UNIT PLAN
Grade Level:
Unit:
Unit Name:
5
1
Reconstruction
Big Idea/Theme: Reconstruction had an impact on racial relations in the United
States.
Culminating Assessment:
Research and create a display on a topic that shows an understanding of
Reconstruction and its impact on racial relations in the United States.
Choose one topic, research the topic using your social studies book,
library books, and/or the internet. (Can choose from key vocabulary/word
wall list)
Display this information in a baseball card format or on a shoebox.
The picture will be displayed on the front with facts on the back of card or
pictures and facts displayed around the shoebox.
You must include at least 7 facts about this topic and at least one picture
that accurately represent your topic. (See attached instructions.)
Unit Understanding(s)
Students will understand that…
Abraham Lincoln’s
assassination affected the
course and aims of
Reconstruction.
The 13th, 14th, and 15th
Amendments to the Constitution
protected the rights of Africans
Americans and sought to
enhance their political, social,
and economic opportunities.
Reconstruction affected African
Americans, including their new
rights and restrictions, their
motivations to relocate to the
North and the West, and the
actions of the Freedmen’s
Bureau.
Reconstruction had economic
and social effects on different
population movements,
including the movement from
farms to factories and the
movement of change from the
plantation system to
Unit Essential Question(s):
How did the assassination of
Abraham Lincoln affect the
course and aims of
Reconstruction?
How did the 13th, 14th, and 15th
Amendments to the Constitution
protect the political, social and
economic opportunities of
African Americans?
Why were African Americans
motivated to relocate to the
North and the West?
What were the actions of the
Freedmen’s Bureau?
What were the economic and
social effects of reconstruction
on different populations?
Why did they move from farms
to factories and from the
plantations to sharecropping?
How did the rise of
discriminatory laws and groups
affect the rights of opportunities
of African Americans in different
sharecropping.
The purpose and motivations
behind the rise of discriminatory
laws and groups affected the
rights and opportunities of
African Americans in different
regions of the United States.
regions of the United States?
Students will know… / Students will be able to…
Explain Abraham Lincoln’s aim to preserve the Union and end the Civil
War as quickly as possible.
Trace the effect of Lincoln’s assassination on the course of
Reconstruction, and how it changed as a result?
Describe the states laws known as Black Codes that replaced the slave
codes and kept the freedmen in positions of social, political and economic
inferiority.
Compare the differing aims of the southern African Americans and
southern whites for Reconstruction and the United States Congress.
Summarize the impact of the 13th Amendment.
Analyze the impact of the 14th Amendment which overturned the Dred
Scott decision and recognized the citizenship of African Americans.
Analyze the impact of the 15th Amendment which declared that the rights
of a male citizen to vote could not be infringed upon based on “race, creed
or previous condition of servitude.”
Explain why no provisions were passed to ensure that African Americans
would be able to own land. (Most Southerners refused to sell land to
African Americans even if the former slaves had money to purchase it.)
Explain the aim of African Americans during Reconstruction.
Discuss General Sherman’s plan to distribute “forty acres and a mule” to
African-American war refugees.
Describe the work of the Freedman’s Bureau which was established by
Congress prior to the end of the Civil War.
Tell why Southern planters entered into sharecropping relationships with
freedmen.
Describe the role of Scalawags as southerners who supported the
Republican government.
Describe the role of Carpetbaggers as northerners who moved to the
south during Reconstruction and were accused of taking advantage of the
South.
Explain why discriminatory groups developed in order to intimidate the
freedmen; for example, the Ku Klux Klan.
Summarize the effect of Discriminatory laws known as Jim Crow laws
which were passed by all southern state governments.
South Carolina Academic Standards:
Indicators
5-1.1 Summarize the aims of Reconstruction and explain the effects of Lincoln’s
assassination on the course of Reconstruction. (P, H, E)
5-1.2 Summarize the provisions of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth
Amendments to the Constitution, including how the amendments
protected the rights of African Americans and sought to enhance their
political, social, and economic opportunities. (P, E, H)
5-1.3 Explain the effects of Reconstruction on African Americans, including their
new rights and restrictions, their motivations to relocate to the North and
the West, and the actions of the Freedmen’s Bureau. (P, G, E, H)
5-1.4 Compare the economic and social effects of Reconstruction on different
populations, including the move from farms to factories and the change
from the plantation system to sharecropping. (E, P)
5-1.5 Explain the purpose and motivations behind the rise of discriminatory laws
and groups and their effect on the rights and opportunities of African
Americans in different regions of the United States. (P, G, E, H)
Interim Assessment (formative)
Class work
Homework
Observation
Response cards
White boards
Quick writes
Exit slips
Key Criteria (to meet the standard/rubric)
Rubric-History Baseball Cards
Key Vocabulary/Word Wall
Abraham Lincoln
Assassination
Andrew Johnson
Black Codes
Reconstruction
13th Amendment
14th Amendment
15th Amendment
Freedman
Sharecropping
Scalawags
Carpetbaggers
Radical Republicans
Ku Klux Klan
Jim Crow Laws
Segregation
Freedman’s Bureau
**NOTE TO TEACHERS: two choices for culminating activity. Also- lower leveled
students can display facts and illustration on a poster.
RECONSTRUCTION BASEBALL CARD PROJECT AND RUBRIC
You have been studying Reconstruction and how it impacted racial relations in
the United States. During this time period, you have learned about many topics and
issues. For the next few days, you will be researching a topic of your choice. You will
be given a list of familiar topics to research and display.
Choose one topic, research the topic using your social studies book, library
books, and/or the internet. You will be displaying this information similar to a baseball
card. The picture will be displayed on the front with facts on the back. You must
include at least 7 facts about this topic and at least one picture that accurately
represents your topic.
Use the following rubric as a guide for completing your project.
History Baseball Card Project Rubric
Title/Key Term on front
Name of Student on front
Illustration
Construction paper is original size
Brief description of term on back
Important facts on back
Neatness
Overall Appearance
(5 pts.)_____
(5 pts.)_____
(5 pts.)_____
(5 pts.)_____
(5 pts.)_____
(5 pts.) _____
(5 pts.)______
(5 pts.) ______
__________/40 pts.
RECONSTRUCTION SHOEBOX PROJECT AND RUBRIC
You have been studying Reconstruction and how it impacted racial relations in
the United States. During this time period, you have learned about many topics and
issues. For the next few days, you will be researching a topic of your choice. You will
be given a list of familiar topics to research and display.
Choose one topic, research the topic using your social studies book, library
books, and/or the internet. You will be displaying this information on a shoebox. The
shoebox will be covered with construction paper before you begin displaying. You must
include at least 1 illustration (can have more) and at least 7 facts about this topic and
accurately represents your topic.
Use the following rubric as a guide for completing your project.
Reconstruction Shoebox Project Rubric
Title/Key Term on top
Name of Student on top
At least 3 Illustrations
Brief description of term on back
At least 7 important facts
Neatness
Overall Appearance
(5 pts.)_____
(5 pts.)_____
(10pts.)_____
(5 pts.)_____
(15 pts) _____
(5 pts.)______
(5 pts.) ______
__________/50 pts.