Civil War Newspaper

Unit of Practice by Gil Gorospe

Home

Design of Newspaper

Rubric

Teacher Notes

You are living in the 1860's and are to witness the Civil war that will be fought on American ground...the war that will divide the Union. As a newspaper reporter you will present the facts as you see it.

The class will be divided in half. One half will create a newspaper to present the North's point of view; the other half will create a newspaper to present the South's point of view.

A great source for your research will be this web site:
Civil War   http://sunsite.utk.edu/civil-war/warweb.html

Your newspaper will contain the following features:

Headline story
You will write about the secession of the southern states and the bombing of Ft. Sumter. Especially focus on the causes of the war.
How would the South present the "facts"? How would the North present the "facts"?

See the format for writing the Headline story.

Editorial
The issue is about slavery. State reasons why the South believed in slavery; or why the North believed slavery was wrong.
Give examples to justify your reasons and be sure to express your feelings. Remember whose side you are writing for.

See the format for creating the editorial.

Political Cartoon
Make fun of the other side by drawing your own political cartoon
Here are some possible topics:
slavery, greed of the North, the Emancipation Proclamation,
John Brown, Dred Scott case, advantages of North over the South, the horrors of war, etc.

See directions for creating the political cartoon.

Interview of a soldier:
Using a question and answer format, ask about the soldier's background, his reason for fighting, his experiences of war, what camp life is like, his feelings, etc.

See the format for the interview.

Movie Review
After watching the movie, "Glory", you will advise movie goers about going to see the movie. Give it a thumbs up or thumbs down.

See the format for the movie review.

Photo Gallery
Research and find 4 pictures about any topic that interests
you. Write a caption explaining each picture...

Possible topics are:
-a famous battle: e.g. Gettysburg
-a famous general or any other famous person
-medicine
-weapons of war: e.g. the Monitor and Merrimack
-women in the war
-the role of the black soldier
-medicine
-camp life, etc.