Teaching Youth America`s Legacy of Liberty

 Teaching Youth America’s Legacy of Liberty Lesson Title: History’s Heroes: America Through Their Eyes, Part II – Harriet Tubman This is a three-­‐part lesson plan supporting the History’s Heroes program (field trip) to the American Village. The lesson can be used in preparation for the field trip and/or as a follow up reinforcement to the concepts gained at the American Village program. This lesson correlates to the Alabama High School Course of Study: Standards I,II; Objectives 1 & 2. Introduction: There were many men and women who were passionate about the colonies -­‐ their independence and the rights and privileges afforded to ALL men and women as a result of our new Constitution. After escaping from slavery in 1849, Harriet Tubman became one of the most prominent abolitionists and a driving force behind the various secret escape routes for slaves. She even wrote a letter to President Abraham Lincoln trying to influence him to set the Negroes free. This lesson is appropriate either as a pre or post lesson to the American Village program – History’s Heroes. Objectives: In this lesson, students will: Gain an understanding of the life and motivation behind the woman, Harriet Tubman. Act out the key events identified in the book Harriet Tubman by Marie Patterson. Participate in a writing simulation of what it was like to be a slave and how they would respond if asked to hide a fugitive slave. Materials and Resources: Harriet Tubman by Marie Patterson Letter to President Lincoln Worksheets: Writing prompt; summary sheet for book; Lincoln work sheet; vocabulary sheet Simple props/costumes for vignettes (whips, lantern, cardboard/flat surfaces to make walls to hide the slaves along the Underground Railroad.) Strategy: 1. Students will read the book and/or assigned chapters of the book, Harriet Tubman by Marie Patterson. 2. Students will complete a worksheet summarizing each of the nine chapters of the book. 3. Students will read Harriet Tubman’s letter to Lincoln and complete the work sheet, Lincoln’s Letter from Harriet Tubman. 4. Have the students identify parts of Harriet Tubman’s story that could be acted out. 5. Teacher assigns ten students to be readers, one for each chapter and one who reads the letter to Lincoln. 6. Develop vignettes to accompany the narration or to be performed between each chapter of the book. 7. Students should recognize and include the following key events in the vignettes: a. Harriet trying to escape as a child, being caught and punished b. Harriet’s father teaching her to survive in the woods c. Harriet’s husband refusing to escape with her or to let her go d. Harriet’s escape e. Harriet returning to the south to lead others to freedom f. Develop the escape route and include all students as helpful farmers, bounty hunters, slave catchers, free slaves. Conclusion: Students will complete the vocabulary assessment. Students will perform their vignettes for other grade levels; video the performance and send it to the American Village to be included on our web site. Students will write a letter to Harriet Tubman in response to the letter she wrote to President Lincoln. www.americanvillage.org 205-­‐665-­‐3535 Teaching Youth America’s Legacy of Liberty Harriet Tubman – Vocabulary Worksheet Define the following in your own words. 1. Abolitionists 2. Conductor 3. Underground Railroad 4. Plantation 5. Fugitive Slave Act 6. “Minty” 7. Drinking Gourd 8. Stations 9. Package 10. Passenger 11. Moses 12. Bounty Harriet Tubman Vocabulary Worksheet – Answer Sheet *Teachers may also use the vocabulary as a matching exercise, fill in the blank, or writing the definition in the students’ own words. Define the following: 1. Abolitionists – people who were against slavery and worked to end it 2. Conductor – a guide; someone who helped escaped slaves get to the North 3. Underground Railroad -­‐ the secret system for slaves to escape to the North 4. Plantation – a large farm in the South that produced crops for money 5. Fugitive Slave Act – Congress passed this law in 1850. The law stated that anyone who was caught helping runaway slaves would be punished. 6. “Minty” – Harriet Tubman’s birth name was Araminta Ross. “Minty” was her nickname as a little girl. When she grew up she became Harriet. 7. Drinking Gourd – a hollowed out gourd used by slaves as a water dipper; it was a code name for the Big Dipper star formation which points to the North Star. 8. Stations – a safe house for runaway slaves and conductors; a place for passengers to stop and find safety, food and shelter; a lit candle in the window was a signal that it was safe 9. Package – code term for runaway slave; sometime a slave would be hidden in a storage box and “mailed" North 10. Passenger – a slave traveling on the Underground Railroad 11. Moses – people often referred to Harriet as the “Moses of Her People”; comparing her to the Biblical hero, Moses, who led his people out of slavery 12. Bounty – a reward for the capture of a slave; at one point in time they offered a $40,000 reward to capture Harriet Tubman (she was never caught, nor were any of her passengers ever lost) Harriet Tubman by Marie Patterson (Worksheet) Respond to the following questions. Name:__________________________ Date:______________________ After reading/listening and performing vignettes about Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad, answer the following questions. 1. What was Harriet’s birth name? _____________________________________________ 2. Explain how she was “born” into slavery. ______________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________ 3. Why do you think FREEDOM was so important to Harriet? ______________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________ 4. How old was Harriet the first time she tried to escape?____________________________ 5. What were some of the lessons her father, “Old Ben” taught her? ______________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________ 6. In 1849 Harriet found out she might be sold; she decided it was time to escape. Where did she find freedom and what did she do? ______________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________ 7. Harriet became the first female conductor on the Underground Railroad. Why was she able to travel the Underground Railroad and never get caught and never lose a fugitive slave? ______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________ 8. List 3 facts/additional information that you have learned about Harriet Tubman. a. b. c. www.americanvillage.org 205-­‐665-­‐3535 The American Village: Teaching Youth America’s Legacy of Liberty Lesson Plan – The Underground Railroad and the Drinking Gourd Introduction: The Underground Railroad was a vast network of people who helped fugitive slaves escape to the North and to Canada. It was not run by any single organization or person. Rather, it consisted of many individuals, including many whites, but mostly blacks. These people knew only of the local efforts to aid fugitives and not of the overall operation. It is estimated that between 1810 and 1850, the Underground Railroad helped 100,000 slaves escape from the South. For the slave, running away to the North was anything but easy. The first step was to escape from the slaveholder. For many slaves, this meant relying on his or her own resources. Sometimes a “conductor” posing as a slave, would enter a plantation and then guide the runaways northward. Harriet Tubman was the first female “conductor” on the Underground Railroad. The fugitives would move at night. They would generally travel between 10 and 20 miles to the next station, where they would rest and eat, hiding in barns and other out-­‐of-­‐the-­‐way places. While they waited, a message would be sent to the next station to alert its stationmaster. The fugitives would also travel by train and boat—conveyances that sometimes had to be paid for. Money was also needed to improve the appearance of the runaways—a black man, woman, or child in tattered clothes would invariably attract suspicious eyes. This money was donated by individuals and also raised by various groups, including vigilance committees. The Underground Railroad had many notable participants, including John Fairfield in Ohio, the son of a slaveholding family, who made many daring rescues, Levi Coffin, a Quaker who assisted more than 3000 slaves, and Harriet Tubman, who made 19 trips into the South and escorted over 300 slaves to freedom. Objectives: In this lesson, students will: Develop an understanding of music in relation to history and culture. Recognize that music was an important means of communication for African Americans during their years of enslavement, especially for those trying to escape through the Underground Railroad. Interpret the meaning of the spiritual, “Follow the Drinkin’ Gourd” Materials and Resources: Follow the Drinking Gourd by Jeanette Winter Song Sheet – Follow the Drinkin’ Gourd Follow the Drinkin’ Gourd worksheet Information sheet on the Underground Railroad Strategy: 1. The teacher will provide background information on the Underground Railroad (information sheet and intro above). 2. The teacher will then ask the students what they know about the Underground Railroad and specifically, Harriet Tubman. Questions may include: What was Harriet Tubman’s nickname? Why was she compared to Moses? What were her methods for leading fugitive slaves to safety? Why do you think freedom was so important to her? 3. The teacher or a selected student will read the book, Follow the Drinking Gourd, by Jeanette Winter. Remind students of how the song of the same name acts as a coded map to lead slaves to freedom. 4. Divide the class into three groups; ask them to research one question and report to the class. (Provide the historical background notes to each group, however students should seek other sources to respond to the questions as well.) Encourage students to sing some of these songs and think about their meaning. What did the slaves have to sing about? How were Spirituals used as “escape” songs for slaves? How did Spirituals help explain the feelings slaves had about their world? 5. Distribute the Follow the Drinking Gourd interpret sheet. Allow students to work with a partner to determine the meaning of the words. 6. Students will be divided into 3 groups and design original choreography for the refrain of the song. Students will present their group movement to the large group. 7. Students will write a “reflection” (1-­‐2 paragraphs) of what they have learned about Harriet Tubman, the Underground Railroad, and the music they sang on their journey to freedom. Lesson Extension: Students may choose one of the three projects described below. Design one quilt square that was a code for escaping slaves. Quilt square examples may be found at the following web site. http://www,bbeavton.k12.or.us/greenway/leahy/ugrr/. Students may choose to design a runaway slave poster. Poster examples may be found at the following web sites: http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blharriettubman.htm and http://www.territorialkansasonoline,org . Quilt squares and posters will be displayed, along with an explanation of the project. Students may choose to create the writing assignment: Underground Railroad Writing Prompt (attached) The Underground Railroad – Information Sheet The origin of the Underground Railroad goes back to the eighteenth century. Perhaps there were people to help fugitives as early as there were runaway slaves. By the end of the War for Independence, however, organized resistance seemed to be taking shape. At least George Washington thought so when he complained in1786 of a slave, escaping from Alexandria to Philadelphia, “whom a society of Quakers, formed for such purposes, have attempted to liberate.” By the following year Isaac T. Hopper had settled in Philadelphia, and though still in his teens he began to develop a program for systematic assistance of slaves escaping from the South. Within a few years they were being helped in a number of towns in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Slowly these antislavery operations spread in various directions. Henrietta Buckmaster gives 1804 as the year of “incorporation” of the Underground Railroad. It was then that General Thomas Boude, an officer during the Revolution, purchased a slave, Stephen Smith, and brought him home to Columbia, Pennsylvania, followed by Smith’s mother, who had escaped to find her son. The Boudes took her in. Within a few weeks the woman who owned Smith’s mother arrived and demanded her property. Not only did the Boudes surrender the slave, but the town supported them. The people of Columbia resolved to champion the cause of fugitives. By 1815 this sentiment was expressed in Ohio. And by 1819 underground methods were used to spirit slaves out of North Carolina. Even before the period of militant abolitionism, the movement that was to be known as the Underground Railroad had grown into a widespread institution. The name, Underground Railroad, was probably coined shortly after 1831 when steam railroads became popular. There are several versions of how the movement got its name. A plausible one concerns a slave, Tice Davids, who escaped from his Kentucky master in 1831 and got across the Ohio River. Although the master was in hot pursuit, he lost all trace of the slave after crossing the river and it was so confounded that he declared the slave must have “gone off on an underground road.” That was entirely possible, for by 1831 there were plenty of “underground” roads on the Ohio River, and they had stations, conductors, and means of conveyance. From that time, which coincided exactly with the emergence of Garrison and his militant followers, up until the outbreak of the Civil War, the Underground Railroad operated in flagrant violation of federal fugitive slave laws. It was the most eloquent defiance of slaveholders that abolitionists could make. In the case of anything so full of adventure and danger as the Underground Railroad, it is difficult to separate fiction from fact. There are stories of breathtaking escapes and exciting experiences that would be quite incredible save for unquestionable verification by reliable sources. After the Railroad had developed an efficient organization, there was a generality of practice that makes possible a brief description of its operation. All, or almost all, of the operations took place at night, for that was the only time when the fugitives and their helpers even felt partially secure. Slaves prepared to make their escape by taking supplies from their masters and, if necessary, by disguising themselves. Those of fair complexion frequently passed as white people and sometimes posed as their own masters. Darker ones posed as servants on their way to meet their owners. There are several cases on record where fugitives were provided at crucial moments with white babies in order to make their claims of being nurses appear more convincing. At times men posed as women and women as men. In the early days of the Underground Railroad, most of the fugitives were men, and they usually traveled on foot. Later, when traffic was heavy and women and children were fleeing, escorts and vehicles were provided. The conductors carried their human cargo in covered wagons, closed carriages, and farm wagons specially equipped with closed compartments. Blacks were sometimes put in boxes and shipped as freight by rail or boat. Thus Henry Box Brown was shipped from Richmond to Philadelphia by the Adams Express Company. When traveling by land—and at night—conductors and fugitives were guided by the North Star, by tributaries of the Ohio or other rivers, and by mountain chains. On cloudy nights, when there were no other means of finding directions, they even resorted to feeling the moss on the tree trunks and moving north upon discovering it. Since travel was almost exclusively at night, it was necessary to have stations close together, from ten to twenty miles apart, where fugitives could rest, eat, and wait for the next night’s journey. During the day they were hidden in barns, in the attics of homes, and in other out-­‐of-­‐the-­‐way places. Meanwhile, the word was passed to succeeding stations, by what was called “the grape vine telegraph,” that fugitives were on their way. One ambiguous message mailed by conductor to the next stationmaster in 1859 gave much more information than a casual glance revealed. It read “By to-­‐
morrow evening’s mail, you will receive two volumes of ‘The Irrepressible Conflict’ bound in black. After perusal, please forward and oblige.” All Underground Railroad lines led north. They began in various plantations in the South and ran vaguely – and dangerously—up rivers and valleys and across mountains to some point of the Ohio or upper Mississippi River in the West, and to points in Pennsylvania and New Jersey in the East. Once the North had been reached, the route was much clearer, though traversed with only slightly less danger, for planters, traders, and sheriffs pursued fugitives relentlessly and resorted to the most desperate means to recover them. From Slavery to Freedom Seventh Edition John Hope Franklin Alfred A. Moss, Jr. Underground Railroad Writing Prompt Answer the following questions on another sheet of paper. Imagine you are a slave. You have no rights and no freedom. Six days a week you toil in the fields for your master making him wealthy. One of your friends is talking about escaping north to freedom. Do you go with them? Explain your answer. Be sure to include reasons for escaping, hardships you must face/overcome, and possible sources of help. If you choose not to escape explain your reasons. You have been asked to hide a fugitive slave overnight. If you get caught, you will be sent to prison. What would you do? Explain your answer. Be sure to include your reasons for aiding the fugitive slave. If you decide not to hide the fugitive slave explain your reasons. What would you do? Underground RR Experience
Answer the following questions on another sheet of paper.
Imagine you are a slave. You have no rights and no freedom. Six days a week you toil in
the fields for your master making him wealthy. One of your friends is talking about
escaping north to freedom. Do you go with them? Explain your answer. Be sure to
include reasons for escaping, hardships you must face/overcome, and possible sources of
help. If you choose not to escape explain your reasons.
You have been asked to hide a fugitive slave overnight. If you get caught, you will be sent
to prison. What would you do? Explain your answer. Be sure to include your reasons
for aiding the fugitive slave. If you decide not to hide the fugitive slave explain your
reasons.
Follow the Drinking Gourd – Traditional Lyrics
Travelers on the Underground Railroad shared the itinerary for their path to freedom –hidden in
these lyrics.
After listening to the song and reviewing the song sheet, explain what each phrase means in the
song; determine the words that are code to help the slaves find their way to freedom.
Verse 1
Explanation: Taken together, this verse suggests escaping in the
spring and heading North to freedom.
When the sun comes back
And the first quail calls
Follow the drinking gourd
The old man is waiting for to
carry you to freedom
If you follow the drinking gourd
Chorus
Follow the drinking gourd,
Follow the drinking gourd,
For the old man is waiting
for to carry you to freedom
If you follow the drinking gourd.
Verse 2
The river bank will make a
mighty good road
The dead trees show you the way,
Left foot, peg foot, traveling on
Follow the drinking gourd
Chorus
Verse 3
The river ends between two hills
Follow the drinking gourd
Describes how to follow the route from Mobile, AL, north.
Describes the route through northeastern Mississippi and into
Tennessee
There’s another river on the other
side,
Follow the drinking gourd
Chorus
Verse 4
Where the great big river meets the
little river
Follow the drinking gourd
The old man is waiting for to carry
you to
freedom
If you follow the drinking gourd
Describes the end of the route in Paducah, KY
Follow the Drinking Gourd – Traditional Lyrics
Travelers on the Underground Railroad shared the itinerary for their path to freedom –hidden in
these lyrics.
After listening to the song and reviewing the song sheet, explain what each phrase means in the
song; determine the words that are code to help the slaves find their way to freedom.
Verse 1
When the sun comes back
Explanation: Taken together, this verse suggests escaping in the
spring and heading North to freedom.
Refers to the winter or spring. The days are getting longer, and
the angle of the sun is higher each day at noon.
And the first quail calls
Refers to the breeding season. Quail in AL start calling to each
other in early to mid-April.
Follow the drinking gourd
The “drinking gourd” alludes to the hollowed out gourd used by
slaves (and other rural Americans) as a water dipper. Used here,
it is a code name for the Big Dipper star formation, which points
to the North Star.
“Old man” is nautical slang for “Captain” (or “Commanding
Officer.”) The Underground Railroad operative Peg Leg Joe was
formerly a sailor. One source said that the runaways would be
met on the banks of the Ohio by the old sailor. Of course, the
chances that Peg Leg Joe himself would be there to meet every
escapee (as depicted in children’s book) are quite small.
The old man is waiting for to
carry you to freedom
If you follow the drinking gourd
Chorus
Follow the drinking gourd,
Follow the drinking gourd,
For the old man is waiting
for to carry you to freedom
If you follow the drinking gourd.
Verse 2
The river bank will make a
mighty good road
The dead trees show you the way,
Left foot, peg foot, traveling on
Follow the drinking gourd
Chorus
Verse 3
The river ends between two hills
Describes how to follow the route from Mobile, AL, north.
The first river in the song is the Tombigbee, which empties into
Mobile Bay. Its headwaters extend into northeastern Mississippi.
Peg Leg Joe marked trees and other landmarks “with charcoal or
mud of the outline of a human left foot and a round spot in place
of the right foot.”
Describes the route through northeastern Mississippi and into
Tennessee
The headwaters of the Tombigbee River end near Woodall
Mountain, the high point in Mississippi and an ideal reference
point for a map song. The “two hills” could mean Woodall
Mountain and a neighboring lower hill. But the mountain itself
evidently has a twin cone profile and so could represent both hills
at once.
Follow the drinking gourd
There’s another river on the other
side,
Follow the drinking gourd
Chorus
Verse 4
Where the great big river meets the
little river
Follow the drinking gourd
The old man is waiting for to carry
you to freedom
If you follow the drinking gourd.
The river on the other side of the hills is the Tennessee, which
extends outward in an arc above Woodall Mountain. The lefthand side proceeds virtually due north to the Ohio river border
with Illinois – definitely the preferred route, since the right hand
side meanders back into northern Alabama and then proceeds up
into Tennessee.
Describes the end of the route in Paducah, KY
When the Ohio River meets the Tennessee. The Tennessee and
Ohio rivers come together in Paducah, KY, opposite southern
Illinois. Note that the order of the rivers has been switched, most
likely for poetic reasons.
Lesson Extension: There were many people, both black and white, dedicated to the cause of freedom. Teachers may choose to assign one of the abolitionists listed below for students to conduct further research regarding their contributions to the fight against discrimination and their role in the Underground Railroad. Other resources include: •
•
•
History Channel Documentary Underground Railroad hosted by Alfre Woodard 1998 Underground Railroad video questions Websites containing brief sketches of abolitionists: o http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/99/railroad/hfame.html o http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/99/railroad/j1.html o http://www.nku.edu~undergroundrr/ William Still (1821-­‐1902) Indefatigable worker in the Philadelphia Underground. Still kept rare day-­‐to-­‐day records, which were published in 1872. A successful coal merchant, he continued to campaign against discrimination. Frederick Douglass (1817-­‐1895) A fugitive slave, Douglass became a skilled abolitionist speaker, praised for “wit, argument, sarcasm, and pathos.” He urged African Americans to pursue vocational education and the vote; his print shop in Rochester, New York, was a depot on the underground. Thomas Garrett (1789-­‐1871) “Among the manliest of men, and the gentlest of spirits,” wrote William Lloyd Garrison about the Wilmington businessman who aided more than 2,700 slaves to freedom. Jonathan Walker (1799-­‐1878) Imprisoned for helping seven slaves sail from Florida bound for the Bahamas, he was branded on the hand with SS for “Slave Stealer.” After release he became a “conspicuous witness against slave power” for the abolitionists. William Lloyd Garrison (1805-­‐1879) One of the earliest, most vitriolic abolitionists, he devoted full time to the cause, speaking against slavery and the Constitution that permitted it. By 1841 he was calling upon the North to secede. Josiah Henson (1789-­‐1883) So trustworthy a slave that his owner made him an overseer. Henson, while transporting slaves to Kentucky, resisted others’ efforts to free them all. Harriet Beecher Stowe attributed a similar episode to Uncle Tom in her novel. Henson eventually escaped to Canada, led others to safety, and traveled as an abolitionist and businessman.