Setting the Stage for Inquiry
As
a military leader, Ulysses S. Grant is given much credit for winning the Civil
War and restoring the Union. As president, he guided the nation through
Reconstruction. School history texts promote these aspects of Grant’s life; yet,
little is included in these texts about Grant’s life prior to his military
experiences, particularly his past views and experiences with slavery. However,
an examination of primary sources provides teachers and students with an
insight into Grant’s views and experiences with slavery.
Grant’s
early opinions of slavery were formed during the Mexican-American War. He
opposed this war because it promoted expansion and slavery. Furthermore, in his
memoirs, he blamed the Mexican-American War for leading directly to the Civil
War. Grant recounted, “The Southern rebellion was largely the outgrowth of the
Mexican war. Nations, like individuals, are punished for their transgressions.
We got our punishment in the most sanguinary and expensive war of modern times.”[1]
Grant opposed the
institution of slavery, but he had close contact with slaves and slavery during
his life. Prior to the Civil War, Grant lived with his wife on her family’s
estate in St. Louis, Missouri. At White Haven, Grant farmed alongside the
slaves that his father-in-law, Frederick Dent, owned.[2]
Thus, Grant was not removed from the institution of slavery. In fact, in a
letter that Grant wrote to his father, he stated that his wife, Julia, owned
slaves and she was concerned with traveling in Free states after the Dred Scott
case.[3]
Therefore, not only did his wife own slaves, but also she was worried that
traveling with slaves could result in their fleeing to freedom or other
problems.
However, Grant’s wife
and her family were not the only ones that owned slaves; Grant even owned a
slave himself. According to the document “Manumission of Slave,” Grant freed
his slave, William Jones, on March 29, 1859.[4]
Even though Grant freed his slave prior to the Civil War, it is an often
overlooked fact that Grant owned a slave. It is unknown when Grant acquired the
slave and to his credit he freed the slave in a time when it would have been
financially beneficial to sell the slave. Thus, Grant, an opponent of slavery
and one of the men responsible for ending the institution in America, had close
experiences with slavery.
Although Grant had a
history with the institution of slavery, he did not promote or agree with it. Grant
explained his view of slavery and how it motivated him to participate in the
Civil War during a meeting with Prince Otto von Bismarck in June of 1878. When Bismarck
asked if Grant’s participation in the war stemmed from a belief that he had to
save the Union, Grant replied, “Not only save the Union […] but destroy
slavery.”[5]
Thus, Grant’s involvement in the war was directly tied to his belief that slavery
had to end. Grant continued to explain to Bismarck his objection to the
practice of slavery and stated, “We felt that it was a stain on the Union that
men should be bought and sold like cattle.”[6]
Therefore, Grant viewed slavery as an abomination and fought in the Civil War
to eliminate it from the United States.
In many ways Grant’s
experience with slavery was not atypical, and his life can serve as an example
of how complex the issue of slavery was in America. Studying slavery is complex
and difficult in the middle school classroom. It is often discussed in a manner
of the North versus the South as if all Southerners were slave owners and all
Northerners were abolitionists. Grant opposed slavery, yet family life and
economic necessity resulted in Grant making his living for a time using slaves
as labor. Thus, in order to teach students more about Grant’s life and the
complexity of slavery, teachers can use primary sources to deepen students’
knowledge of Grant and slavery beyond the traditional textbook accounts.
Inquiry Lesson Ideas
Teachers
can guide students through the inquiry process using College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Inquiry in Social
Studies State Standards. Below is a description of how a teacher might use
the four dimensions of the C3 Framework with primary sources to meet several of
the Common Core State Standards. In this inquiry lesson example, the primary
sources and inquiry questions aim to develop a more nuanced understanding of Ulysses
S. Grant and slavery.
Beginning
the Inquiry Process
§ To begin an inquiry into Grant’s experiences and view
of slavery, the students will read from their textbook about the life of
Ulysses S. Grant.
§ After reading, they will engage in think-pair-share with a partner to
discuss how this text extends their existing knowledge of Grant.
§ Following this partner share, the teacher will
facilitate a classroom discussion of Grant, focusing on his role in the Civil
War as a military leader, as well as his role in Reconstruction.
Creating
Intellectual Conflict
§ The teacher will give students the “Manumission of
Slave” document to read.
§ Then, the teacher will facilitate a classroom
discussion about the document.
o
The teacher might
ask: “How does the ‘Manumission of Slave’
document affect your view of Ulysses S. Grant?”
§ The teacher should expect the students to experience
some intellectual discomfort since this document calls into question their
prior knowledge of Grant’s opposition to slavery when, in fact, he at one time
owned a slave.
§ The goal of the discussion is to help students arrive
at the idea that further research into Grant’s experiences and attitudes about
slavery before, during, and after the Civil War is needed.
§ All documents needed for this unit are found in The Papers of Ulysses S. Grant located
at Mississippi State University and available online.
Using
the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Inquiry in Social
Studies State Standards[7]
Dimension 1: Developing Questions and
Planning Investigations.
The students should have questions about
Grant’s experiences with slavery after reading the information in the textbook
and the conflicting information in the “Manumission of Slave” document.
§ Teacher’s Role in Dimension 1: Model and guide the students through the process of
developing inquiry questions to drive their research.
§ Student’s Role in Dimension 1: Create inquiry questions to explore during their
research.
§ Examples of questions that students might explore
during the inquiry:
o
What was Grant’s
experience with slavery before the Civil War?
o
What were Grant’s
views of slavery before, during, and after the Civil War?
o
How did Grant end
up with a slave that he later freed?
o
How did Grant
reconcile his opposition to slavery with the reality that he owned a slave and
worked a farm using slave labor?
Once the students have developed inquiry
questions, they will enter into the next dimension in which they will determine
appropriate tools for research.
Dimension 2: Applying Disciplinary Concepts
and Tools.
§ Teacher’s Role in Dimension 2: Help the students determine how to conduct
their research.
§ Student’s Role in Dimension 2: Determine what disciplinary concepts and
tools would be appropriate to use for their research.
§ Example of how teachers might guide students:
o
The teacher
will facilitate a classroom discussion about how historians answer questions
about the past and what resources they use to do so.
o
The goal of
the discussion is for students to determine that in order to clearly understand
Grant and his relationship to slavery, they must dig deeper and go beyond
traditional textbook accounts of Grant.
o
After the
discussion, the students should determine that one way to reconcile the
“Manumission of Slave” document with their existing knowledge of Grant is to
use primary and secondary sources.
Dimension 3: Gathering, Evaluating, and Using
Evidence.
§ Teacher’s Role in Dimension 3: Support the students as they research and
analyze sources.
§ Student’s Role in Dimension 3: Locate and analyze sources during research
to answer inquiry questions.
§ Example of how teachers might support
students:
o
The teacher
will provide the students with a variety of documents (primary and secondary
sources) that describe Grant’s experiences and views on slavery.
o
Students
will work in small groups to read and analyze these documents.
o
Students can
use these questions to analyze the primary sources:
1.
Consider the context:
Ø When was it written?
Ø Why was it written?
Ø Who authored the primary source?
2.
Consider the content:
Ø What was said?
Ø What arguments were made?
Ø What supporting points were made?
3.
Consider the connections:
Ø What connections to your life can you make?
Ø What connections to other events and people in history
can you make?
§ Common Core State Standards Connections:
|
C3 Framework: Dimension 3
|
Common Core State Standards
|
|
As students analyze the primary and
secondary documents, they can develop more questions to guide their inquiry.
|
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support
analysis of primary and secondary sources.[8]
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.2 Determine the central ideas or
information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate
summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.[9]
|
|
As students find answers to their
inquiry questions during their investigations, they will support their
answers with textual evidence from the documents.
|
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.1b Support claim(s) with logical reasoning
and relevant, accurate data and evidence that demonstrate an
understanding of the topic or text, using credible sources.[10]
|
Dimension 4: Working Collaboratively and
Communicating Conclusions.
§ Teacher’s Role in Dimension 4: Support students as they communicate their findings.
§ Student’s Role in Dimension 4: Determine how to share their findings with other
students and people beyond the school environment.
§ Examples of how students can share their findings:
o
The students will
write a short paper that details Grant’s total experience with slavery and expands
beyond what is typically covered in the history textbooks.
· In their papers, they will make a claim about Grant
and slavery, based upon findings from their research.
· Then, they will support their claim with textual
evidence from the documents.
o
Once the students
have completed their papers, they will choose an additional venue and medium to
share their findings with a larger audience beyond the classroom.
· Venues: school website, local historical society, or a
public library.
· Media: Prezi or Glogster.
§ Common Core State Standards Connections:
|
C3 Framework: Dimension 4
|
Common Core State Standards
|
|
The students will write a short paper
that expands beyond what is typically covered in the history textbooks. In
their papers, they will make a claim, based upon findings from their
research.
|
·
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.1a Introduce claim(s) about a topic or issue, acknowledge and
distinguish the claim(s) from alternate or opposing claims, and organize the
reasons and evidence logically.[11]
·
|
|
The students will write a short paper
that expands beyond what is typically covered in the history textbooks. In
their papers, they will make a claim, based upon findings from their
research.
|
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.1b Support claim(s) with logical reasoning and
relevant, accurate data and evidence that demonstrate an understanding of the
topic or text, using credible sources.[12]
|
|
Once the students have completed their
papers, they will choose an additional venue to share their findings with a
larger audience beyond the classroom.
|
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.4 Present claims and findings, emphasizing
salient points in a focused, coherent manner with relevant evidence, sound
valid reasoning, and well-chosen details; use appropriate eye contact,
adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.[13]
|
|
Once the students have completed their
papers, they will choose an additional medium to share their findings with a
larger audience beyond the classroom.
|
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.5 Integrate multimedia and visual displays into
presentations to clarify information, strengthen claims and evidence, and add
interest.[14]
|
The
goal of this final dimension is for students to communicate the more
sophisticated view of Grant’s experience with slavery that they learned from
their analyses. This activity will give students the opportunity to choose how
and with whom to share their information. Also, this activity creates a more
authentic learning experience because students have the opportunity to share
their historical findings with the community outside of the school.
Connecting
Vocabulary and Primary Sources
Prior to implementing
the inquiry process, teachers might consider studying domain-specific
vocabulary words found in the primary source documents. The Common Core State
Standards outline that students should study domain-specific vocabulary words
(CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.4[15]).
As students read primary sources during the inquiry process, they will
encounter words and phrases that are unfamiliar. Thus, in order to understand
these documents, students need to determine the meanings of these unknown
words.
Therefore, teachers might want to begin
this study with a lesson on the following domain-specific words:
- Manumit,
Mullato, Emancipate (“Manumission of Slave” document)
- Unanimity,
Tyrannical (Letter to Mary Grant, 1861, p. 13)
- Sentiment,
Pecuniarily (Letter to Jesse Root Grant, 1861, p. 7)
· Secession, “Granny of an Executive,” (Letter to
Addressee Unknown, 1860, p. 359)
Conclusion
At
the end of the unit, the students will reflect on how their views of Grant and
slavery changed as a result of their research. The goal is not to make a
villain out of Grant but to help students understand that slavery was
entrenched in American society. Many people, who opposed slavery, had very
close personal and economic contacts with it. Grant’s life provides students
with a chance to see this on a very personal scale through reading primary and
secondary sources about his life.
After
the students complete their inquiry, the students will discover that typical
textbook accounts of Grant’s life do not depict the complexity of the institution
of slavery. In order to gain a deeper and more sophisticated view of Grant and
his experiences with slavery, students should analyze primary and secondary
sources. The Common Core State Standards call for the analysis of primary and
secondary sources, and students’ analyses can be supported and guided by the
College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Inquiry in Social Studies
State Standards. After the students complete this inquiry, they will gain a
nuanced view of history and a realization that primary sources provide greater
understanding and detail of historical events. Thus, once these skills are
developed in students, teachers can build upon these models of historical
thinking throughout the school year.
[1] Ulysses
S. Grant, Personal Memoirs (New York:
Penguin Group Inc., 1999), 27.
[5]
Peter Carlson, "Ulysses S. Grant Talks War with Otto von
Bismarck." American History 47, no. 2 (June 2012):
27.
[7]
Council of Chief State School Officers, Vision
for the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Inquiry in Social
Studies State Standards (Washington, DC: Council of Chief State School
Officers, 2012).
[8]
National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief
State School
Officers, Common Core State Standards for English
Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social
Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects Washington,
DC: National Governors Association Center
for Best Practices and the Council of Chief State
School Officers, 2010), 61.
