Lesson Plan Template

Name: Kevin Klemm

Class/Subject: 7th Grade Social Studies

Date: 3/15/11

Student Objectives/Student Outcomes:

 Students will show their knowledge of the early 19th century spread of slavery by
using two blank maps to color in the different states that had slaves in both 1790
and 1860.
 Students will individually summarize the connections between the spread of
slavery to the South, the increased production of cotton, and the climatic
geography of the United States by completing an assessment where they cite at
least 3 reasons for the connections.

Content Standards:
 17.C.2b Describe the relationships among location of resources, population
distribution and economic activities (e.g., transportation, trade, communications).
 17.C.3c Analyze how human processes influence settlement patterns including
migration and population growth.

Materials/Resources/Technology:
 Computer
 Projector
 Smartboard
 Powerpoint
 Google Earth
 http://www.inmotionaame.org/migrations/landing.cfm?migration=3 (Domestic
Slave Trade website)
 http://mappinghistory.uoregon.edu/english/US/US18-02.html (University of
Oregon slavery map)

Teacher’s Goals:
 To allow students to get a visual look, through the use of maps and Google Earth,
at the changes that were taking place in the United States during the 19th century.
 To get students understanding the geographical reasons for the thriving of slavery
in the South and not in the North.

Time
Start of Class:
10:45 The teacher will begin class by showing the students an interactive map from
the University of Oregon that shows the spread of slavery, decade-by-decade,
from 1790 to 1860. This will be a transition from Joe Nierstheimer’s lesson
 on Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin. The teacher will ask the
students to pay careful attention to the differences in states where the slaves
were located, particularly in 1790 and 1860, because they will be asked to
reproduce the maps at the end of the class.
Introduction of Lesson:
10:48 The teacher will announce to the class that the major objective of this lesson
is:
 Students will show their knowledge of the early 19th century spread of
slavery by using two blank maps to color in the different states that
had slaves in both 1790 and 1860.
 Students will individually summarize the connections between the
spread of slavery to the South, the increased production of cotton, and
the climatic geography of the United States by completing an
assessment where they cite at least 3 reasons for the connections.
Lesson Instruction:
10:49 The lesson will begin with a Powerpoint with further maps displaying both the
significant increase in the number of slaves and also the further move
southward and westward towards more suitable climates for the cultivation of
cotton. Then, I will ask the class questions that highlight the major points I am
trying to get them to understand in this 20-25 minute lesson.
 Why do you think slaves migrated to the South? *If needed, a
hint will be given to have them think about what they have already
learned about earlier in class (the cotton gin and increased cotton
production
 But why would they need to go to the South for that? *I hope that they
can answer this question without help, but if they do need help, the
following question will be asked:
 How many of you have been down South for vacation in the
wintertime? Why did you go there? *I hope that they will be able to
provide the answer I am looking for, but a hint about the weather in the
South should provide enough context to get where I am going.
The teacher will proceed to explain some short but significant details about
the South’s climate and why it was ideal for the growth of cotton in the South.
Google Earth will be used, in conjunction with the Smartboard, to show
students the differences between the current temperatures in the North and
the South. Google Earth contains a current weather feature that will enable
this to be possible. Also, an image displaying the differences in the length of
the sun’s solar waves between the South and the North will be emphasized to
give students a visual idea of why the South experiences more moderate
temperatures throughout the year than the North.
Assessments/Checks for Understanding:
At the end of class, students will be given a sheet with two blank maps exactly
11:04 like the interactive ones I showed at the beginning of class relating to the
spread of slavery from 1790 to 1860. They will be asked to color in, as best as
they can remember, what the maps looked like in both 1790 and 1860. After
this is completed, the students will be assigned a paragraph response to the
following question: “Why was cotton production so successful in the South?”
Students will be asked to cite at least 3 reasons for cotton’s success,
with a focus on geography, that were discussed throughout the lesson.
Closure/Wrap-Up/Review:
It would be incredibly easy for me to come in front of you today, tell you that
the production of cotton increased substantially throughout the early and
mid-19th century, and you would then have that information. I hope today’s
lesson allowed everyone to see why this production increased, why it was
that slaves migrated to the South, and how the warm and wet climate of the
South contributed to both of these things taking place.
Self-Assessment: N/A