Students learn that growing social, economic, and moral problems in the early 1800s led Americans to call for reform, and that new ideas about self-reliance, conscience, and equality shaped how people understood improvement and responsibility.
Students learn that growing social, economic, and moral problems in the early 1800s led Americans to call for reform, and that new ideas about self-reliance, conscience, and equality shaped how people understood improvement and responsibility.
Students view an image of a peaceful protest and discuss, in groups, the meanings of the words “civil” and “disobedience.” They record group definitions for each term in a shared table and then are introduced to the lesson focus and objectives about reform and new ideas in the early 1800s.
Teacher MovesPreview key vocabulary and prior concepts (such as revival, abolitionist, and state) to support access to the new content. Guide students in clarifying the meanings of “civil” and “disobedience,” emphasizing that civil can relate to citizens and to peaceful behavior, and that disobedience means refusing to follow rules or laws. Lead the class in creating a shared definition of “civil disobedience,” compare it to the provided definition, and keep it visible. Prompt students to recall earlier examples of civil disobedience in U.S. history and to speculate about why some Americans in the mid-1800s might have engaged in it, framing this as idea-generation rather than assessment. Review the experience overview and objectives so students understand the learning arc.
Students read Rising Problems and the First Age of Reform to learn about how industrialization, urban growth, religious change, and evolving ideas about liberty and equality created social, economic, and moral problems in the early 1800s. They then complete a drag-and-drop matching activity that connects specific examples of problems to the parts of society where Americans saw a need for reform.
Teacher MovesReview student responses to the matching activity and prompt them to identify patterns in the problems they matched. Highlight how issues related to work, living conditions, religion, and national ideals all point to concerns about fairness, opportunity, and morality in a changing society. Ask students how these problems suggest that Americans were beginning to think differently about improving their country. Extend the discussion by inviting predictions about how people at the time might have tried to solve these problems, and connect students’ ideas to the kinds of reform movements they will study next.
Students read What is Transcendentalism? to identify key beliefs of the movement, then answer multiple-choice questions about how Transcendentalists viewed truth, equality, and social reform. Next, in small groups, they read the Excerpt from Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau and complete a concept map showing Thoreau’s ideas about government authority, the role of the individual, and his overall message. Finally, students independently respond on a discussion wall explaining how new ways of thinking about people and society inspired Americans to address the problems they observed.
Teacher MovesStructure the scene so students first work independently on the multiple-choice questions to surface their initial understanding of Transcendentalist ideas. Use their responses to discuss what these answers reveal about how Transcendentalists viewed people, conscience, and society, emphasizing the belief that individuals have the power and responsibility to improve the world around them. During group work on the concept map, circulate to support interpretation of Thoreau’s argument, prompting students to consider what makes a government fair or unfair and how conscience relates to law. After groups finish, debrief by comparing Thoreau’s ideas to earlier examples of civil disobedience and by connecting his emphasis on independent moral judgment to reform movements of the period. When reviewing discussion wall posts, highlight responses that clearly link new ideas about conscience and equality to concrete actions for social change, and invite students to relate these patterns to how people today use their beliefs to decide which issues matter to them.
Students read the Adapted Excerpt from Woman in the Nineteenth Century by Margaret Fuller to identify the problems she describes for women and the changes she believes are needed. They complete a graphic organizer that pairs the social problems Fuller highlights with the solutions or reforms she proposes. Students then post to a discussion wall explaining what this source reveals about how people during the First Age of Reform viewed the need for equality and change in society.
Teacher MovesExplain that this scene is an optional extension for applying key ideas in a new context. After students complete the organizer, review their entries to ensure they understand the unfair attitudes and conditions Fuller critiques and the reforms she advocates, such as equal rights, opportunities, and freedom for women. Ask questions that draw out how Fuller challenges assumptions about women’s weakness and dependence and frames equality as a basic right. In the discussion that follows, guide students to see how Fuller’s arguments reflect shifting attitudes about fairness, moral responsibility, and human potential during the First Age of Reform, and why her ideas would have seemed bold at the time.
Students complete the exit quiz by answering all the questions.
Teacher MovesFacilitate the assessment and use student data to evaluate understanding, address misconceptions, and identify areas for growth.
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