Teaching the history of slavery was by far the most difficult subject of my elementary teaching career. It was also the most challenging topic to create lessons and activities for. I could’ve skipped teaching any slavery in America lessons – most teachers did. None of our standardized exams tested my students on the history of slavery. In addition, we didn’t really have an age-appropriate elementary history curriculum for teaching slavery lessons.
I was a caucasian female in a predominately white school in the state of Arizona. Teaching the history of slavery to my students was something for which I did not feel qualified. I was afraid that talking about the ugly parts of American history would cause the few Black students in my classroom to feel uneasy and make the white children feel guilty. It would have been so easy to go from the topics of early American government right to Westward Expansion.
Why Teaching the History of Slavery is Important
My fifth graders had already spent five years learning about Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Frederick Douglass. Every Black History Month in every grade level before 5th grade, students at my school had celebrated these same African American heroes and visionaries without any understanding of the real struggles they went through.
Teaching the history of slavery was challenging, but I underestimated my students’ ability to comprehend it. Because of our prior American history lessons and units, they already knew the difference between justice and injustice. They didn’t want me to sugarcoat or ignore the topic of slavery – they trusted me to tell them the truth.
Done properly with age-appropriate slavery resources, teaching the history of slavery in America built on my students’ desire to create a more just and fair society.
I had already taught them about the American Revolution and our nation’s fight for freedom; now they wanted to engage in discussions about the meaning of freedom for all.
Teaching the History of Slavery Lessons
When teaching the history of slavery, it’s important to start at the beginning. Until we started talking about the origins of slavery in America, my students assumed Black people arrived on the Mayflower with the Pilgrims. They were shocked to find out differently.
If you’re looking for a complete, ready-to-use resource for teaching this challenging topic, our Slavery in America Interactive Notebook Unit with six age-appropriate American history lessons take students from the beginning of slavery in America to the decade before the first shots of the Civil War.
Lesson One – Slavery’s Beginnings
Students learn about the arrival of the first Africans in the early 1500s. This was long before the Pilgrims landed in the New World. In this lesson, they explore –
- the difference between indentured servants and slavery
- the thirst for free labor in the 13 colonies
- the slave trade
- the journey from Africa to the New World through the Middle Passage
Lesson Two – Daily Life
This lesson focuses on the daily life of enslaved people, from the minute the sun rose. African Americans celebrated their culture through their work ethic, artistic abilities, and religious customs. Students learn about Slave Codes, written to give enslavers complete control over their “property.”
Lesson Three – The United States of America
By the 1700s, slavery had been part of America for more than 200 years. During the Revolutionary War, the 13 original colonies wrote the Declaration of Independence, declaring their freedom from Great Britain.
This lesson highlights the differences between being white in America and an enslaved Black person in America. It also addresses how the new Republic counted enslaved people. Students investigate slavery’s impact on America’s economy, both in the North and South. Students will learn about James Madison and Thomas Jefferson in this lesson.
Our Early American Government Interactive Notebook Unit followed by our American Revolution Interactive Notebook Unit give students context for teaching slavery in America.
Lesson Four – Slavery Rebellions
The invention of the cotton gin in 1793 caused many Southern farmers to switch from growing tobacco to growing cotton. There was a need for more enslaved workers. Enslaved people throughout the South began staging rebellions.
The lesson introduces students to Gabriel Prosser. Prosser, an enslaved Virginian blacksmith, organized a Black army to take over the state capital. Denmark Vesey, was a sailor and former enslaved man. He had purchased his freedom and made plans to take over the city of Charleston in South Carolina. Enslaved people in Virginia knew Nat Turner as “the Prophet.” Nat staged a rebellion in Virginia, freeing enslaved people and killing every white person they found along the way.
Lesson Five – The Underground Railroad
After slavery was abolished in all states north of the Pennsylvania and Maryland borders, known as the Mason-Dixon Line, enslaved people were more determined than ever to seek freedom in the North, no matter what the cost. Students learn about the Underground Railroad, a system of homes throughout the North that hid freedom seekers on their way to freedom.
Lesson Six – Famous Abolitionists
History proves there was no shortage of brave men and women willing to risk their lives to bring attention to the cruelty of slavery or help enslaved people escape to freedom. This lesson highlights Harriet Beecher Stowe, Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, and Sojourner Truth. Students also learn about fugitive slave laws and antislavery societies.
Classroom Activities for Teaching the History of Slavery
Thoughtful, grade-appropriate activities are extremely important when teaching the history of slavery. We’ve created hands-on engaging activities that help students interact with the difficult topic of slavery.
Our goal with our Slavery in America Interactive Notebook Unit is to provide teachers with an American history program that can be used the very first day they purchase our materials. No lessons to plan, comprehension questions to write, activities to create, or vocabulary words to define.
Activities in this Slavery Unit include –
- reading comprehension questions after each of the six slavery lessons
- KWLH Chart that allows students to direct their own learning about slavery in America
- Primary and Secondary Source Differentiation
- Expository Paragraph about James Madison – We take students through the writing process
- Underground Railroad Mapping activity using a grid system of number and letter coordinates to plot safe houses throughout the North
Slavery in America Interactive Notebook Assignments
If you are a regular reader of my blog posts, then you already know I am a huge fan of Interactive Notebooks. With a topic as heavy as the history of slavery in America, Interactive Notebook assignments help students engage with the difficult non-fiction informational text.
These hands-on organizers encourage students to –
- analyze historical events
- make connections between concepts
- create a lasting record of their learning
If you’re new to Interactive Notebooks, you can read more about their benefits and why I love them in this blog post – What is an Interactive Notebook–A Guide for Busy Teachers
Each lesson in this Slavery in America Unit has an interactive notebook vocabulary organizer with all patterns, templates, and step-by-step directions.
Each lesson also includes an additional interactive organizer exploring America’s slave trade, the Daily life of an enslaved person, the birth of our nation and its impact on slavery, the Underground Railroad, slavery rebellions, and famous Abolitionists.
Frequently Asked Questions About Teaching the History of Slavery
In which grade should I be teaching the history of Slavery?
Whether we realize it or not, we have been teaching elementary students about slavery in America since kindergarten. Kindergartners learn about Harriet Tubman during Black History Month, and then meet her and other freedom seekers again and again when they study the Underground Railroad. Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, and other African American heroes come up during civil rights discussions.
Our Slavery in America Interactive Notebook Unit was written at a fifth grade level, the year in elementary school that teachers generally explore the history of slavery.
We are proud of the fact that our curriculum reinforces and expands on the Southern Poverty Law Center framework of Essential Knowledge Skills for K – 5 students.
How do I prepare my students for the difficult topic of slavery?
Discussing the meaning of freedom and defining that slavery is when one person owns another person as property are good starting points for the introduction of slavery in America. According to research by the Southern Poverty Law Center, students should also know that –
- enslaved families could be split up at any time
- enslaved people hated being enslaved and tried to maintain their cultures while building new traditions
- enslavers exploited the many types of highly skilled labor of enslaved people for their own profit
- slavery and race were intimately connected
- slavery was the cause of the Civil War
How long will it take to teach the history of slavery in America?
We suggest, based on 50-minute blocks for Social Studies, taking a week to complete each of the six Slavery in America lessons.
- Day 1 – Interactive Vocabulary activity + reading the lesson
- Day 2 – Reading Comprehension Questions, prepare patterns for Interactive Notebook activity OR complete outlines for Writing assignment
- Days 3-5 – complete lesson activities and take a Vocabulary Quiz (if applicable)
This schedule will vary if your Social Studies block is shorter or longer than 50 minutes or if you assign reading or activities for homework.
What should I teach before and after teaching the history slavery?
Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered for American History lessons and activities before and after the topic of slavery. Before teaching slavery in America, your students would benefit first from our Early American Government Interactive Notebook Unit and then our American Revolution Interactive Notebook Unit. These units give students a solid foundation for rules and laws that paved the way for slavery and our country’s own struggle for freedom.
Our Slavery in America Interactive Notebook Unit is the perfect segue into our Civil War Interactive Notebook Unit.
If you’re unsure about the Civil War, check out my blog post, Teaching the Civil War – Lessons & Activities for Kids.