Civil War Project

Topics:

• A Soldier’s Life (camp life, letters home, medical care, prisoners-of-war)
• Military History: Fort Sumter to Vicksburg
• Military History: Gettysburg to Appomattox
• The Homefront (women’s war work, the economy)
• Blacks in the War (slaves, black soldiers, emancipation)
• Politics and Diplomacy during the War

Each group will be responsible for investigating the topic area fully. Please talk to me if you have any questions about what to focus on or include.

Research/Script Development: Each individual will contribute to the group’s preparation through research notes and a bibliography that will lead to the creation of a script for a newscast about the Civil War. The objective of the newscast is to share your research about particular aspects of the conflict so that everyone in class comes away from the assignment with a richer understanding of this turning point in American history.

“Broadcast”: Each group will have approximately 10 minutes in class on either Monday, Nov. 25 or Tuesday, Nov. 26 to present the newscast to colleagues either live or on video. The use of props, costumes and other relevant paraphernalia can enliven the presentation.

Editorial: Each student will choose a topic within the larger group topic and write a one-two page editorial. The topic must be a debate that was raging before or during the war. You need to take a stand on that debate in the editorial. You may or may not choose to include your editorial positions in the newscast.

Due Dates

Date Due	Assignment
Weds., Nov. 13^th	Preliminary Bibliography. Total for your group: - at least five credible sources (two non-Internet) - one source must be a primary document. (I have books and videos on the Civil War that you can check out)
Weds., Nov. 13^th	Research Notes check. All your notes will be due on the day of the presentation
Mon., Nov. 18^th	Editorial topic, thesis, and list of points you’ll be making
Mon., Nov. 25^th	Newscast Participation assessment - a brief description of everyone’s contribution to the group Final Bibliography
Mon., Dec. 2^nd	Editorial paper

Rubric for Presentation

	Possible Points	Your Points
Presentation – Is it informative? Do you cover the important information?	50
Presentation – Is it entertaining? Is it clear to the audience? Does the creativity add to the subject matter or detract from it?	20
Bibliography – You are required to have at least five credible sources. At least two of them must be non-Internet sources. At least one of them must be a primary source. You may divide these sources up among your groups.	10
Notes – Due the date of the presentation as well as for a note check on Nov. 13. This is an individual grade.	10
Participation – After the project, you will be asked to assess and grade the contributions of everyone in your group. I will average those grades together for this part of your grade. This is an individual grade.	10
Total	100

Rubric for Editorial

	Possible Points	Your Points
Introduction: It should engage the reader's interest, state your thesis and introduce the major points you will be making.	15
Body: Each body paragraph should support your thesis. Each should contain a topic sentence that goes to prove your thesis and also use specific details, explanations, examples and quotations to support the topic sentence. Each paragraph has only one main idea and does not repeat what is said is elsewhere. Transitional devices connect the paragraphs.	45
Conclusion: It should reestablish your thesis, summarize and/or evaluate your main points and end with a powerful finish.	15
Style and Mechanics: You should employ accurate, appropriate language and well-designed sentences. You should avoid spelling, punctuation, and grammar/usage errors. You must properly cite material you use in a bibliography and footnotes.	25
TOTAL	100