Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans

Lesson 4
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ELA

Unit 6

4th Grade

Lesson 4 of 25

Objective


Analyze what evidence the author includes to support the statement that abolitionists "lit a fire inside many a slave to take their freedom."

Readings and Materials


  • Book: Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans by Kadir Nelson  pp. 23 – 24 — Chapter 3 (stop on bottom of third paragraph)

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Target Task


Writing Prompt

What evidence does the author include to support the statement that abolitionists "lit a fire inside many a slave to take their freedom." (p. 24) Use evidence from the text and the illustrations to support your answer. 

Sample Response

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Key Questions


Key Questions

  • Why does the author say that slavery was "like mother's milk to the new country" (p. 23)?

  • How did southern white people justify slavery? Did enslaved people agree?

  • Read the sentence from page 24. "One of the slaves on Pap's plantation had taught himself to read, which was very dangerous because if white folks had found out, he would have got a sound licking." Why is the word very in italics? What made learning to read so dangerous? Why did so many enslaved people decide to learn to read anyway?

  • What does the word abolish mean? What did abolitionists believe?

Exit Ticket

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Vocabulary


abolitionist

n.

(p. 24)

a person who wanted to end slavery

abolish

v.

(p. 24)

to officially end or stop something, often a law

expose

v.

(p. 23)

reveal

illiterate

adj.

(p. 24)

not knowing how to read or write

justify

v.

(p. 23)

to give a good reason for something

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Common Core Standards


  • RI.4.3 — Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text.
  • RI.4.7 — Interpret information presented visually, orally, or quantitatively (e.g., in charts, graphs, diagrams, time lines, animations, or interactive elements on Web pages) and explain how the information contributes to an understanding of the text in which it appears.
  • RI.4.8 — Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text.

Supporting Standards

L.4.4
L.4.4.b
L.4.5
L.4.6
RF.4.3
RF.4.4
RI.4.1
RI.4.4
RI.4.10
SL.4.1
W.4.10

Next

Explain where Frederick Douglass found his inspiration and drive.

Lesson 5
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