Defining US: The American Experience
FCPS Teaching American History Grant
LESSON PLAN
Subject: Slavery in Virginia
Grade: 4
Prepared by: Ann Godden and Joni Coutry
School: Herndon Elementary
Title or Topic: Slavery in Virginia
Instructional Time: One class period
PART I -CONTEXT
1. Essential Learning:
Students will use primary sources to analyze the effects plantation life and slavery had on
Colonial Virginia.
2. Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL):
VS4a- Student will demonstrate knowledge of life in the Virginia Colony by explaining
importance of agriculture and its influence on the institution of slavery.
VS1a– The student will develop skills for historical and geographical analysis including the
ability to identify and interpret primary source documents to understand events in history.
3. Fairfax County Program of Studies (POS):
Standard 1, Benchmark 1, Indicator b: Describe the social, political and economic life of
groups of Virginians throughout history.
Standard 1, Benchmark 2, Indicator b: Discuss the roles and contributions of ordinary
Virginians, including women and minorities, from 1607 to the present.
Standard 2, Benchmark 1, Indicator b: Use print materials, films, news sources, databases,
and interviews to research social studies concepts.
Standard 2, Benchmark 2, Indicator f: Identify cause and effect relationships with the context
of Virginia’s historical events.
Standard 7, Benchmark 1, Indicator b: Describe the role of agriculture in the Virginia colony
and its impact on the institution of slavery.
4. National History Standard
2. Historical Comprehension
3. Historical analysis and interpretation
4. Historical research capabilities
5. Historical issues-analysis and decision making.
5.
Learning Strategy(s) Objectives:
2. Make predictions
3. Making Inferences
4. Selective Attention
5. Use resources
8. Use/create graphic organizers
9. Take notes
10. Cooperate
6. Connection to TAH grant:
Content: Slavery, Thomas Jefferson
Pedagogy: Using primary sources to teach
PART II.
1. Assessment:
Children will share notes on chart paper from each group. Teacher observation. If time allows,
have children do a “sketch to stretch” activity. This is where groups of four or five children
draw pictures and words to depict how they interpret the life of a slave and/or a slave owner,
such as Thomas Jefferson. Each group should use one large sheet of newsprint to sketch their
pictures, and they may interpret slavery through their drawings and phrases. When the sketches
are finished, one person from the group shares their sketches with the class.
2. Instructional Strategies:
Opener/Teacher presentation – Show picture of tobacco plantation on TV monitor or overhead
projector. To help focus discussion, you may use the photo analysis worksheet from the
National Archives website or simply use questioning techniques. Remind students that primary
source documents, pictures, or artifacts help us understand and interpret events in history. Tell
children you will show a picture of a tobacco plantation which was used on the front page of the
Federalist papers in Colonial times. Tap into their background knowledge by asking leading
questions such as:
 When and why slaves were brought to this country.
 Why did the Virginia Colony need slaves?
 When did they bring slaves to Virginia? What crop was being grown in Virginia that
required slave labor?
Show picture from Internet on television monitor or make a transparency for the overhead
projector. Discuss picture with class. Ask children to point out details they notice by describing
what they see in picture.
Student Activity: Explain that you are giving each student a copy of an actual advertisement
that Thomas Jefferson placed in the newspaper when one of his slaves ran away.
Student Activities: Pass out the advertisements to each group member. Provide each group with
chart paper and markers and have students chose a group scribe. Direct student to make a
vertical fold in the chart paper.
 Have students read the primary source document in their groups.
 Model how students should divide the chart paper into two columns.
 In one column students should write everything they learned about the slave from the
advertisement.
 In the other column have students write down everything they learned about Thomas
Jefferson from reading the advertisement.
When students are working in groups, the teacher’s role is facilitator.
Suggested follow up:
To further explore and understand the concept of slavery, have students read the novel Meet
Addy by Connie Porter. This is a fourth grade historical fiction novel about a young slave girl
and her family and the problems they encounter. There is a nonfiction section at the end of the
book describing facets of slave life.
3. Materials/Resources to be used:
Display picture on your television monitor, or overhead.
Copies of advertisement for each student.
Chart papers and markers.
Photo Analysis Worksheet from the National Archives
4. Differentiation:
GT: Have students pretend they are a plantation owner and write an advertisement for a
runaway slave.
ESOL/LD: Make a drawing of a slave on a plantation and write a sentence or two
describing picture. Paired reading of ad for Thomas Jefferson’s runaway slave.
5.
Attachments:
 Picture of tobacco plantation-obtained from http://www.tax.org/Museum/1777-1815.htm

Advertisement for runaway slave
6. Annotated Bibliography:
 The Story of Virginia: An American Experience. Virginia Historical Society.
Compiled by Gwynn R. Litchfield. Page 46. Collection of primary source documents,
pictures, and a history of Virginia.

Website: http://www.tax.org/Museum/1777-1815.htm A virtual museum of United States
tax history.

Website for photo analysis worksheet:
http://www.archives.gov/digital_classroom/lessons/analysis_worksheets/photo.html

Porter, Connie. Meet Addy; Pleasant Company, 1993. ISBN: 1-56247-075-2 This is
a fourth grade historical fiction novel about a young slave girl and her family and the
problems they encounter. The book helps students to further explore and understand the
concept of slavery. There is a nonfiction section at the end of the book describing facets
of slave life
ATTACHMENT:
Advertisement for runaway slave
Picture of tobacco plantation
http://www.tax.org/Museum/1777-1815.htm -