CHA3U: Grade 11 American History University Preparation
CIVIL WAR TRADING
CARDS ASSIGNMENT
The four years that followed the breakup of the United States were among the most
traumatic in the nation’s history. The violence and political differences of the 1850s paled
before the tragedy of the Civil War, as Americans paid the price for the political failure to
resolve the question of slavery. Thousands of soldiers died in battle or from disease, much of
the South was left in ruins, and shortly after the war ended, Northerners lost the president
who had led them through it.
Your Task:
You will need to produce four trading cards
that will outline important individuals and/or
events from the American Civil War. The
cards will be designed in the same vein as a
typical trading card, complete with necessary
biographical information and other various
requirements.
Assignment Specs:
1. Select one character/event from each
of the collections (See chart below).
2. For each selection, create a trading
card using only HALF of an 11.5 X 8
inch paper. NOTHING BIGGER. You
are allowed to mount your work onto
cardboard or heavier paper.
3. Each card must include the following:
Side A:
a) A clear, fully sized picture/illustration of the event/individual (pictures may be
downloaded or photocopied from books, but must fit).
b) The title/person’s name/event clearly visible including the date(s) of significance
that are related to this event/individual.
c) The series/collection to which the card belongs.
Side B:
a) The title/person’s name again with date(s) of significance listed again.
b) A brief description/summary explaining what/who it is.
d) Two paragraphs outlining why exactly you think this individual/event is a
defining moment in the American Civil War (300-400 words, single-spaced, font
size can be no bigger than size 12, but format it to fit the size of your card).
e) Miscellaneous Information: Any other vital statistics that you feel may be
pertinent to understanding this individual/event better.
4. Remember to use facts, quotes and other evidence to support your views. You must
cite the work that you used for your research at the bottom of your card using
footnotes.
5. How you present the information is entirely up to you. Be creative and make sure that
your work is aesthetically pleasing to the card collector.
6. Your written piece outlining why YOU think the individual/event is a defining moment
and is significant to understanding the Civil War and MUST be completely original.
***NO COPYING or MERELY DOWNLOADING AND CUTTING AND PASTING OFF
OF THE INTERNET.
7. Students caught plagiarizing will receive an automatic mark of Zero.
8. You must choose one from each of the collections listed for a total of four trading
cards.
9. Your description should attempt to answer who-what-when-where-why questions in
order to describe the selections significance.
10.If an issue/event/individual is not listed, feel free to add your own.
11.You cannot do more than one topic from the same series/collection.
DUE DATE: ________________________________________________
Series/Collections
The Presidential Series/Collection
-
The Emancipation Proclamation
Abraham Lincoln
Stephen A. Douglas
Andrew Johnson
Gettysburg Address
John Wilkes Booth
Jefferson Davis
Lincoln/Douglas Debate
The Peculiar Institution
The Underground Railroad
The Trent Incident
Abolitionists
Secession
Missouri Compromise
Lincoln’s Assassination
OTHER?
The Battles Series/Collection
-
Battle of Chickamauga
Battle of Chancellorsville
Battle of the Wilderness
Battle of the Second Manassas
Battle of Stone’s River
Battle of Shiloh
Battle of Fort Donelson
Battle of Antietam
Battle of Chattanooga
Battle of Vicksburg
Battle of Bull Run
Battles of Gettysburg
Fort Sumter
Appotomatox
OTHER?
The Gettysburg Series/Collection
-
Lieut.Gen. James Longstreet
James Ewell Brown(J.E.B.) Stuart
General Robert E. Lee
Col. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain
Maj.Gen. Jubal A. Early
Lieut.Gen. Richard S. Ewell
Maj.Gen. Henry Heth
Lieut.Gen. Ambrose Powell Hill
Maj.Gen. John Bell Hood
Maj.Gen. George S. Meade
Lewis Addison Armistead
Maj.Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock
Maj.Gen. John F. Reynolds
Brig.Gen John Buford
Maj.Gen. George E. Pickett
OTHER?
Famous Individuals Series/Collection
-
Sojourner Truth
Frederick Douglas
William Lloyd Garrison
Harriet Tubman
Henry Garnet
Eli Whitney
George McClellan
Ulysses S. Grant
Samuel Tilden
Theodore Weld
Clara Barton
Dorothea Dix
William T. Sherman
Oliver Howard
The Copperheads
General Philip Sheridan
John Brown
Nat Turner
Dred Scott
Justice Harlan
General Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson
Braxton Bragg
James Birney
Homer Plessy
OTHER?
American Civil War Trading Cards Evaluation Rubric
CRITERIA
LEVEL 0 LEVEL 1 LEVEL 2 LEVEL 3 LEVEL 4
Below 50%
5 and
under
50 – 55%
5 – 5.5
60 – 65%
6 – 6.5
70 – 75%
7 – 7.5
80 -100%
8 - 10
Did not meet
expectations
Limited use
of proper
spelling,
grammar
and sentence
structure
Rarely cited
materials
researched
Some use of
proper
spelling,
grammar
and sentence
structure
Occasionally
cited
materials
researched
Considerable
use of proper
spelling,
grammar
and sentence
structure
Most
occasions
cited
materials
researched
Thorough
and effective
use of proper
spelling,
grammar
and sentence
structure
Always cited
materials
researched.
Information
used is
usually
historically
inaccurate or
irrelevant to
assignment.
Content of
cards
Information
used is
seldom
historically
inaccurate or
irrelevant to
assignment.
Content of
cards
Information
used is not
at all
historically
inaccurate or
irrelevant to
assignment.
Content of
cards
MARK
COMMUNICATION
Effective Use of Language
Conventions, Grammar,
Vocabulary, Mechanics
Proper citation of used
materials
/10
KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
Use of Historically
Accurate and Relevant
Information and Depth of
Knowledge
Did not meet
expectations
Information
used is
almost
always
historically
inaccurate or
irrelevant to
assignment.
Content of
cards
demonstrates
demonstrates
demonstrates
some
knowledge of
material
clear
knowledge of
material.
a thorough
knowledge of
unit
material.
The historical
significance
of the events
and issues
covered in
the cards is
limited.
Some of the
historical
significance
of the events
and issues
covered in
the cards are
discussed
A
considerable
amount of
the historical
significance
of the events
and issues
covered in
the cards are
discussed
The historical
significance
of the events
and issues
covered in
the cards are
discussed
with a high
degree of
effectiveness
Attractiveness
The cards
demonstrate
some
attractiveness.
Overall, the
cards
demonstrate
some degree
of
effectiveness
in displaying
and
conveying
information.
The cards
demonstrate
considerable
attractiveness.
Overall, the
cards
demonstrate
a
considerable
degree of
effectiveness
in displaying
and
conveying
information.
The cards
demonstrate
a high
degree of
demonstrates
a limited
knowledge of
the material
/10
THINKING AND INQUIRY
Interpretation of the
Significance of Historical
Events and Issues
Did not meet
expectations
/10
APPLICATION
Layout/Presentation and
Effectiveness, ALL four
cards completed, ALL
four collections
represented
Comments:
Did not meet
expectations
of the cards
is limited.
Overall, the
cards
demonstrate
a limited
degree of
effectiveness
in displaying
and
conveying
information
attractiveness.
Overall, the
cards
demonstrate
a high
degree of
effectiveness
in displaying
and
conveying
information.
/10