An Inside Look: The Life of a Southern Slave

Introduction

Slavery was has been considered to be one of the major contributing factors to the Civil War. Its 1861, and you, along with thousands of other African Americans who have been forced into slavery, have been looking for an escape route to the North. The Underground Railroad was widely used  by slaves and supporters of abolition as a secret escape route to freedom. Although this task was very dangerous and illegal to do, of the thousands who risked thier lives, only a few hundred prevailed.

Task

Your task for this Webquest is to use the websites provided to find out information about the Underground Railroad, as well as to discover the impact of the Underground Railroad on our history. Click on the following links to find new information, and write a one page summary about the Underground Railroad. This summary should include the following:

1. How the Underground railroad got its name, and how it began.

2.  Tell me exactly what the Underground Railroad is, how it was used, and who used it.

3. Use the website provided to describe two people of the Underground Railroad, giving a detailed explantation of thier impact on the Railroad.

Process

 

 

Step 1: This website will be used to explain why the Underground Railroad Got it's name. There are more than one website listed in case you would like to learn a little more background information. Click on a link and begin your research.

  http://www.historynet.com/underground-railroad

http://www.pbs.org/black-culture/shows/list/underground-railroad/stories-freedom/underground-railroad-terminology/

 

Step 2: Give a detailed explanation of what exactly the Underground Railroad is. I want to know what it was used for, how it was used and who exactly used it.

 http://www.mapsofworld.com/metro-maps/underground-railroad-facts.html

 Step 3: Click on this website link and choose atleast two out of the four people provided to give a deatiled explanation of each person's impact on the Underground Railroad. This explanation should give the name, birthdate and accomplishments of each person during this time period.

http://pathways.thinkport.org/about/about1.cfm

 

 

 

John Fairfield

http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=F000006

 

 

Harriet Tubman

http://www.ducksters.com/biography/women_leaders/harriet_tubman.php

 

Levi Coffin

http://docsouth.unc.edu/nc/coffin/bio.html

 

 

Frederick Douglass

http://www.biography.com/people/frederick-douglass-9278324

Evaluation

You will be graded on how well you answered these questions in summary form. Point value is given for each question. Feel free to use this rubric to guide your paper throughout this assignment.  TOTAL OF 24 POINTS

Paragraph 1: (6 POINTS)

  • Did you open this first paragraph with a "hook"? 2 points
  • Did you answer how the Underground  Railroad got it's name? 2 points
  • Did you use supporting details provided from the website? (Atleast 2 supporting sentances) 2 points

Paragraph 2: (10 POINTS)

    • Did you start this paragraph stating exactly what the Underground Railroad is? You should have atleast 2 supporting details included with your answer. Explain what conditions were like for both slaves and supporters of the Underground Railroad.  (4 POINTS)
    • Did you state how the Underground Railroad was used? Explain in detail what steps slaves took to begin their journey on the Underground Railroad. (3 POINTS)
    • Did you state what kind of people were involved with the Underground Railroad? Give at least two examples of people who escaped using the Underground Railroad. (3 POINTS)

    Paragraph 3:  (8 POINTS)

    • Did you introduce this paragraph statig your 2 choices from the provided list? (2 POINTS)
    • Did you state thier birthdates? (2 POINTS)
    • Did you give atleast 2 supporting facts/details/accomplishments each about this person? (4 POINTS)
          Conclusion
          • After completing the Underground Railroad Webquest, students will be able to correctly understand how the railroad worked, what it was, who was involved, and how it impacted the Civil War. They will be able to identify key people of major importantance during this era, and analyze thier impact on the Underground Railroad.
          • Students will gain valuable information a on important topics stemming from  the Underground Railroad such as what life was like for a slave, and begin to understand the hardships and struggles of those in the Underground Railroad.
          • It is the teacher's hope that by becoming an expert on the Underground Railroad that students will be encouraged to further thier knowledge by researching not only the Underground Railroad, but also facts about the Civil War, and facts about important people of that era, for example, Harriet Tubmann and Federick Douglass.

           

          • When a students is forced to complete this assignment, they will be able to refer back to this paper when making reference to the Underground Railroad in future classes/discussions.
          Teacher Page