One of the most powerful ways to help students connect with history is by using primary sources. Old school textbooks are great for summaries and overviews. However, primary sources really give students a chance to hear the voices of people who lived through the events. There are so many primary sources out there for the Civil War that finding the best sources may be confusing. Luckily, the Civil War Primary Sources Station Activity has ready-to-go sources and activities for students.
Whether it’s a speech, letter, diary entry, or political cartoon, these first-hand accounts invite students to become historians themselves. Primary sources help students slow down and think critically about what people believed, felt, and experienced in the past.
We created this Civil War Primary Source Station Activity to bring the Civil War into your classroom in a meaningful way. The Civil War is always fun to teach, and we strongly feel that this station activity of Civil War primary sources is the perfect addition to any Civil War unit. Regardless of whether you are using our Civil War unit, or just want to add something new to an existing unit, it is the perfect activity.
What’s Included
This station activity includes an introduction slide deck, ten ready-to-use gallery walk information posters, student response worksheets, and guiding questions. Additionally, this activity also includes seven folders of Civil War primary sources.
Plus, teachers can either use the printable version or the Google Classroom–ready format. There are also answer keys and clear teacher instructions for easy teacher use.
How the Civil War Primary Source Stations Work
This activity is designed to give your students a deeper, more personal understanding of the Civil War through the people and key players who lived it.
Part I: Our Civil War Primary Source Stations start with a fully prepared introductory slide deck to set the tone and give students some background knowledge. Students will then Gallery Walk through the visually rich posters containing brief paragraphs about key players and their achievements. There are 10 posters total, and these posters can easily be placed around your room, outside or in the hallways! As students walk through the stations, they will fill out an accompanying graphic organizer filled with guiding questions.
Part II: Now begins the really fun part! Once the Gallery Walk is completed, students will turn into detectives. They will go through and analyze 7 Civil War primary source folders attempting to match the author/events to key figures. Key figures include: Abraham Lincoln, Harriet Tubman, Clara Barton, Frederick Douglass, Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant, Stonewall Jackson, Stephen A. Douglas, and General William Tecumseh Sherman. For your convenience, everything needed for each of the primary source folders is hyperlinked in a Google folder. In addition we have included an answer key and teacher scope and sequence.
Why It’s Teacher Approved
There are several reasons why teachers love this activity. First of all, these Civil War Primary Source Stations are incredibly student-centered. This is great because it really gives learners the chance to take ownership as they rotate through each station. It’s also fully standards-aligned, and really works on helping students build essential skills.
Throughout the Civil War Primary Sources Stations Activity, students work on source analysis, understanding perspective, and making inferences. The flexible design also means it works well in a variety of classroom settings. Whether you’re teaching traditionally, using a flipped classroom, hybrid model, or assigning it as a digital independent task. It’s also a versatile addition to any Civil War unit! It works as a perfect introduction, and also a tool to deepen understanding mid-unit, or a meaningful review before an assessment.
Ready to Dive In?
If you’re looking to enrich your Civil War unit and help students develop essential social studies skills, this Civil War Primary Sources Station Activity is a great place to start. It’s easy to implement, rich in content, and helps history come alive in a way students won’t forget.
Looking for more engaging Social Studies lessons like this? We have more Civil War resources, as well as much more on Teachers Pay Teachers! If you enjoy Instructomania lessons, check out our history teacher membership. With this membership, you have access to all curriculum content through a single login. If you do not want to miss any of the upcoming lessons, join my email list to be notified of all the interactive lessons coming up! By joining the email list, you will receive freebies for blog exclusive subscribers!
