Homeschooling moms must fill up their knowledge bank in order to give the best to their kids. The more mom knows, the better she can teach. Research these topics and share the general idea with younger kids. For older kids, you might invite them to pick a topic to research.
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| Harriet Tubman |
Topics for Week 24
Harriet Tubman
The Underground Railroad
Frederick Douglass
Abraham Lincoln
Discussion Questions
Harriet Tubman
Harriet Tubman was a "Conductor" on the "Underground Railroad." What did a "Conductor" do? Why Harriet was given the nickname "Moses?"
Harriet described her experience of feeling free for the first time: "When I found I had crossed that line, I looked at my hands to see if I was the same person. There was such a glory over everything; the sun came like gold through the trees, and over the fields, and I felt like I was in Heaven." How would you describe freedom?
The Underground Railroad
Traveling the "Underground Railroad" meant fleeing slavery to find freedom in the North?
What railroad terminology was used to disguise the real meaning?
Slaves were called cargo or passengers.
Hiding places or safe houses were called stations
Guides leading the escaping slaves were called conductors
People helping the escaping slaves, but not guiding them, were called agents
People providing financial resources for these activities were called stockholders
Frederick Douglass
Why did Frederick Douglass believe that the answer to the slavery question could be settled diplomatically? Frederick Douglass said that "knowledge is the pathway from slavery to freedom." How does the ability to read and write change the trajectory of a child's life?
Douglass described his first taste of freedom, "'I felt as one might feel upon escape from a den of hungry lions.'" Anguish and grief, like darkness and rain, may be depicted; but gladness and joy, like the rainbow, defy the skill of pen or pencil. How were slaveholders like "hungry lions?"
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was known to travel how far to borrow a book? 20 miles
Abraham Lincoln stored all his papers in what? His hat
How many states had seceded by the time Lincoln took office as President of the United States? 7
Resources:
Books (all links go to Goodreads)
Harriet Beecher Stowe and the Beecher Preachers YA (This short biography is interesting but has two suicides, Harriet became the voice for abolition as her book Uncle Tom's Cabin became an instant best-seller. This story shows her perspective on so many people and events)
Free E-Books
My Bondage and My FreedomUncle Tom's Cabin for Young People (I have not read this version but it was created by the author for a younger audience)
Activities
1. Color "Underground Railroad" routes on a map of Ohio
2. Draw a map of your neighborhood or town in the format of quilt squares
3. Try putting your papers in your hat and walking around
4. Learn to milk a cow
5. Go on a night hike and talk about the journey to freedom on the "Underground Railroad"
6. Continue a State Cards Project. As each state enters the union, create a card with fun facts about that state. Younger kids might enjoy a coloring/activity book about the states. Add Minnesota 1858, Oregon 1859, and Kansas 1861.
7. Check out this Edsitement Lesson Plan on Frederick Douglass
Image Credit: Horatio Seymour Squyer / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
