7-12 Lesson Plans (Civil War Period)

Andre Jomini - Civil War Battle Strategies

This lesson covers the military tactics that the Union and Confederate officers used in fighting the Civil War through analyzing how the tactics of Andre Jomini influenced the philosophical foundations of the tactics at taught at West Point Military Academy by General Henry Wager Halleck by 1846.  The students will simulate a battle using Jomini’s tactics and those of General Grant assess the advantages of each. 

Fourteenth Amendment

Students will examine the wide-ranging significance of the Fourteenth Amendment and work cooperatively to see how it impact landmark court cases of the 19th and 20th centuries.

Impeachment of Andrew Johnson

In this lesson students will assume roles in the U.S. House of Representatives and take part in a simulated debate in which they will rule on the legitimacy of the proceedings surrounding President Johnson’s impeachment.

New Jersey’s Civil War Heroes Come to Life

This lesson will examine the contributions that the men from New Jersey made to the Union forces during the Civil War.  It will also require the students to present their research through role-playing to a larger assembly of peers.  This lesson plan will also satisfy New Jersey state history requirements.

Jackson and Longstreet

Students will examine sources to conduct research on the lives of Confederate Generals James Longstreet & Thomas Jackson. As the previous night’s homework, they will be assigned a reading and provided some Internet source addresses to conduct research. Students should come to class with notes regarding the generals’ backgrounds. In class students will create Venn diagrams, comparing the generals and answer questions regarding military leadership and their legacies.    

Jefferson Davis

Students will be exploring one man’s view of the role of the South during the Civil War – the Confederacy’s only president, Jefferson Davis. A series of primary documents (his speeches and letters) will guide students through his peaks and valleys as Confederate president. This lesson will be primarily delivered through cooperative learning; notably, a jigsaw activity will allow students to analyze seven primary documents. For this lesson it would be ideal if each group had access to a computer – otherwise the teacher will have to do a good deal of printing and duplicating.

Battle of Vicksburg

An assessment of the importance of Vicksburg to the Union cause; the difference between a ‘battle’ and a ‘siege’; an evaluation of Vicksburg as a turning point in the war; the war’s effect on citizens.

General McClellan

Students act as historical “jurists” in deciding General McClellan’s place in history.  Students synthesize, analyze and evaluate McClellan’s role in the Civil War.

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