Lesson One
In this lesson, students will look at primary sources relating to the story of New England and slavery. This unit will cover the 1790s through the 1830s, encompassing the time period of not only of Old Sturbridge Village, but also OSV’s partner museum, Coggeshall Farm in Bristol, Rhode Island. Throughout the unit, students will be asked to examine primary sources from the collections of Old Sturbridge Village, as well as other New England museums. In this first lesson, we will learn more about what primary sources are, what they can tell us, and why they are important to the study of our past. Using learning stations, students will have the opportunity to observe, think, and discuss in small groups.
Time: 60 minutes
Lesson Plan 1: An Introduction to Primary Sources
lesson 1.pdfLesson 1 Worksheets (Primary Source Worksheet and Learning Stations)
Station 1.pdfStation 1: Thinking about Objects in Your Life
Station 2.pdfStation 2: Defining Slavery and Freedom
Station 3.pdfStation 3: Looking at Primary Sources (Documents)
Station 4.pdfStation 4: Looking at Primary Sources (Artifacts)
Station 5.pdfStation 5: Timeline of Slavery and Abolition
Station 6.pdfStation 6: Telling Stories about Objects
timeline dates for station 5.pdfTimeline Dates for Station 5
Additional Resources
primary source slidesprimary sources for lesson 1.pdf
Nonmonetary token from OSV's collection, front and back (collections.osv.org/object-15-14-142)
"Gathering Cotton" plate from OSV's collection (collections.osv.org/object-51-16-755)