The Civil War Experience – A Child’s Diary
Sue Pulido
Bloomington Jr. High School
Summer 2006
Library of Congress, American Women: A Gateway to
Library of Congress Resources for the Study of Women’s
History and Culture in the United States,
Reproduction number (LC-B8171-2405 DLC)
Students will read The Drummer Boy of Shiloh and An Episode of War. Students will
view and respond to photos from the Library of Congress.
Overview/ Materials/LOC Resources/Standards/ Procedures/Evaluation/Rubric/Handouts/Extension
Overview
Objectives
Recommended time frame
Grade level
Curriculum fit
Materials
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Students will:
 compare and contrast and place in a venn diagram
the mood and tone of The Drummer Boy of Shiloh
and An Episode of War.
 compile in a Venn diagram the effects of the Civil
War on adults and children’s lives.
 view, select, and analyze a Civil War child’s picture
from the Library of Congress creating a week long
diary.
Six 40 minute class periods
8th grade
Language Arts
 Bradbury Ray, The Drummer Boy of Shiloh New
Jersey: Prentice Hall, Inc., 2000
 Crane Stephen, An Episode of War New Jersey:
Prentice Hall, Inc., 2000
 Mood Venn Diagram
 Effects Venn Diagram
 Civil War Photo Gallery
 Tone Venn Diagram
An Adventure of the American Mind
Illinois State University
Illinois State Learning Standards
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Language Arts:
GOAL 1: Read with understanding and fluency.
 1.B. Apply reading strategies to improve
understanding and fluency.
o 1.B.3c Continuously check and clarify for
understanding (e.g., in addition to previous skills, draw
comparisons to other readings).
o 1.B.3d Read age-appropriate material with
fluency and accuracy.
 1.C. Comprehend a broad range of reading materials.
o 1.C.3c Compare, contrast and evaluate ideas
and information from various sources and
genres.
GOAL 2: Read and understand literature
representative of various societies, eras and ideas.
 2.A. Understand how literary elements and
techniques are used to convey meaning.
o 2.A.3d Identify ways that an author uses
language structure, word choice and style to
convey the author’s viewpoint.
 2.B. Read and interpret a variety of literary works.
o 2.B.3a Respond to literary material from
personal, creative and critical points of view.
o 2.B.3c Analyze how characters in literature
deal with conflict, solve problems and relate
to real-life situations.
GOAL 3: Write to communicate for a variety of
purposes.
 3.B. Compose well-organized and coherent writing
for specific purposes and audiences.
o 3.B.3a Produce documents that convey a
clear understanding and interpretation of
ideas and information and display focus,
organization, elaboration and coherence.
Procedures
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Day One:
 Introduce The Drummer Boy of Shiloh and the
author Ray Bradbury.
 Discuss background information about the Civil
War and drummer boys.
 Review the literary elements of mood and tone.
 Read the Drummer Boy of Shiloh out loud.
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Illinois State University


Discuss the setting, images, dialogue and plot – the
devices used to create mood.
Discuss the language and rhythm of the speaker –
the devices used to convey tone.
Day Two:
 Review The Drummer Boy of Shiloh story –
including: setting, images, dialogue and plot – the
devices used to create mood and the language and
rhythm of the speaker – the devices used to convey
tone.
 Read An Episode of War out loud.
 Discuss the setting, images, dialogue and plot – the
devices used to create mood.
 Discuss the language and rhythm of the speaker –
the devices used to convey tone.
Day Three:
 Review An Episode of War and The Drummer Boy
of Shiloh stories – including: setting, images,
dialogue and plot – the devices used to create mood
and the language and rhythm of the speaker – the
devices used to convey tone.
 Introduce the venn diagrams for mood and tone.
 As a class brainstorm two ideas for each of the venn
diagrams.
 Students work in groups of two to complete the venn
diagrams for mood and tone.
 Students share their venn diagrams with the class by
writing their responses on the smart board.
.
.
Day Four:
 Review An Episode of War and The Drummer Boy
of Shiloh stories.
 Discuss the reactions and feelings of the characters
in the stories.
 Introduce the Effects of the Civil War venn diagram.
 As a class brainstorm two ideas for the venn
diagram.
 Students work in groups of two to complete the venn
diagrams for the effects of the Civil War on adults
and children.
 Students share their venn diagrams with the class by
writing their responses on the smart board.
An Adventure of the American Mind
Illinois State University
Day Five:
 Introduce the photo gallery to students.
 Model how to use the links to get to the Library of
Congress site.
 Discuss citations and demonstrate how to use the
site.
 Students will select and analyze a Civil War child’s
picture from the photo gallery.
 Students will become the child in the picture and
describe the events of their day in their diary. They
will include the events around them, their thoughts
and feelings about the battles, thoughts about their
family, and their hopes and fears in all five entries.
 Students will write five diary entries. Will finish the
activity as homework.
Day Six:
 Students will share their diaries with the class.
Evaluation
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




Extension
Formative assessment mood
Formative assessment tone
Formative assessment effects of Civil War on
children
Summative assessment on mood, tone and effects of
Civil War on children
Diary entry rubric
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Students will continue and expand the discussion in
history class about the effect of the Civil War.
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Illinois State University
Primary Resources from the Library of Congress
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Civil War Resource Table
IMAGE/RESOURCE
DESCRIPTION
CITATION
Image of a boy standing
with rifles and a drum in
a room in Chicago,
Illinois, as part of Civil
War reenactments on
the 50th anniversary of
the war, with events
sponsored by the
Chicago Daily News
held in Grant Park in
Chicago, Illinois.
An article related to this
photonegative taken by a
Chicago Daily News
photographer was published in
the newspaper on April 3,
1911, last edition, pages 1-2.
Capt. H. Smith's
mess, Co. D, 93 N.
Y. V., Bealton, Va.
August, 1863
[Stereograph]
Series: Photographic
incidents of the war.,
218
Civil War Treasures
from the New-York
Historical Society
DIGITAL ID
nhnycw/ad ad30022
http://memory.loc.gov/
cgibin/query/r?ammem/c
wnyhs:@field(DOCID
+@lit(ad30022))
Bringing in the
wounded.
[Stereograph]
Civil War Treasures
from the New-York
Historical Society
DIGITAL ID
nhnycw/ad ad43006
http://memory.loc.gov/
cgibin/query/r?ammem/c
wnyhs:@field(DOCID
+@lit(ad43006))
Hand-colored view
of soldiers and
African-American
man sitting around a
dinner table eating.
Roche, Thomas C.,
d.1895
Civil War Treasures
from the New-York
Historical Society
DIGITAL ID
nhnycw/ad ad03012
http://memory.loc.gov/
cgibin/query/r?ammem/c
wnyhs:@field(DOCID
+@lit(ad03012))
DN-0056879, Chicago
Daily News negatives
collection, Chicago
Historical Society.
URL
http://memory.loc.gov/
cgibin/query/r?ammem/cd
n:@field(NUMBER+
@band(ichicdn+n0568
79))
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Illinois State University
April 1862 -- The
Battle of Shiloh. On
April 6, Confederate forces
attacked Union forces
under General Ulysses S.
Grant at Shiloh,
Tennessee. By the end of
the day, the federal troops
were almost defeated. Yet,
during the night,
reinforcements arrived,
and by the next morning
the Union commanded the
field. When Confederate
forces retreated, the
exhausted federal forces
did not follow. Casualties
were heavy -- 13,000 out
of 63,000 Union soldiers
died, and 11,000 of 40,000
Confederate troops were
killed.
Hand-colored view
of a group of
soldiers sitting
around make-shift
dining table with
drums and flag
hanging from the
trees in the
background.
Washington, D.C.
Drum Corps of 10th
Veteran Reserve
Corps at leisure.
Library of Congress,
Prints & Photographs
Division,
LC-USZC4-1910 (color
film copy transparency)
DIGITAL ID: (color
film copy transparency)
cph 3g01910
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pn
p/cph.3g01910
Roche, Thomas C.,
d.1895
Series: War views,
Army of the Potomac.,
2051
Civil War Treasures
from the New-York
Historical Society
DIGITAL ID
nhnycw/ad ad03010
Forms part of Selected
Civil War photographs,
1861-1865 (Library of
Congress
Library of Congress,
Prints & Photographs
Division
LC-DIG-cwpb-04139
DLC (digital file from
original neg.)
http://memory.loc.gov/
ammem/cwphtml/tl186
2.html
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req(@field(NUMBER
+@band(cph+3a07069
))+@field(COLLID+p
ga))
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wnyhs:@field(DOCID
+@lit(ad03010))
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war:@field(NUMBER
+@band(cwp+4a4017
7))
http://www.loc.gov/sh
op/index.php?action=c
Catalog.showItem&cid
=14&scid=235&iid=3
260
An Adventure of the American Mind
Illinois State University
Soldiers of the 7th
New York State
Militia relaxing
outside tent.
Civil War Treasures
from the New-York
Historical Society
DIGITAL ID
nhnycw/ad ad03002
http://memory.loc.g
ov/ammem/ndlpcoo
p/nhihtml/cwnyhsho
me.html
Photograph from
the main eastern
theater of the war,
Gettysburg, JuneJuly, 1863.
Civil War photographs,
1861-1865 / compiled
by Hirst D. Milhollen
and Donald H.
Mugridge, Washington,
D.C.
http://memory.loc.gov/
cgibin/query/r?ammem/c
wnyhs:@field(DOCID
+@lit(ad03002))
http://memory.loc.gov/
cgibin/query/r?ammem/c
war:@field(NUMBER
+@band(cwp+4a4013
8))
Library of Congress,
Prints & Photographs
Division, LC-DIGcwpb-04048 DLC
(digital file from
original neg)
Woman with sleeves
rolled up holding
basket, posed in front of
tent with a soldier
(possibly her husband)
and three children,
other soldiers in the
background.
Library of Congress,
American Women: A
Gateway to
Library of Congress
Resources for the Study
of Women’s
History and Culture in
the United States,
Reproduction number
(LC-B8171-2405 DLC)
http://memory.loc.gov/
cgibin/query/r?ammem/a
whbib:@field(NUMB
ER+@od1(cph+3g079
83))
An Adventure of the American Mind
Illinois State University
Assessment
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Name:__________________
Date:___________________
Class Period:_____________
The Drummer Boy of Shiloh / An Episode of War Assessment
Describe the mood of The Drummer Boy of Shiloh.
Describe the mood of An Episode of War.
List any similarities of mood between the two stories.
Describe the tone of The Drummer Boy of Shiloh.
Describe the tone of An Episode of War.
List any similarities of tone between the two stories.
Describe five effects the Civil War had on children.
An Adventure of the American Mind
Illinois State University
Mood
The Drummer Boy Of Shiloh/An Episode of War
Mood – Mood, or atmosphere, is the feeling created in the reader by a literary work.
Devices used to create mood are: images, dialogue, setting and plot.
After reading The Drummer Boy of Shiloh and An Episode of War compare and contrast the mood of these
short stories. Label one circle for each story. The overlapping (center) part of the diagram is for
similarities you found between the two sources.
This page is from: www.2Learn.ca's Tools: Graphic Organizers - Venn Diagrams
http://http://www.2Learn.ca/construct/graphicorg/venn/vennindex.html
After creating this diagram what statement can you make about the
mood of these two stories.
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An Adventure of the American Mind
Illinois State University
Students Name:_______________________
Date:_______________________
Class Period:_______________________
A Child’s Civil War Diary Entries Rubric
Excellent
Very in depth
comments for
all
4 points
Feelings about
the battles and
events around
them
Thoughts about
their family
Their hopes
Their fears
Five journal
entries
Total Points
20 points
possible
Good
Good in depth
comments for
most
3 points
Fair
Limited in
depth
comments for
some
2 points
Poor
Little in depth
comments for
few
1 points
Effects
The Drummer Boy Of Shiloh/An Episode of War
The effects of the Civil War on adults and children’s lives.
After reading The Drummer Boy of Shiloh and An Episode of War compare and contrast the effect of the
Civil War on adults and children. Label one for child and one for adult. The overlapping (center) part of
the diagram is for similarities you found between the two sources.
After creating this diagram what statement can you make about the effects of the Civil
War on adults and children.
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
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Photo Gallery
Civil War Photo Gallery
Review the photos below. To see an enlarged version follow the directions to click on the URL which
will take you to the Library of Congress site? Select and analyze a Civil War child’s picture from this
group. Become the child in the picture and describe the events of your day in your diary. Be sure to
include the events around you, your thoughts and feelings about the battles, thoughts about your family,
and your hopes and fears. Write five diary entries.
.
DN-0056879, Chicago Daily
News negatives collection,
Civil War Treasures from the
New-York Historical Society
Series: Photographic incidents of
the war., 218
Roche, Thomas C., d.1895
Series: War views, Army of
the Civil War Treasures from
the New-York Historical
Society Potomac., 2056
Roche, Thomas C., d.1895
Series: War views, Army of the Potomac., 2051
Civil War Treasures from the New-York
Historical Society
http://memory.loc.g
ov/cgibin/query/r?ammem
/cdn:@field(NUMB
ER+@band(ichicdn
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eld(DOCID+@lit(ad03010))
Roche, Thomas C., d.1895
Series: War views, Army of
the Potomac., 2051
Civil War Treasures from the
New-York Historical Society
Reference: Civil War
photographs, 1861-1865 /
compiled by Hirst D. Milhollen
and Donald H. Mugridge,
Washington, D.C. : Library of
Congress, 1977. No. 0793
Published in: American
women : a Library of
Congress guide for the study
of women's history and
culture in the United States /
edited by Sheridan Harvey ...
[et al.]. Washington : Library
of Congress, 2001, p. xxx.
Copyright by L. Prang & Co., Boston.
http://memory.loc.gov
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+@field(COLLID+pga))
Chicago Historical Society.
"Fac-simile print by L. Prang & Co."
Tone
The Drummer Boy Of Shiloh/An Episode of War
Tone – The tone is the writer’s attitude toward the readers and toward the subject,
conveyed by the language and rhythm of the speaker.
After reading The Drummer Boy of Shiloh and An Episode of War compare and contrast the tone of these
short stories. Label one circle for each story. The overlapping (center) part of the diagram is for
similarities you found between the two sources.
This page is from: www.2Learn.ca's Tools: Graphic Organizers - Venn Diagrams
http://http://www.2Learn.ca/construct/graphicorg/venn/vennindex.html
After creating this diagram what statement can you make about the tone of these two
stories.
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
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