Building Blocks for History Lab:
SS.6.C.1.6 Evaluate how amendments to the Constitution have expanded voting rights from our nation's early history to present day.
Essential Question: How was the Constitution amended during the Reconstruction era to establish the rights of African Americans?
Before introducing this history lab to students, they must be familiar with the Reconstruction era after the end of the Civil War and with the concept of Constitutional amendments. Knowing much background on the Reconstruction Amendments isn’t essential in this case because the text of both the 13th and 15th amendments is included within sources 1 and 3. Students should be able to understand the significance of those amendments based on the text within them. However, because the 14th amendment is not included as text within the history lab, students should have some background on that amendment as providing equal protection to all citizens, regardless of race.
Students should be familiar with the following key terms:
· Reconstruction
· Constitutional amendments
· 13th, 14th, 15th Amendments
Name ______Period _____ Date ______
SS.6.C.1.6 Evaluate how amendments to the Constitution have expanded voting rights from our nation's early history to present day.
Correlation: SS.7.C.3.7 Analyze the impact of the 13th, 14th, 15th, 19th, 24th, and 26th amendments on participation of minority groups in the American political process.
Essential Question: How was the Constitution amended during the Reconstruction era to establish the rights of African Americans?
Source / Main Idea / Message / Important Details / How does this document answer the essential question?Source 1
The 13th Amendment
Source 2
Image, “The First Colored Senator and Representatives”
Source 3
The 15th Amendment
Source 4
Illustration, “The First Vote,” Harper’s Weekly magazine
Thesis: ______
______
Source 1: The 13th Amendment—Freedom and the Abolition of Slavery
“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”Source of quote: https://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/13thamendment.html
Source 2: Image, “The First Colored Senator and Representatives”
Source: https://www.loc.gov/item/98501907/
Source 3: The 15th Amendment—the right to vote
“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.”Source of quote: https://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=llsl&fileName=015/llsl015.db&recNum=379
Source 4: Illustration, “The First Vote” from Harper’s Weekly magazine
Source: http://objectofhistory.org/objects/extendedtour/votingmachine/?order=2