Virtual Field Trip: Battle of Gettysburg (FLEX)

*This is a FLEX course. Students will be given assignments and due dates, be encouraged to participate in classroom discussions, and be invited to weekly live meetings that are optional, but encouraged.*

Students will learn through the use of fun virtual field trip videos taken by myself and a battlefield expert. We will walk the same path as the soldiers in 1863, highlighting important locations and discussing what happen at each location as well as exploring monuments and other markers placed on the battlefield. We will be exploring some lesser known spots, too. Each week, we will be highlighting a different aspects of the battle.

Week #1: The first week will be spent discussing the basics behind the American Civil War and the attitude of Americans going into the Battle of Gettysburg. We will also introduce the town of Gettysburg in 1863. This will be done through lesson videos, books, some YouTube videos for review, and comprehensive worksheets. I will also post a video highlighting the format of this course, the assignments and homework for the course, along with the final project that students will be working on throughout the course. 

*Final Project* Students will be working on this project throughout the entire course. In the end, they will have completed a presentation about a topic gone over in class. I will post a list of the topics, but students can also message me regarding a different topic they had mind. Students can create a poster, PowerPoint, Prezi, Google Slides, speech, diagram, or any other form of presentation to share their report. During the 6th week, students will sign up for live meetings. Students will pick (1) live meeting to share their presentation in plus (1) live meeting to sit in on and listen to their peers present. 

Week #2 - #4: Students will be taken through the three-day Battle of Gettysburg with a virtual field trip led by myself and a battlefield expert. Each week will cover a different day (week 2 = day 1, week 3 = day 2, week 4 = day 3). With the use of these lesson videos, books and articles, some YouTube videos for review, and comprehensive worksheets students will gain an understand for the first three days of battle. In the middle of the week, I will set up a live meeting so students can check in with any questions or concerns they have about the assignments or about the Battle of Gettysburg. Students can also feel free to make suggestions on things they would like to see or learn about, and we will try to accommodate these request with our virtual field trip videos. Each week I will also assign a check in work sheet to keep students on track for their research project. 

Week #5: During the final week of lessons, we will discuss the first day after the Battle of Gettysburg and the Gettysburg Address through the use of virtual field trip videos, books and articles, some YouTube videos for review, and comprehensive worksheets. We will have our live meeting check in during this week as well. Students will have the opportunity to ask final questions and make final suggestions for any bonus material they want covered and we will try to get a virtual field trip video out before the end of the course. Students will submit their final outline for the research project. 

Week #6: This week will be completely dedicated to the final projects. I will set up a variety of live meeting opportunities that will be posted prior to this week. Students will need to sign up for (1) meeting to present their research project and another (1) meeting to sit in and observe their peers' projects. That's a total of (2) live meetings they should sit in on. 

Books:
“What Was the Battle of Gettysburg?” By Jim O’Connor (the work sheets I will be using are based off the chapters of this book, but I will provide resources to answer these questions without the need to purchase the book)
“Simple History: the American Civil War” By Daniel Turner
Civil War through the Eyes of Abraham Lincoln By: Martha Kneib
Fact and Fiction of the Civil War By: Ryan Gale
Abraham Lincoln By: Josh Gregory
Harriet Tubman By: Czeena Devera Illustrated by: Jeff Bane
The Civil War Begins By: Jane H. Gould
Reconstruction and the Aftermath of the Civil War By: Lisa Colozza Cocca
Life on a Civil War Battlefield By: J. Matteson Claus
Final Campaigns of the Civil War By: Cinci Stowell
A Nation Divided: Causes of the Civil War By: Jeff Putnam
We Were There at the Battle of Gettysburg By: Alida Sims Malkus Illustrated by: Leonard Vosburgh
Gettysburg (Crabtree Chrome) By: James Bow

Videos:
Harriet Tubman Parts 1-3
Did you Know: Civil Rights Movement
Social Studies: Laws and Rights
Social Studies: Civil Rights
Abraham Lincoln
Did you Know: American Civil War

Students will learn through:

- Comprehensive worksheets.
- Field Trip videos touring the Gettysburg battlefield, town, and related locations.
- YouTube videos for review. 
- Activity suggestions including cooking recipes, game ideas, craft projects, and interactive websites. 
- Interactive nearpod slides that will include information, review activities, quizzes, collaborative activities, and videos.
- Collaborative bulletin boards where students can share their thoughts and comment on topics along with sharing any activities they choose to participate in. 
- Kahoot! quizzes that may be done in live meetings or independently. 
- An interactive Sutori timeline.