Digital Unit Plan Template

Unit Title: Becoming Divided Name: Amanda Ridley

Content Area: Social Science (U.S. History) Grade Level: Eighth
CA Content Standard(s)/Common Core Standard(s):
8.6.1. Discuss the influence of industrialization and technological developments on the region, including human modification of the landscape
and how physical geography shaped human actions (e.g., growth of cities, deforestation, farming, mineral extraction).
8.6.4. Study the lives of black Americans who gained freedom in the North and founded schools and churches to advance their rights and
communities.
8.7.1. Describe the development of the agrarian economy in the South, identify the locations of the cotton-producing states, and discuss the
significance of cotton and the cotton gin.
8.7.2. Trace the origins and development of slavery; its effects on black Americans and on the region’s political, social, religious, economic,
and cultural development; and identify the strategies that were tried to both overturn and preserve it (e.g., through the writings and
historical documents on Nat Turner, Denmark Vesey).
8.7.3 Examine the characteristics of white Southern society and how the physical environment influenced events and conditions
prior to the Civil War.
8.7.4. Compare the lives of and opportunities for free blacks in the North with those of free blacks in the South.
8.10.1. Compare the conflicting interpretations of state and federal authority as emphasized in the speeches and writings of statesmen
such as Daniel Webster and John C. Calhoun.
8.10.2. Trace the boundaries constituting the North and the South, the geographical differences between the two regions, and the differences
between agrarians and industrialists.
8.10.3. Identify the constitutional issues posed by the doctrine of nullification and secession and the earliest origins of that doctrine.

Big Ideas/Unit Goals:

 What did America Pre-Civil War look like?
 How did various areas of the US differ from one another socially and economically and how did the geography of these areas play a
role in these differences?
 How did these differences lead to the Civil War?
 How were decisions made leading up to the war? Could they have been made differently to avoid war or limit the catastrophic effects
of the war?

Unit Summary:
In this unit, students will explore the events leading up to the American Civil War. Students will examine the differences between the North
and the South both socially and geographically. Through teacher lecture via Prezi with guided notes, a webercise that requires students to
explore various websites, and timeline graphic organizer, students will determine how influential each leading factor to the Civil War
was. Students will discuss slavery and the differing views about it and how divisive this topic was (and how it's lasting effects can still be).
Students will learn about key players and influential individuals during this time period and their role in the road to war. Students will
hypothesize how different events could have changed the road to war. At the end of the unit, students should be able to explain how the
United States found itself in a Civil War, what life was like for various individuals before the Civil War, and why people from different parts of
the United States had such distinctively differing views of contemporary ideas and events.

Assessment Plan:
Entry-Level: Formative: Summative:
Brainstorm- what leads to conflict and how Flashcards- what divided the US and Exam- what happened leading up to the Civil
do they escalate? How can an entire country vocabulary War, what could have been done differently,
disagree with itself? Quiz- what divided the US? and why did these actions have such a lasting
Timeline- events leading up to the Civil War impact? This exam has multiple choice,
Map- mapping and comparing the North and multiple answer, and short answer questions
South as well as 2 essay questions to give students
the opportunity to show their understanding.

Lesson 1 (Teacher Lecture)

Student Learning Objective:
After the Prezi, students will be able
to list the differing views within
America before the Civil War.
Students will also be able to identify
varying views held by key players of
the Antebellum Period.
Acceptable Evidence
(Assessments): Students should
be able to fill out the guided notes
accurately. They should be able
to organize and differentiate
between the thoughts of key
players of the time. In addition,
students should correctly label
the map of the United States with
northern states, southern states,
and states that were considered
“boarder states.”
Lesson Activities:
The teacher will lecture with the aid of the “Becoming Divided”
Prezi. Students will follow along with the provided guided
notes. Students should fill out the guided notes as the
information is presented in class. All efforts will be made to
make sure students are given adequate time to fill in their
guided notes, but the Prezi will be posted to the Google
Classroom page after class should any students need or want to
go back and review the information.

Lesson 2 (Webercise/ iPad Lesson)

Student Learning Objective:
Students will be able to explain and
compare what life was like for free
black individuals in both the North
and the South before the Civil War.
They will identify how freed slaves
helped in their communities.
Students will analyze the spread of
slavery as well as the efforts to stop
it. They will examine the effects of
Nullification and illustrate how
succession took place. Throughout
Acceptable Evidence:
Students should be able to
successfully fill out a Venn
Diagram with three points on
both “Northern” and “Southern”
states portions with at least three
additional points in the center
“both” portion. Each “box” has
adequate information retrieved
from the provided websites and
all questions are answered.
Lesson Activities:
Students will work individually. They will be given the
opportunity to explore the provided websites on the Webercise
worksheet. After spending some time on each of the websites,
students will begin to fill out the worksheet by answering the
questions, including what made each of the websites a reliable
source.
the lesson, students will evaluate
their sources.

Lesson 3 (Graphic Organizer)

Student Learning Objective:
Students will be able to create a
timeline that will arrange events that
led to the Civil War. Students will
pick the ten they feel most directly
led to the Civil War. Additionally,
they pick two of their events and
argue how there could have been a
different outcome (like avoiding war
or the war starting sooner) if the
event had not happened.
Acceptable Evidence: Lesson Activities:
Students should be able to Students will work in groups of three to create a timeline. Part
effectively justify their ten events of working in a group will require students to discuss and come
being included in their timeline to an agreement of the ten events they believe are the most
(this will cover the “why” part of critical to the start of the Civil War. Students will be given class
their description). Students time to watch the YouTube video required before they start to
should be able to report on the create their timelines using TimeToast.com per the instructions.
event (the when, who, where, and
what). Students should include
visual aids to help visualize
events. Additionally, for the two
alternative events, students
should be able to defend their
arguments.

Unit Resources:
LOC Daniel Webster
Dartmouth Webster Speeches
LOC Calhoun
History Chanel-American Civil War
Smithsonian-Civil War 150
Nat Turner

Useful Websites:
The South Secedes
1860 Census
NPS Civil War Facts
Causes of the Civil War (PBS)
Causes of the Civil War (Common Lit)
Election of 1860 (YouTube)
Election of 1860 (Common Lit)