ON YOUR OWN:

Read this short summary of the Civil War.

Watch this movie on the Civil War and take the quizzes.

Watch The Civil War Begins. Be sure to click on the lower left hand corner so you can read the words as they are spoken.

Watch The Early Years Of The War. Be sure to click on the lower left hand corner so you can read the words as they are spoken.

Watch The States Choose Sides.

Watch Naval Action At Vicksburg.

Watch The Battle at Gettysburg.

Watch The Confederacy Falls.

Watch this video on The Impact Of The Civil War.

Watch all the videos on this page.

Look at these pictures from the Civil War.

Listen to this song that people sang because they wanted soldiers they loved to come back home from the war.

Here’s another Civil War song.

Learn about People In The Civil War.

Learn about Clara Barton, who began The Red Cross to help injured soldiers during the Civil War.

Watch The Civil War In Four Minutes.

Read about Life As A Soldier and do the assignment on your website.

WITH A PARTNER:

Read about the Civil War and answer questions.

Read more about the Civil War and answer questions.

Try this Civil War Timeline Game.

AFTER YOU HAVE COMPLETED ALL THE “ON YOUR OWN” AND “WITH A PARTNER” ACTIVITIES:

Many African-Americans fought for the Union during the Civil War, though at first they were not allowed to become soldiers.  Once they became soldiers, they could only have White officers.  They fought bravely.  Here are some clips from a movie called “Glory,” which was about a group of famous African-American soliders who fought in the war:  Many of the soldiers in this group died in the war.

Clip One

Clip Two

Clip Three

Clip Four

ON YOUR OWN

Watch this movie and take the quizzes.

Watch this movie about Slavery and take the quizzes.

Watch this movie about The Underground Railroad and take the quizzes.

Watch this movie on Harriet Tubman and take the quizzes.

Learn more about Harriet Tubman.

Read and listen to more about the Underground Railroad.

Read “Africans In America.”

Watch this video on The Nation Splits Apart.

Watch The North/South Divide. Be sure to click on the lower left hand corner so you can see the words as they are spoken.

WITH A PARTNER:

Pretend to be an escaped slave.

Here’s another site where you pretend to be an escaped slave.

Take this test on slavery.

Complete this cloze.

ON YOUR OWN (AGAIN):

Read about Nat Turner’s Revolt and take a quiz.

Then answer this question on your website:

If you were a slave, would you have stayed a slave, tried to escape, or revolted like Nat Turner? Why?

We are going to begin to study the United States’ Civil War.

Please talk with your family members to learn about their experiences or old family stories about civil wars in their native countries. Learn the answers to these questions:

What caused the Civil War?

How did it affect your family?

Prepare a one slide Flowgram with the answers to those questions (we might try using Screentoaster instead).

You can also find some background information here:

Movie on the Mexican Civil War

Article on Laotian Civil War

Russian Civil War

ON YOUR OWN

Watch this movie about California Gold Rush and take the quizzes.

Do this Gold Rush Make and Break

Complete this short Data Set on the Gold Rush.

Watch this movie about the Gold Rush.

Read more about the California Gold Rush.

People still look for gold in Northern California. Watch this slideshow about one man who does.

Watch this video about New Settlers in California and Utah.

Read and listen to the Western Wilderness. Be sure to click on the bottom left hand corner so you can see the words.

Learn what pioneers took with them in their wagons.

WITH A PARTNER:

Read about the Donner Party.

Play the Gold Rush Game.

Here’s another Gold Rush game to play.

Create a Gold Rush museum exhibit.

ON YOUR OWN

Watch this movie on the Mexican-American War and take the quizzes.

Complete this Mexican-American War cloze.

Watch this animation about the war. Be sure to click on the bottom left-hand corner to see the words when they’re spoken.

Complete this cloze on “Manifest Destiny.”

Look at the map and watch the video about the war.

Watch this movie about the Mexican American War.

Here’s another video about the war.

Complete this Make and Break about the Mexican-American War.

Learn more about the Mexican-American War.

Explore The Mexican-American War.

See if you can name the states that existed before the Mexican-American War

ON YOUR OWN

Read The Story Of The Alamo

Complete this cloze on the Alamo.

Watch this movie on Independence For Texas.

Learn about Westward Expansion.

Watch this movie about Texas.

Watch this movie about Texas independence.

Watch this movie clip about The Alamo. Then go to your website and answer this question:

All the defenders of the Alamo chose to die instead of surrendering. Do you think there might be times that you would rather die than give-up and live? What might those times be, and why do you think you would choose to die instead?

WITH A PARTNER:

Try taking this test about Texas.

Think of the people you learned about in this unit who were “reformers.” They worked for justice, and tried to make life better.

Pick one of them who you would like to learn more about. Then think of someone today who you think is a reformer.

Please write a “compare/contrast” essay about the two of them. You might need to search the Internet to find out more information about your two people. You could first look for information on your two people at Fact Monster.

First, read this example of a compare/contrast essay.

First, use this Venn Diagram to identify how they are the same and how they are different. Please print it out when you are finished.  You can just write it on a piece of paper if you don’t want to use the online form.

Second, use this Compare/Contrast Map to plan your essay. Be sure to click on “Similarities to Differences.” Print-out your outline.

Third, write your essay on your website. These words might help you.

You’ve probably heard about money problems going on in the United States right now.

To help you understand what is going on, please read World Caught In Huge Cash Crisis.

Then, watch this video. The person speaks fast, so you may need to stop and repeat different sections. The whole video is less than three minutes.

Next, write any questions you have on your website (if you are in one of Mr. Ferlazzo’s computer-based classes) and discuss them with a partner. We’ll then talk about them in class.

If you are ever done early with any of the assignments, please either help other students or visit these sites that will help you prepare for your citizenship test.

ON YOUR OWN

Watch this movie about the Bill of Rights.

Play this game about the Bill of Rights.

WITH A PARTNER

Read these different rights. Identify words that are new to you.

ON YOUR OWN

If you were going to start a country, which are the six most important rights you would include.  On your Posterous website, write what they are, explain why you believe each is important, and copy and paste a picture next to each one, too.

On Your Own

Watch this move about The U.S. Constitution.

Watch this movie about U.S. symbols.

Learn about the Branches of Government.

Read and listen to Explore The Capitol

Learn about Political Parties.

Read about Democratic Values.

Watch Why Do People Need Governments?

Read What Is The Constitution?

WITH A PARTNER

Use Jog The Web to read this overview of the Constitution. If you think that is too easy for you, read this instead.

On Your Own

Read and categorize this Data Set on George Washington.

Watch this movie about him and take both quizzes.

Read about George Washington’s Birthday.

Take a tour of Mount Vernon.

With A Partner

Copy and paste this Make and Break in the correct order on your website.

WITH A PARTNER

Copy and paste this Data Set about Benjamin Franklin on your website and categorize it.

On Your Own

Watch and read these other resources about Franklin.  Please add at least eight more items to the categories in your data set.  It would be great if you could add even more!

Ben Franklin Movie (Please take both quizzes)
Ben Franklin Story Part One
Ben Franklin Story Part Two
Ben Franklin Again
Ben Franklin
More Ben Franklin
Even More Ben Franklin
Ben Franklin’s Experiments
Ben Franklin’s Private Life
Ben Franklin

On Your Own

Watch this movie on the American Revolution. Please take both quizzes.

Watch this movie on The Declaration of Independence. Please take both quizzes.

Look at this famous painting about the signing of the Declaration of Independence and learn who is in the painting.

Watch this movie about the founding of the United States.

With A Partner

Read and watch this story about the Declaration of Independence.

Read about a New Country.

Complete this Vocabulary Quiz.

Learn about the battles during the Revolutionary War.

Play The American Revolution Timeline Game with a partner.

On Your Own

Watch this movie about the Thirteen Colonies. If you do not go there directly after logging-in, find the movie under Social Studies. Please take both quizzes.

Read about the Thirteen Colonies and take the test.

Read about The Colonists.

Read about the Continental Congress.

Watch the movie The Causes Of The American Revolution. If you do not go there directly after logging-in, find the movie under Social Studies. Please take both quizzes.

Complete this Timeline of early American History.

Watch this short video on The Struggle For North America.

Watch this short video about Thomas Paine.

With A Partner

Read about the Boston Tea Party.

Correct these sentences, but don’t start until Mr. Ferlazzo says “Begin!” The first three pairs to correct two sentences will win a prize!

With A Partner

Read this map and the information below it using Flowgram or Jog The Web.

Read Is There Still Slavery Today?

On Your Own

Watch these four videos about “human trafficking”:

About Human Trafficking

Modern Day Slavery

Slavery and Human Trafficking

Think of time you stopped doing something even though you wanted to keep on doing it. What was it, and what made you stop?

Now try to put yourself in the mind of an American colonist who had slaves hundreds of years ago.  Then try to put yourself in the mind of someone who has slaves today.

If you were one of them, what do you think would have to happen in order to make you stop having slaves and why?

With A Partner

Read about Slaves in the Colonies. Use either Flowgram or Jog The Web to use reading strategies.

Watch this animation about the Slave Trade.

On Your Own

Watch this video about the Slave Trade.

Watch another video about the Slave Trade.

Watch this short video about a Slave Ship.

Try to put yourself in the mind of a slave.  Describe how you think you might feel.

We have now learned about slavery in the American colonies hundreds of years ago.

Do you think there might be slavery still going on today? Why or why not?

What does the word “freedom” mean to you?

Please answer the question on your website.

You will be creating a final project for this unit on The Settlers of America. On your Posterous website, or using Flowgram (if our computers let us go to it) find a picture that shows each chapter we studied:

The First Americans

Christopher Columbus

The Spanish Explore America

The Pilgrims’ Thanksgiving

The English Settle America

The French Come To America

For each picture, please write in your own words one piece of information you learned about that chapter that you think is interesting or important, and why you think it is interesting or important.

Also, please write why each group came to North America.

Make one final page in your project that represents your ethnic culture. Please answer this question: Which of the groups we have studied had reasons closest to yours or your family’s for coming to this country?

If we can use Flowgram, please record what you have written, too.