Freedom Voices: Abolition and Suffrage in the United States

Overview:

Few would deny the importance of women in securing the rights of Africans in 19th and 20th century America. These women often discovered how few rights they were afforded as they fought for the rights of others. This lesson will utilize video from the American Experience miniseries "The Lincolns: A House Divided" to investigate the co-evolution of two revolutions.

Subject Matter

• History

Learning objectives:

• Students will be able to identify and link key leaders and events of the Reconstruction Era.

Standards

National http://www.socialstudies.org/standards/2.6.html
Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of how people create and change structures of power, authority, and governance.

State http://www.nysatl.nysed.gov/ssstand.html

Standard 1: History of the United States and New York

Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in the history of the United States and New York.

• Consider different historians analyses of the same event or development in United States history to understand how different viewpoints and/or frames of reference influence historical interpretations
• Compare and contrast the experiences of different groups in the United States
• Compare and contrast the experiences of different ethnic, national, and religious groups, including Native American Indians, in the United States, explaining their contributions to American society and culture
• Research and analyze the major themes and developments in New York State and United States history (e.g., colonization and settlement; Revolution and New National Period; immigration; expansion and reform era; Civil War and Reconstruction; The American labor movement; Great Depression; World Wars; contemporary United States)

Materials:

Index cards for note taking—reference gathering

Media Components

Who What When search—Interactive Historical Timelines
http://www.sbrowning.com/whowhatwhen/index.php3

American Experience: The time of the Lincolns—A Woman's World, Women's Rights
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/lincolns/wworld/es_antebellum.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/lincolns/wworld/vid_antebellum.html

Columbia Interactive: "The Rise of Abolition: Women and African-Americans"Abolitionism and antislavery—requires Realplayer—Professor Eric Foner Video (3:27.1)
http://ci.columbia.edu/ci/tools/0753a_tools.html

Prep for Teachers

• Load plug-ins (Quicktime/Real player)
• Choose query categories from list