Subjects: U.S. government, civics
Grade Level(s): 9-12
Time Frame [Based on 50-minute periods (e.g., 4, 50-minute
periods)]: 3, 50-minute periods
Objectives [What the student should know and be able
to do at the end of the lesson]:
1.0 Overall: Using an example of the Compromise
of 1850 and the Fugitive Slave Act, students will summarize
the importance of compromise in the congressional process.
The Compromise of 1850 was a series of five legislative enactments,
passed by the U.S. Congress during August and September 1850.
These measures, essentially the work of Senator Henry Clay
of Kentucky, were designed to reconcile the political differences
then dividing the antislavery and proslavery factions of Congress
and the nation. The measures, sometimes referred to collectively
as the Omnibus Bill, dealt chiefly with the question of whether
slavery was to be sanctioned or prohibited in the regions acquired
from Mexico as a result of the Mexican War. Two of the five
measures represented concessions by the South to the North,
authorizing the abolition of the slave trade in the District
of Columbia and admission of California as a free state. The
third bill, a substantial concession to the South, was the
Fugitive Slave Law of 1850, which provided for the return of
runaway slaves to their masters. By the terms of the fourth
measure, the territory east of California ceded to the U.S.
by Mexico was divided into the territories of New Mexico (now
New Mexico and Arizona) and Utah, and they were open to settlement
by both slave-holders and antislavery settlers. This measure
superseded the Missouri Compromise of 1820. The fifth measure
provided that Texas, already in the Union as a slave state,
be awarded $10 million in settlement of claims to adjoining
territories, further strengthening the South.
Bloom’s Taxonomy: CongressLink lesson
plans are built around Bloom's taxonomy. The purpose of the
taxonomy is to provide a coherent format for lessons and to
make it easier for teachers to design them according to CongressLink's
standards. If you are preparing a lesson, be sure to read the detailed
information about the taxonomy -- it will be a big help.
2.0 Knowledge: List the main arguments and issues discussed
and name two defenders for each side of the argument and state
their political affiliation and position in Congress.
3.0 Understanding: How would you summarize the opposing
sides in the compromise debate? Explain the national significance
of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 and the Compromise of 1850.
What other congressional compromises might compare with the
Compromise of 1850?
4.0 Application: Investigate the circumstances leading
up to the passage of this law. Why was compromise so significant
in 1850? What were the strengths and weaknesses of the compromise?
5.0 Analysis: What are the main ingredients
needed to get such a compromise passed? Diagram how the compromise
went through Congress. What are the strengths and weaknesses
of the compromise?
6.0 Synthesis: What alternative solutions to national
turmoil would you have suggested other than this compromise?
How might Congress more efficiently agree on such issues of
national importance without diminishing the impact of the law?
7.0 Evaluation: What was the most compelling argument
that made passing of the compromise possible? How is the law
representative of congressional procedure, and what do you
think about having to compromise on issues of national importance?
Which of the law's provisions have had the most lasting impact
and why? Could the compromise have been more successful? How?
Procedure/Sequence
Materials:
Compromise
of 1850
Brief
summary of the matter with links to other resources
Map
showing boundaries of the Compromise
Text
of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850
John
C. Calhoun's Proposal to Save the Union
National Standards [based on National Standards
for Civics and Government, Center for Civic Education, 1994.
Citation based on section, subsection, standard of the document]:
1. Essential characteristics of limited government.
2. Values and principles basic to American constitutional government
(including compromise).
3. The distribution of powers in national government.
4. Political conflict and cooperation in the national government.
5. The place of law in the American constitutional system.
6. Choice and opportunities op participation in the political
system.
7. Character traits important in preservation and improvement
of American constitutional democracy.
Rubric: See: http://www.congresslink.org/rubric/pdf
Author(s):
Colleen Kahl
Social Studies Department,
Pekin Community High School,
Pekin, IL 61554
|
