, et al. US History Book 1. The Center for Learning, 1991.
Essential Questions
Concepts, Content:
Unit Outline
A. The Rift Widens
1. Slavery in the South and territories
a. Cotton Kingdom
b. Southern trade and industry
c. Southern society and culture
i. Gradations of White society
ii. Nature of slavery:
iii. “peculiar institution”
d. The mind of the South
2. Failed Compromises
a. 1820
17
b. 1850
c. Kansas-Nebraska act
3. Dred Scott
4. The publication of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”
B. Abolitionism
1. Frederick Douglass
2. William Lloyd Garrison
3. Sojourner Truth
4. Harriet Tubman
5. Theodore Weld
6. Southerners’ and northerners’ response to abolitionism
5. Lincoln-Douglas debates
C. Dispute turns violent
1. Attack on Senator Charles Sumner
2. “Bleeding Kansas”
3. Harper’s Ferry Election of 1860
D. Election of 1860
1. Candidates
2. Results
Essential Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
What was the “peculiar institution”?
What was the impact of the Cotton Gin on slavery?
In what ways did people resist slavery: blacks or whites; violent versus non-violent?
How did William Lloyd Garrison and Frederick Douglass each propose ending slavery?
What role did Sojourner Truth, Harriet Beecher Stowe and Harriet Tubman play in the abolitionist movement?
What was the response of southerners and northerners to abolitionism?
What were the terms and weaknesses of the compromises of 1820, 1850 and the Kansas-Nebraska Act?
What was the significance of the Supreme Court ruling in the Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857)?
What issues arose in the Lincoln-Douglas debates that would affect their presidential contest?
Do John Brown’s actions at Pottawatomie and Harper’s Ferry qualify him as a martyr or madman?
How did the issue of slavery contribute to the presidential election of 1860 and what were the results.
Targeted Skill(s):
See Appendix A, Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies 6 – 12
18
Writing:
See History/Social Studies sections of Appendix B, Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science,
and Technical Subjects6 – 12
Assessment Practices:
Formative Assessments; Summative Assessment in the form of objective and open response questions
Unit 9 A Nation Divided
MA Standard/Strands:
USI.37-40
Time Frame:
2 weeks
Text
(Chapter/Pages)
Other Resources:
Bennett, William J. America: The Last Best Hope. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2006
Chapter 9, 10
Glory. Columbia Tristar Home Video 1997
Social Studies School Service Analyzing Visual Primary Sources: Civil War 2006
Caliguire, Augustine, et al. US History Book 1. The Center for Learning, 1991
Objectives
Essential Questions
Concepts, Content:
The students will be able:
1. to identify Union and Confederate states at the outset of the war.
2. to explain how the Civil War began and list strengths/weaknesses of both side
3. to profile the Northern and Southern generals and their campaigns.
4. to explain Northern and Southern military strategies to capture their enemy’s capital
5. to explain why Britain remained neutral.
6. to explain Lincoln’s motives for issuing the Emancipation Proclamation and the
document’s effects.
7. to identify the political dilemmas facing the North and South.
8. to explain African Americans’ military role in the struggle to end slavery.
9. to describe the terrible conditions that Union and Confederate soldiers endured.
10. to describe the battle at Gettysburg and its outcome.
11. to describe Grant’s siege of Vicksburg.
12. to summarize key points of the Gettysburg Address.
13. to trace the final events of the war, leading to the surrender at Appomattox.
14. to summarize the key economic, political, technological, and social effects of the Civil
War.
19
15. to explain how the Civil War dramatically changed the lives of individuals, especially
African-Americans.
Unit Outline
A. The Union US 1.37
1. Mobilization and finance
2. Civil liberties
3. Strengths/weaknesses
4. Strategic plan (Anaconda)
B. The South
1. Confederate Constitution
2. Mobilization and finance
3. Strengths/weaknesses
4. Strategic plan (Defensive)
C. Lincoln’s Presidency US 1.38
1. View on slavery
2. Political obstacles
3. Emancipation Proclamation
4. Gettysburg Address
5. Second Inaugural Address
D. The War US 1.39
1. Foreign affairs & diplomacy
2. Military leaders
a. Jefferson Davis A
b. Ulysses S. Grant B
c. Robert E. Lee C
3. Battles
4. 54th regiment at Fort Wagner A
5. Antietam B
6. Vicksburg C
7. Gettysburg D
E. Effects of war on society US 1.40
1. Physical and economic destruction A
2. The increased role of the federal government B
20
3. The greatest loss of life per capita basis of any U.S. war before or since C
Essential Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
What were the military strategies of the North and the South at the outset of the Civil War?
What advantages did the North have over the South?
What were the actual results of the Emancipation Proclamation?
Describe the battle that signaled the turning point of the war.
Why was the Gettysburg Address a masterpiece of healing?
What was the historical significance of the battle of Antietam?
What was the importance of the actions of the 54th Massachusetts regiment at the battle of Fort Wagner?
Who were the military and political leaders of the Civil War?
How did the outcome of the Civil War affect the power of the federal government?
How did Lincoln’s view on slavery evolve before and during his presidency?
Targeted Skill(s):
See Appendix A, Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies 6 – 12
Writing:
See History/Social Studies sections of Appendix B, Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science,
and Technical Subjects6 – 12
Assessment Practices:
Formative Assessments; Summative Assessment in the form of objective and open response questions
21