Alison+Mayer's+Local+History+Page

=Home > Local History Project > Alison Mayer's Page=

==Learning Activity 8-B-1: Local History Project==

Click here to access Alison Mayer's Local History Project (FINISHED)

==Additional Notes and Resources==

Add any additional notes or sources here.

==Learning Activity 3-D-2: Local Documents, Data, and Cartoons==

__**Documents**__ [] The Ninety-Fourth Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment Collection. The collection's historical sketch reads that this regiment, "was important in that it was comprised entirely of volunteers from McLean County. The response was so great that several companies of McLean County men had to be placed in another regiment." The documents in the collection are varied in nature relating to this volunteer regiment. But the news clippings will be very useful in class. They include articles from the town's newspaper, //The Pantagraph,// which is still around today! Students will see that men from this area had a great impact on the war by using the documents in this collection. Students can select an article to read and complete a SEA sheet and then create a timeline that displays the most important accomplishments of this volunteer infantry regiment during the Civil War.

[] 33rd Illinois Infantry Regiment of Volunteers Company C Collection. The documents in this collection are unique in that this infantry of volunteers was made up primarily of male college students who were attending Illinois State University at the time. The town of Normal is a huge college town today, and ISU makes up a large portion of the people who live here. This collection of documents show that nearly 2/3 of ISU men volunteered to fight for the Union following the Union defeat at the Battle of Bull Run in 1961. That fact shows how dedicated to the cause the men of this town had been during this war (unlike today). Students can conduct research on ISU's current ROTC program and create a pamphlet that would encourage prospective ISU students to join the program.

[] Kent Slack 33rd Illinois Infantry Research Collection. This collection consists of additional information about the 33rd Infantry Regiment of Volunteers (above) and includes //Pantagraph// newspaper articles, which are much more student-friendly for using in the classroom. Students can analyze an article of their choosing, then write an original article of their own that would showcase to readers what the current Illinois National Guard unit out of McLean County is doing for the country.

[] The Underground Railroad in McLean County primary source collection. This collection is made up primarily of newspaper articles which detail the role of the Underground Railroad here in McLean County. There are editorials from the time period which provide students with an understanding of how the people of McLean County felt about helping freed slaves. There are also articles that detail specific events that happened regarding the hiding of African-Americans and what happened as a result of discovery. I like that this collection is not so much about the soldiers, but is about the decisions made by civilian citizens to help the abolition effort. Students can analyze an article of their choosing and then find a modern article that displays civilians of McLean county supporting the war effort in their own way.

[] The Emancipation Proclamation. This transcription of Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation is useful for this project because it shows that Lincoln didn't actually free any slaves. A common misunderstanding about the Civil War is that it was fought to free slaves and that Lincoln freed them all. In fact, this document shows that Lincoln freed no slaves under his own control. He "freed" the slaves in the Southern states, which were not controlled by Lincoln at the time because those states had seceeded, but he did not "free" the slaves in the border states, which were actually still part of the Union and under Lincoln's control! Students can fill out an NARA sheet to (hopefully) realize these facts on their own after carefully analyzing the document themselves.

@http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/primarysources/lincolninaugural1.html @http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/primarysources/davisinaugural1.html Students can use NARA sheets to analyze the transcriptions of Abraham Lincoln's and Jefferson Davis' First Inaugural Addresses. Then they can compare and contrast the messages and intentions of both men as stated in their speeches to explore how the Union and Confederacy both viewed the upcoming war.

@http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/csa_csapro.asp Students can use a SEA sheet to analyze this transciption of the Confederate States of America Constitution and then compare and contrast it with the Constitution of the United States. Students can then create their own Consitution pretending they have just rebelled against the teachers in the school and get to decide their own rules.

__**Political Cartoons**__ [] “Breaking that Backbone” political cartoon. This political cartoon shows the confidence of the Union to beat the Confederate rebellion during the Civil War. I would like to use it because it focuses less on the soldiers (as the document sources do) and more on the overall war as seen by the government. Even though the cartoonist at the time did not know it, he did acurately depict how the Union ending up winning the Civil War, and how Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation really was a key factor in "breaking the backbone" of the Confederate rebellion. Students can find a modern political cartoon that similarly uses symbolism to display weaknesses of enemies in a modern conflict and then compare and contrast the two cartoons.

[] “Southern Volunteers” political cartoon. This political cartoon depicts men who are less than desirable soldiers being forced to serve in the Confederate Army due to a draft. I would use this political cartoon in the project because it demonstrates that the South had trouble finding soldiers during the Civil War. This source contrasts some of my document sources which show details of army regiments in the Union who were proud to volunteer and serve in the Union. This could help show students why the Union had an advantage over the Confederacy that may have helped them win the war. Students can find a modern political cartoon that similarly uses symbolism to show the power of the United States over an enemy and then compare and contrast the two cartoons.

Learning Activity 4-D-1: Local Photos and Posters
__**Photographs**__ [] Portrait of Pvt. Charles H. Halstead and unidentified soldier, Company A, 52nd Illinois Infantry. This photo shows students just how young the men from Illinois were when they served the Union army. Students can reserach data on the average age of Civil War soldiers and also that of modern U.S. soldiers and compare and contrast their findings.

@http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/cwar:@field(NUMBER+@band(cwp+4a40904)) Portrait of Sgt. James W. Travis, 38th Illinois Volunteer Infantry. Students can write a fictional letter pretending to be Sgt. Travis writing home to his family in Illlinois that also demonstrates an understanding of the life of a soldier in the Civil War.

@http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/cwar:@field(NUMBER+@band(cwp+4a39540)) Antietam, Md. Gen. Randolph B. Marcy with officers and civilians at Army of the Potomac headquarters This photo is interesting because it shows the tents where soldiers slept and it looks like it has some of the features and flaws of the panoramic camera. It is worth having students observe it with a SEA sheet and come up with a list of questions about why the photo is the way that it is, especially with a "ghost-looking" figure in the middle between the tents!

[] This site depicts many Civil War photographs, but what is unique about it is that it allows students to use "3-D" glasses to view the "stereoview" photography style of the 19th century to view the photos! I think it is worth using at least a few of these photos as an opportunity to discuss what the photography technology was like during the Civil war. Students can reserach photography technology during the time period and explain their findings in a written paragraph.

hhttp://www.archives.gov/research/military/civil-war/photos/images/civil-war-186.jpg This picture of Stephen Douglas will remind students that local politicians from Illinois played a large part in the events leading up to the Civil War. Students can research more about local politicians who they think should campaign for the presidency and create a poster supporting them.

@http://www.civilwar.si.edu/weapons_intro.html This Smithsonian collection of pictures shows and describes different weapons used by soldiers during the Civil War. Students can view the collection, conduct research on modern day weapons used by ground soldiers, and create a PowerPoint displaying and describing those weapons in a similar format used by the Smithsonian.

@http://ehistory.osu.edu/osu/maps/imageviewz.cfm?id=5 Students can analyze this picture named "dead soldiers" from the battle of Antietam using a SEA sheet. Then studetns can research the procedures agreed upon by both sides following battles to properly honor the fallen soldiers. Next, students can write an obituary for a soldier who died in Antietam as if it were going to be written for a local newspaper where that soldier was from.

[] This is a poster that adverstises Abraham Lincoln for President with Vice President Hannibal Hamlin back in1860. Students canc compare and contrast this campaign poster to those of today to see how different and similar they are.
 * __Posters__**

[] This is a recruitment broadside aimed at persuading African American men to join the army. This document is significant because it relates to the effect of the Emancipation Proclamation, and shows the efforts of the government to provide equal pay to black soldiers. Students can compare and contrast this recruitment effort with those of today to get citizens to join the armed forces. They can then create their own recruitment poster that will be graded on its level of persuasiveness.

==Learning Activity 5-D-1: Local Audio and Music==

@http://www.civilwarmusic.net/display_song.php?song=battlehymn This song with lyrics is called "Battle Hymn of the Republic." Students can analyze this sound recording using a SEA sheet and then find a song from another conflict where God is invoked as a force to help the United States win a war.
 * __Music__**

@http://www.civilwarmusic.net/musicfiles/godsave.mp3 This sheet music was written in 1863 and is called "God Save the South!" The lyrics say "freedom or die" several times, which is reminiscent of when the British colonists revolted against the British empire with sayings like "give me liberty or give me death." Students may see an empathetic connection with the South for the first time ever by reading the lyrics of this song. To see this connections, studetns can analyze these lyrics with an SEA sheet and compare and contrast the ideas of the song with those of writings from Thomas Paine around the time of the Revolutionary War.

@http://webapp1.dlib.indiana.edu/inharmony/detail.do?action=detail&fullItemID=/lilly/devincent/LL-SDV-106060&queryNumber=10 This sheet music is for an 1862 Union song called "Battle Cry for Freedom." It refers to how Americans have rallied around the flag before and are willing to do it again for the Civil War." Students can analyze these lyrics with an SEA sheet and find a more modern song that shows a similar attitude about "rallying together."
 * __Sheet Music__**

@http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/hasm_n1463/ This battle hymn, "God Save the Nation" was written in 1862 and is biased towards the North. Students can analyze these lyrics with an SEA sheet and find a more modern song that displays a bias supporting the war effort of a more modern conflict.

@http://dc.lib.unc.edu/u?/sheetmusic,26420 "To Volunteer, Or Is It My Country's Call" is an 1861 war song from the North. This piece demonstrates propaganda through the media and the use of song to instill patriotism into Americans in the North and gain more troops to fight the South. Students can analyze these lyrics with an SEA sheet and find other historical songs from other conflicts that were created to promote American patriotism.

[]@http://dc.lib.unc.edu/u?/sheetmusic,20392 This sheet music, "The Confederate Flag! National Air. Written by Mrs. C. D. Elder, of New Orleans, Music Composed and most respectfully Dedicated to His Excellency President Jefferson Davis, by Sig. G. George" was written in 1861 and can be used with students to show the southern bias and support of the Confederacy. Students can analyze these lyrics with an SEA sheet and find a more modern song that has been created to gather support for a revolution.

==Learning Activity 6-D-1: Local Video and Maps==

@http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=79776&title=Civil_War_Uniform___Pants_Shoes_ This video shows students what Union soldiers in the Civil War wore for pants and shoes. It also explains the purpose of each of those parts to help soldiers. Students could compare and contrast the apparel shown in the video with a uniform from a current soldier to show how much technology has changed to help soldiers in battle.
 * __Videos__**

[] This animated video summarizes the basic information about the Civil War in a very student-friendly manner. During the video students can fill out the provided graphic organizers, and after the video they can take the quiz as a formative assessment to see if they understand the general information about the war.

@http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/firstmanassas/first-manassas-maps/bull-run-animated-map/bull-run-animated-map.html This animated map details the Battle of Bull Run. Technically it is a video, but it details the strategies and movements of those involved in the battle in chronological order. So cool! For students who are not familiar with military strategy (which is most of them), this video can help them visually understand how the battle unfolded, which helps describe the military strategy of the time period as a whole. Students could compare and contrast the strategies shown in this map with those of a more recent battle.
 * __Video/Map (Animated Maps)__**

@http://civilwaranimated.com/causes-of-the-war This animated map shows the causes of the Civil War in chrnological order, using only a changing map of the United States overalyed with text boxes and pictures to explain each the significance of each event leading up to the start of the Civil War. This is also essential background information for students. After viewing the animation, students can create a poster timeline that details the important events leading up to the start of the Civil War to demonstrate their understandng of the animation.

@http://www.loc.gov/rr/geogmap/placesinhistory/archive/2011/20110711_extrasessionofcongress.html This map of the United States was made in 1861 after an extra session of Congress where Lincoln called for more troops to fight for the Union. The map shows showing the forts, railroads, and waterways to allow the governmnet to see all of the resources available for the war effort. Students can use this to see how many resources the Union had before looking at the resources of the Confederacy. Students will see how much of an advantage the Union had of the Confederacy. Students can compare and contrast this map with a more current map to see what resources the United States currently has as its disposal.
 * __Maps__**

@http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/gmd:@field(NUMBER+@band(g3701s+cw0057000)) This U.S. map is of secession from 1860-1861. It shows free states, slave states, border states, and territories in the west. Students can use this map to see which states were on which side of the Civil War. This is essential background information to understanding this war. Students can answer basic comprehension questions about this map to show that they know the difference between Union States, Border States, and Confederate States.