For Teachers

On February 12, 2009, teachers all around the nation are invited by the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission to participate in a National Teach-In related to the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth. The following is a listing of web resources that may be of use to teachers and students for this commemoration.

General Interest

• Lincoln's Life – Resource page on the Lincoln Bicentennial site that includes a biography, timeline, virtual tour, words and speeches, and links for teachers to lesson plans; a wealth of other resources.
• Lincoln's Life- A Virtual Tour
• Lincoln's Words and Speeches
• Lincoln- Did You Know?
• Honest Abe Quiz
• Lincoln Home Virtual Museum Exhibit – Highlights of Abraham Lincoln, Mary Todd Lincoln, and their family and home, based on the National Historic site in Springfield, Illinois.
• Lincoln This Day – Daily chronology of the life of Abraham Lincoln.  It includes sometimes trivial, sometimes significant, but always fascinating details of what Abraham did on this date throughout the years.
• Lincoln Links from the National Park Service – Dozens of links to a wide array of Lincoln information.  Included are Lincoln quotes and speeches, photo tours, photo essays, chronologies, essays on his life, and pages for family members, and even pets.

Elementary Level

• The Life of Abraham Lincoln – an illustrated timeline for young readers
• Abraham Lincoln’s Life – as pictured by 2nd graders
• Just Like Abraham Lincoln – a series of classroom activ ities beginning with the book by Bernard Waber which introduces this famous president to young children.  Activities include a picture gallery, a treasure hunt of facts, a quiz, and more.
• Abraham Lincoln from Enchanted Learning – Timeline, quizzes, cloze, puzzles, etc.
• America’s Story – Jump Back in Time:  The Homestead Act of 1862 spurred settlement in the West – including Minnesota.

Secondary

• Abraham Lincoln Links – a research site including links to Lincoln homes, Lincoln’s legal career, lesson plans and activities, Lincoln’s genealogy.
• The Role of President Lincoln in Reconstruction 1863-65: A Simulation Activity – Grades 8-12 -
  a lesson plan that focuses on Lincoln’s role as president during the Civil War. After reading a variety of primary sources written by Lincoln or to him, students analyze under what provisions of the Constitution he acted as president. They then try to imagine what a week in the life of the President might have been like by writing a diary as Lincoln or his secretary. The lesson then focuses on Lincoln’s role in reconstructing the nation, which he initiated in his Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction of December 8, 1863.
• History.com – a series of brief videos related to Abraham Lincoln’s life
  Henry Cabot Lodge on Abraham Lincoln, Booth Plots Kidnapping, Assassination of Lincoln, 11/19/1863: Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, Mary Todd Lincoln's Tragic Life, Lincoln Assassination: A Confederate Conspiracy?, John Wilkes Booth Reaches Breaking Point.

Learning with Lincoln

  History Channel Abraham Lincoln Lesson Plans
The History Channel and Lincoln Financial Group are pleased to provide the following curriculum guides introducing students to the core life values represented by Abraham Lincoln.

• 5th Grade
• 8th Grade
• Abraham Lincoln on MySpace – Mr. Lincoln’s very own MySpace page
• Video Spotlight:  Abraham Lincoln Signing the Proclamation – a 7-minute YouTube video created by the Lehrman Institute

Abraham Lincoln’s Classroom:

• Abraham Lincoln and Minnesota – Though Lincoln was never able to visit Minnesota, this site funded by the Lehrman Institute describes ties he had to the state.
• The Lincoln Institute – Funded by the Lehrman Institute
  Mr. Lincoln’s White House
  Mr. Lincoln and Freedom
  Mr. Lincoln and Friends

Related to Minnesota

• The Homestead Act of 1862 – plans for teaching with documents
  Amidst a war between North and South, Congress laid a foundation for settlement in the West.
• The Morrill Land Grant Act of 1862 – The Morrill Act committed the Federal Government to grant each state 30,000 acres of public land issued in the form of “land scrip” certificates for each of its Representatives and Senators in Congress.  These grants laid the foundation for a national system of state colleges and universities one of which is the University of Minnesota.
• Creation of a Federal Department of Agriculture in 1862
  Pacific Railway Act of 1862 – led to the building of the Transcontinental Railroad
• The Dakota Conflict Trials – Though President Lincoln did not play a direct role in Minnesota’s civil war, he played a role in the aftermath of that war, the trials of over 300 Dakota men.