A Nation Divided
Unit description: In this unit, students will study westward expansion and how the industrialization of the North, and the increase of slavery in the South contributed to the growth of sectionalism. Students will investigate Constitutional conflicts between advocates of states’ rights and supporters of federal power and how this increased tensions in the nation. In addition, students will explore how attempts to compromise ultimately failed to keep the nation together, leading to the Civil War and the outcome and lasting effects of this historic battle.
Download the complete Grade 7 Social Studies Unit 8 framework to customize for your own planning.
Standards
Standards: 1, 3, 4; Themes: TCC, GEO, GOV, ECO
Essential Questions and Big Ideas
Big idea of the unit: Westward expansion, the industrialization of the North, and the increase of slavery in the South contributed to the growth of sectionalism.
How did regional economic differences and values create tensions between states’ rights advocates and supporters of a strong federal government?
- Early United States industrialization affected different parts of the country in different ways. Regional economic differences and values, as well as different conceptions of the Constitution, laid the basis for tensions between states’ rights advocates and supporters of a strong federal government.
How did the Missouri Compromise, the Compromise of 1850, and the Kansas-Nebraska Act affect new territories?
- As the nation expanded geographically, the question of slavery in new territories and states led to increased sectional tensions. Attempts at compromise ended in failure.
How did perspectives of the Civil War vary by geographical region?
- Perspectives on the causes of the Civil War varied based on geographic region, but the election of a Republican president was one of the immediate causes for the secession of the Southern states.
What issues caused the secession of the southern states and what role did New York play?
- Perspectives on the causes of the Civil War varied based on geographic region, but the election of a Republican president was one of the immediate causes for the secession of the Southern states.
How did the Civil War impact the United States?
- The Civil War affected human lives, physical infrastructure, economic capacity, and governance of the United States.