Beginning Reconstruction

In order to facilitate our look at the period of Reconstruction following the Civil War, we will be completing this web activity: Reconstruction Web Activity. The full activity will be due before class on Tuesday, 12/1. In order to pace your in class and out of class work for the Monday when you come back after Thanksgiving, you should follow this suggested sequence . Complete Sections 1 and 2 for class on Monday.  Then, in class on Monday, you will do sections 3 and 4 , then 5-7 for homework on Monday night.  

And here is a Thanksgiving message from Abraham Lincoln (click on the link below the image for the full text):

Proclamation of Thanksgiving

Total War

Today, in honor of the 152nd anniversary of Lincoln's delivery of the Gettysburg Address, we'll begin class by hearing the new version of it that we created at the end of class yesterday.
We'll then follow the progression of the war by watching two additional episodes of Ken Burns' documentary; Can Those Be Men and Sherman's March. We'll take notes using yesterday's study guide and then discuss the concept of "total war".
We'll finish by evaluating Lincoln's 2nd Inaugural Address, using this WORKSHEET to do so.

Gettysburg

Today we'll explore the meaning and legacy of the Battle of Gettysburg . We'll start by finishing our look at Frederick Douglass' Men of Color to Arms. We'll then review the information about the Battle of Gettysburg from your homework from today. We'll take a look at the episode Bottom Rail on Top from the Ken Burns' documentary, using this STUDY GUIDE to take notes. We'll finish by exploreing how Lincoln addressed all of these issues by focusing on his Gettysburg Address. We'll use this worksheet to do so: Gettysburg Address Worksheet.

**Note-as you continue to prep your Lincoln essay, you should also be studying for next week's test. Here is a study guide to focus your work. Antebellum/Civil War Test Study Guide

Emancipation

Today we'll begin with a short look at Sullivan Ballou's letter to his wife prior to the Battle of Bull Run.
Then we'll work to trace Lincoln's ideas as they lead up to the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation. We'll look at the documents that you annotated for today by following the questions listed in the Lincoln Worksheet 2 that we started in class yesterday. We'll look at the section The Higher Object from Ken Burns' Civil War documentary in order to help frame our look at the Emancipation Proclamation. If time, we'll explore Frederick Douglass' response to it by reading Men of Color to Arms and answering the questions about it.

The Cause of the War

Today we'll finish our look at Lincoln's First Inaugural Address. When finished, students will submit their Lincoln Speeches Worksheet to turnitin.com.
We'll then spend some time reviewing important facts and details from Foner before taking a closer look at the documents that you annotated for today. To do so, we'll work through this worksheet together. Lincoln Worksheet 2.

John Brown and the Election of Abraham Lincoln

After watching the episode The Meteor from Ken Burns' Civil War documentary, we took a reading quiz on John Brown's last statement to the court.
We then watched the episode Secessionitis from the documentary, exploring the events immediately leading up to the Civil War.
We'll use this STUDY GUIDE to take notes during the film segments today.
We closed class by taking a closer look at Lincoln's First Inaugural Address.

Abraham Lincoln, Stephen Douglas and the Politics of Slavery (1858)

Now that we are grounded in the judicial (Dred Scott) and political (Compromise of 1850-Kansas/Nebraska Act) issues surrounding slavery in the 1850s, it's time to move to an examination of the debate through the lens of the actual senatorial campaign debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas in 1858.  First, review the CONTEXT of each document.  Make sure you understand that, and then make your own copy of this document: Lincoln Speeches Questions, then follow the instructions in the document.  You are to complete the questions on the "House Divided" Speech and the excerpts from the Lincoln-Douglas debates during class today.  The questions for the First Inaugural Address are for Monday.  

Dred Scott

Today in class we reviewed the Kansas-Nebraska Act by looking at the first half of the Crash Course on the Election of 1860. We then took a closer look at the Dred Scott decision that students prepared for class today, first by tracing the progression of the case in the courts and then by taking a closer look at the Supreme Court's Majority Decision, identifying the questions being asked, the holdings, and then looking carefully at the reasoning.

Fugitive Slaves

Today, we'll be trying to make some conclusions about the risks that slaves took and the methods they used when attempting to escape.
To do so, we are going to examine Sydney Howard Gay's Record of Fugitives using this worksheet to keep track of what you discover.
We'll then take a look at the impact of the fugitive slave law of 1850 by watching the story of Anthony Burns from Africans in America: Judgment Day.

Your groups/partners for today are:
Group 1: Eli, Zoe, Allison
Group 2: Jesus, Charlie, Matt
Group 3: Seth, Alina, Gil
Group 4: Aaron, Isabel, Miles
Group 5: Sarah, Luke, Mackenzie
Group 6: Andrew, Zach, Anthony
Group 7: Dani, Will
Group 8: Hope, Meshi

Compromises over Slavery?

Can a compromise be constructed over the moral and legal question of slavery? Is it possible to compromise over such an issue?  These are the questions that the United States was struggling with since its inception.
Today we will review the attempts at compromise over slavery beginning with the Constitution and continuing through the Missouri Compromise and into the Compromise of 1850. We'll consider the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 and if time, watch an additional excerpt of Africans in America: Judgment Day, using this study guide for notes.

HW due tomorrow is to read and take notes from Foner 378-the top of 390.