Barbara Simpson
Grade 4 Social Studies: A Survey of African-American History
The Wheeler School
Providence, RI
Essential Questions: Who was Frederick Douglass? How can we learn about his life as a slave, a fugitive, and a newly free black man by reading excerpts of his writings? How do historians use primary sources to write history/secondary sources?
Overview/Goals: Through the use of primary and secondary sources, as well as Internet sites, the students will piece together the early life of Frederick Douglass through his own words. They will learn how historians write secondary sources by examining primary source documents.
Primary Sources: 1) excerpts from Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, Written by Himself, My Bondage and My Freedom, and Life and Times of Frederick Douglass, and Escape From Slavery: The Boyhood of Frederick Douglass in His Own Words (edited and illustrated by Michael McCurdy
2) photo of a recording of Frederick’s birth year from History Maker Bios: Frederick Douglass, p.7
Secondary Sources: 1) Young American Heroes: Meet the Heroes website:
2) Plantation Dig Reveals Maryland Town’s Painful Past (NPR broadcast and article):
3) America’s Story from America’s Library: Douglass’s Escape from Slavery
4) Frederick Douglass National Historic Site website:
5) BrainPop website:
6) A Picture Book of Frederick Douglass by David A. Adler and illustrated by Samuel Byrd
7) History Maker Bios: Frederick Douglass by Catherine A. Welch
8) Great African Americans: Frederick Douglass: Leader Against Slavery by Patricia and Frederick McKissack
9) Cobblestone Magazine: Frederick Douglass: Fighter for Freedom (February, 1989)
10) Unbound and Unbroken: The Story of Frederick Douglass by Amos Esty
11) Frederick Douglass: A Noble Life by David Adler
12) Frederick Douglass: Freedom’s Force by Melva Lawson Ware
13) 16 Extraordinary African Americans by Nancy Lobb
14) African Americans Who Made a Difference: 15 Plays for the Classroom by J. Haakmat (Scholastic)
Lesson Implementation:
Day 1:
1)This lesson is based on the assumption that the students have some prior knowledge of primary and secondary sources. However, to initiate the lesson, the teacher can ask students to explain the difference between them. This lesson also complements a unit on slavery and the Underground Railroad.
2)Explain that historians use primary sources to discover facts about history and then use those facts to write secondary sources. This authenticates/validates those sources as sharing correct information.
3)Ask whether anyone has heard of a person named Frederick Douglass. If there are students who acknowledge this, ask what they know about him. Take any/all responses.
4)Explain that the students will have the opportunity to become “history detectives,” first with a teacher model, next in small groups or partners and finally, if desired as an extension, on their own, by discovering primary source information which led historians to write secondary sources about Frederick Douglass. In this way, they will piece together facts about his early life to form a clearer picture of who he was, why he is an important person in United States history to learn about, and how he is connected to the study of slavery and the Underground Railroad.
5)There are a variety of ways for the teacher to proceed at this point. It is important to give an overview of Frederick’s life, as groups of students, and then individual students, will be given quotes from both secondary and primary sources from different parts of Frederick’s early life to study. Therefore, everyone will have some knowledge of Frederick before looking at the sources.
6)You can use short picture books, biographies, or movies/activities listed in the secondary source section at your discretion for the age of your students. Looking at timelines of Frederick’s life can also be used after the initial reading to review the information learned.
Day 2:
1) Use one secondary source statement to model how to use primary source excerpts as a model. You can do this as a SmartBoard activity, using a projector w/out the SmartBoard, an overhead, and/or with handouts of the chosen secondary source statement and the primary source excerpts.
2)To each small group of “history detectives” (students or student pairs), distribute one or two facts about Frederick Douglass as well as Xeroxed page(s) from any of the primary source documents that students will use to find the original words Douglass wrote about his life as a slave or a newly freed black. In addition, hand out a worksheet that accompanies this lesson to document/record what they discover through their history detective work, including additional facts not mentioned in the secondary sources.
3)Tell the students that working together, they will read the secondary source fact(s) and then read through the primary source excerpts. When they find the words Douglass used that corroborate the fact(s) from the primary sources, they will highlight the key quotes on the worksheet(s). This will be shared with the entire class the following day after the teacher has had a chance to check the validity of their work.
Day 3:
1)Student groups or pairs read their fact(s) about Frederick Douglass and then share the quotes found in the primary source document that proves that the fact is true. The teacher records the facts, including new information gleaned from the primary sources, in a list that will be given to students at the conclusion of the project.
Day 4 and so on:
Assessment:
1)If desired: Each individual student is given his/her own fact to do by him/herself in the same manner. This can be completed in-class or for homework.
2)After the teacher has validated the students’ work and has had students make necessary corrections, students will share their discoveries by making a SmartBoard or PowerPoint page, or another method of the teacher’s choosing (class book of Frederick Douglass, etc.).
3)Students will watch the completed SmartBoard or PowerPoint lessons or read the compiled class book together.
4)If students do not individually do their own work, you could read the Scholastic play or view websites/films listed in the secondary sources that you didn’t use in the lesson plan introduction.
5)As a culminating activity, ask students to write paragraphs that answers these questions:
1)Who was Frederick Douglass? Why is he an important person in United States history? What is his connection to slavery, the Underground Railroad, and the abolitionist movement before the Civil War?
2)Why is it important to look at primary source documents? What can they tell us? Why do historians use them instead of just secondary sources?
Suggested Facts for Students to Explore in Primary Source documents:
Abbreviation codes:
HMB: FD History Maker Bios: Frederick Douglass by Catherine Welch
FD picture book: A Picture Book of Frederick Douglass by David Adler (there are no page numbers in this book)
FDLAS: Frederick Douglass Leader Against Slavery by Patricia and Frederick McKissack
Escape: Escape from Slavery, The Boyhood of Frederick Douglass in His Own Words, edited by Michael McCurdy
My Bondage: My Bondage and My Freedom by Frederick Douglass
L&TLife and Times of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass
1)“But white masters did not want slaves to know their birthdays.” (HMB: FD, p.6) AND “Soon after Frederick was born, he was taken to live with his grandmother, Betsey Bailey. He only saw his mother four or five times after that.”(picture book of FD) Primary sources: P.4-5 in Escape and p.2-4 in My Bondage…
2)“Fred was happy until he was about eight years old” (FDLAS p.6) AND “Frederick’s early years were relatively carefree. He explored the woods and creek around the cabin and enjoyed a loving home life.” (Escape p.3) Primary sources: p. 7 in Escape and p.6-7 and p.68-70 in My Bondage
3)“When Frederick was six he was taken to his master’s house and put to work. He wrote later about how he lived as a slave. He was fed boiled corn meal called mush.” AND “One day he learned that the cabin (Grandmamma’s) belonged to Old Master. Then he learned that Grandmamma and all the children belonged to Old Master. Frederick was six when a sad-looking Grandmamma took him on a hike…to Old Master.” (Picture Book of FD) Primary sources: Escape p. 7-8 and p. 4-5; p. 8-12, p.30, p.70-71 in My Bondage
4)“One morning he was awakened by cries and shrieks…” (p.11 in HMB: FD) and “Frederick was wakened often by the cries of a slave being beaten…” (FD picture book); primary source: My Bondage p.38-39 (may be too graphic for younger students)
5)“When Frederick was eight years old he was taken to Baltimore to live as the slave of Sophia and Hugh Auld, relatives of his master’s daughter. He ran errands for the Aulds and took care of their infant son, Thomas.” (FD picture book) “Then Fred was sent to be a house slave for Sophia and Hugh Auld. Sophia Auld was a kind woman.” (p.8 in FDLAS); “Frederick is about eight years old when he is told that he will be sent to live in Baltimore with Hugh Auld, the brother of his owner’s son-in-law….” (p. 9 in Escape); “One day, when Frederick was eight, he was told to scrub himself clean…(p.12-13 in HMB: FD); primary sources p.9-12 in Escape, p.74, 76-78 in My Bondage
6)“Young Frederick Bailey was Sophia Auld’s first slave. She was a good-hearted woman and taught Frederick the alphabet. She began to teach him to read until her husband told her it was against the law. Hugh Auld said a slave “should know nothing but to obey his master.” (FD picture book), (p.13-14 in HMB: FD), (p.8-9 in FDLAS); primary sources: p.12-13 in Escape; 79-81 and p.85 in My Bondage
7)“But Fred didn’t stop reading” (p.9 in FDLAS); “Sophia Auld stopped teaching Frederick, but he didn’t stop learning…” AND “When Frederick was about twelve he told the boys, “I am a slave for life!...” (FD pic book); “Sophia’s gentle voice and smile disappeared. The teaching stopped. But Frederick learned to spell from the white boys he met on the streets of Baltimore. Sometimes he talked to them about slavery…” (p.13 in HMB: FD); primary sources: p.14 in Escape, p.86-88 in My Bondage
8)“On January 1, 1835, Frederick was sent to work for William Freeland. On Sundays the slaves had no work, and Frederick opened a secret Sabbath school and taught slaves to read.” (FD pic book); primary sources: Escape p.36, My Bondage p.162, 164
9)“…he was sent back to Baltimore, to be Hugh Auld’s slave again. Frederick worked in a shipyard. Whatever he earned, he gave to Hugh Auld.” (FD pic book); “So Frederick was sent back to Hugh Auld in Baltimore. Hugh sent Frederick to work for a shipbuilder. Frederick became an expert in using caulker’s tools. He patched cracks in ships. Even though Frederick did the work, he had to give Hugh his wages. Sometimes he was allowed to keep a little money.” (HMB: FD p. 19); primary sources: Escape p.44-48 (including beating by workers); My Bondage p.192-201
10) “In Baltimore Frederick met with many free African-Americans, including Anna Murray. Together they planned Frederick’s escape from slavery.” (FD pic book); “Frederick met many free blacks who could read and write. And he met Anna Murray, a free black woman….They soon grew fond of each other and wanted to get married. But Frederick was afraid he would be sold to a new master in the Deep South. So he and Anna saved their money and planned Frederick’s escape.” (HMB: FD, p. 20); (Escape p. 49); primary sources: Escape p. 49-51; Life and Times p. 186-187, 188-195
11) “Frederick planned to travel north by train….” (FD pic book); “One day twenty-year-old Frederick dressed himself as a sailor….” (p.21 in HMB: FD); “After many months of planning, Frederick was ready to run…” (p.12 in FDLAS); (Escape epilogue, p.59-61); primary source: Life and Times of FD: p.196-201
12) “Soon after Frederick arrived in NY, he sent for Anna Murray…” (FD pic book); “In New York, slave catchers offered people money...” (p.22-23 in HMB: FD); primary sources: Escape p.51-54; My Bondage: p.213-217
13) “Frederick and Anna married and moved to New Bedford, MA…” (p.23 in HMB: FD); “In New Bedford, Frederick worked loading and unloading ships, shoveling coal, and sweeping out chimneys…” (FD pic book); (Escape, p. 55); “Frederick hoped to work as a caulker…” p.24 in (HMB: FD); primary sources: Escape p.55-57; My Bondage: p. 217-223
14) “About four months after he came to New Bedford, Frederick began reading the Liberator, an anti-slavery newspaper…” (FD pic book); “Frederick began reading the Liberator…” (HMB: FD p. 25); primary sources: Escape: p.57-58; My Bondage: 226-227
15) “In 1841, FD met the editor of the newspaper…Garrison hired him to travel to other cities, talk about the horrors of slavery…” (FD pic book); “Frederick also went to antislavery meetings. In the summer of 1841, he went to a meeting in Nantucket…” (HMB: FD, p.25-26); primary sources: Escape: p.58; My Bondage: p.228-231
16) “In 1845 his autobiography, The Narrative…” (FD pic book); “Frederick kept reading and thinking about slavery…To prove he was a slave, Frederick wrote his autobiography…” (HMB: FD p.26); primary sources: My Bondage: p.231-233, 234
I have purposely excluded excerpts about Frederick’s one-year stay with Mr. Covey due to the violent nature of this time period and his life after the writing of his Narrative, as I am focusing on his childhood and early adult years. Of course, you may use any additional quotes as you deem necessary (for instance, if you are studying the Civil War or Reconstruction period or Frederick’s quest for equality in any form).