Session C-2: The Pursuit of Happiness: A Game of Ante-Bellum America
Session Number
C-2
Grade Level
Grade Level: 9-10
Start Date
1-3-2013 1:10 PM
End Date
1-3-2013 2:10 PM
Description
My students and I created a classroom game two years ago to research the causes of the Civil War in an interactive, collaborative, and enjoyable classroom setting. The game is played in 7 turns, each turn comprising one decade from 1790 through the 1850s. By means of cards and dice rolls players react to epidemics, disasters, technological and political changes, and other historical events. Players form "families" that react to the local and national events in each decade. Careful records of all events are kept in a "diary". Along with assigned readings in secondary and primary sources, the students select the most significant events from their family diaries to weave into an analytical discussion about why the Civil War happened.
Session C-2: The Pursuit of Happiness: A Game of Ante-Bellum America
My students and I created a classroom game two years ago to research the causes of the Civil War in an interactive, collaborative, and enjoyable classroom setting. The game is played in 7 turns, each turn comprising one decade from 1790 through the 1850s. By means of cards and dice rolls players react to epidemics, disasters, technological and political changes, and other historical events. Players form "families" that react to the local and national events in each decade. Careful records of all events are kept in a "diary". Along with assigned readings in secondary and primary sources, the students select the most significant events from their family diaries to weave into an analytical discussion about why the Civil War happened.