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Primary Source Lessons: Poetic Response to the Death of Abraham Lincoln

Poetic Response to the Death of Abraham Lincoln

Stacie Henderson

Williamsville Junior High School; Williamsville, IL.

Overview:

Understanding poetry can be a daunting task for some, especially when poets create extended metaphors to the death of Abraham Lincoln. While the men did not know each other beyond a brief nod of the head when passing on the street, each held the other in the highest esteem. Lincoln was fond of Whitman's verse, and Whitman admired the leader that preserved the Union. Within his volume of poetry entitled Leaves of Grass, Whitman had several poems reflecting on Lincoln's death. They vary in length and in style, but his love and grief ring clearly throughout each.

Writing poetry can be equally intimidating for many. Poetry is a deeply personal response to the world in which we live. It becomes an even greater challenge when we are called upon to write a poem about the past. Unlike Whitman and his contemporaries, we cannot walk the same streets as Abraham Lincoln; we cannot read of his actions and the nation's response in the newspapers in real time, we cannot hear him speak. Yet, we can gain a sense of the time in which he lived and the kind of man he was by relying on those who did, by examining primary resources.

Throughout this project, students will use primary resources, including photographs, artifacts, cartoons, illustrations, journals, and poetry to gain a stronger understanding of Lincoln's presidency and his death. Utilizing what they have learned, students will then write an original poem honoring Lincoln. Students will then publish their original work in a PowerPoint Presentation incorporating primary resources as graphics and digital voice overlay.

Objectives:

While completing this project, students will be able...

To read, comprehend and interpret an essay, a poem, a journal
To relate historical context to personal experience
To appreciate historical context
To analyze primary resources and share responses with classmates
To utilizing primary resources as background or springboard for creative writing
To create a poem that clearly contains a theme
To experiment with word choice and figurative language
To revise for fluency, word choice, and correct grammar and punctuation
Identify and incorporate appropriate graphics to illustrate poetry
To use voice as a means to convey theme of the poem and connect with the audience

Time Requirements: 3 weeks

Recommended grade level: 7-9

Illinois State Learning Standards for Language Arts:

State Goal 1: Read with understanding and fluency

Apply word analysis and vocabulary to comprehend selections.
Apply reading strategies to improve understanding and fluency.
Comprehend a broad range of reading material.

State Goal 3: Compose well-organized and coherent writing for specific purposes and audiences.

Produce documents that convey a clear understanding and interpretation of ideas and information and display focus, organization, elaboration and coherence.
Edit and revise for word choice, organization, consistent point of view and transitions among paragraphs using contemporary technology and formats suitable of submission and/or publication.
Use available technology, produce compositions and multimedia works for specified audiences.

State Goal 4: Listen and speak effectively in a variety of situations.

Listen effectively in formal and informal situations.
Speak effectively using language appropriate to the situation and audience.

State Goal 5: Use the language arts to acquire, assess and communicate information.

Analyze and evaluate information from various sources.

Resources:

Library of Congress Resources

Print Sources

Freedman, Russel. "Emancipation." from Lincoln: A Photobiography. Prentice Hall Literature: Timeless Voices, Timeless Themes. 2000 ed.
Whitman, Walt. "O Captain, My Captain." Prentice Hall Literature: Timeless Voices, Timeless Themes. 2000 ed.

Online Sources

Cartoon Analysis Worksheet. The National Archives.
Photo Analysis Worksheet. The National Archives.
Motion Picture Analysis Worksheet. The National Archives.
Whitman, Walt. "Hushed Be the Camps Today." Bartleby.com. 6 July 2008 http://www.bartleby.com/142/194.html
Whitman, Walt. "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom." Bartleby.com. 6 July 2008 http://www.bartleby.com/142/192.html
Written Document Analysis Worksheet. The National Archives.

Other Formats

Procedures:

Day 1-3: Introduction to Whitman's poetic response to Lincoln's death

Have students in groups of two or three analyze the .mpg video clip of "O Captain, My Captain" using the Motion Picture Analysis Worksheet provided by the National Archives.
Next, ask each group to join another group and share their observations from the video clip.
Have the larger groups report out to the whole class.
Project or write the following question on the overhead, and ask the students to brainstorm a response within their original groups of two or three.
What do we know about Abraham Lincoln and his presidency?
Allow students 4-5 minutes to generate a list. Then ask students to share their knowledge, recording their responses on the board. This will provide a good opportunity to review the difference between fact and opinion. As an organizational strategy, students could be challenged to find patterns or categories among the information (childhood, education, jobs, political life, tenure as president, public opinion, death, etc.)
Read the poem "O Captain, My Captain" as a group discussing the metaphors chosen by Whitman.
Distribute and read aloud excerpts from the poem "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom." And discuss style and word choice.
Distribute and read aloud "Hushed Be the Camps Today."
Ask students to draft a paragraph stating which of the three poems they prefer and why.
Responses should focus on voice, content, word choice, and fluency/rhythm.

Day 4-6: Illustrating Whitman's poetic response to Lincoln's death

Divide the students into groups based on the poem they selected as their preference from the previous assignment. Have them share their reasons within their groups. If it turns out that there is only one who prefers a particular poem, have him or her join the group for the second choice. However, this person will have a chance to share his or her reasons with the group.
Ask students to further divide into teams of two or three to create a PowerPoint presentation illustrating the key ideas/themes in their preferred poem using photographs and prints archived at the Library of Congress.
1. Selected Civil War Photographs
2. Panoramic Photographs
3. Poet at Work
4. Prints and Photographs Online Catalog
5. Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
6. Death of a President
Each PowerPoint should contain between 15 and 30 slides, including title slides and bibliography slide. Students should also create digital recordings of their poem to imbed in the slides of the PowerPoints.
Students will upload to a secure drive and then view and respond to the PowerPoints of two other groups using the Digital Storytelling Rubric: Walt Whitman's Words.

Day 7-8: Gaining a better understanding of Lincoln's presidency and death.

As a whole class read and discuss "Emancipation" from Lincoln: A Photobiography.
1. What do the selected photographs accompanying the essay suggest about life as a slave?
2. What political pressures did Lincoln face during the Civil War?
3. Why would some Northerners support slavery in the South?
4. What was Lincoln's reasoning for finally deciding to issue the Emancipation Proclamation?
5. Does Freedman present Lincoln as a good leader?
Divide the class into groups of 4. Provide excerpts from The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861-1865. Volume 3, January 1, 1864-May 30, 1965, copied on different colored paper. Then utilizing a jigsaw technique, redistribute groups according to the color of their excerpts and have them read and analyze the documents based on the Written Document Analysis Worksheet.
After a period of time for discussion, have students return to their original groups and share their observations.

Day 9-10: Writing an original response to Lincoln's death

Review with the students the characteristics of effective poetry. Share the Advice from Poet Laureate Charles Simic.
Students will work independently on day 0 and garner peer feedback and revise on day 2.
Remind students of the value of word choice and rhythm in poetry.

Day 11-13: Creating a PowerPoint to share original poems.

Determine line breaks for transitions into new slides.
Select photos to illustrate the words of the original poem.
Type a poem onto slides (including a title slide and a bibliography slide).
Set transitions and animation for slides.
Create digital recording of poem to embed in slides.
Determine timing as to set slide transition times so that the words on the slides match the voice.
Upload to secure drive to be viewed by peers and teacher.

Evaluation

Literary Response Rubric
Digital Storytelling Rubric: Walt Whitman's Words

Students' Name: ___________________________________

Category	10	9	8	7
Images x 2	Images create a distinct atmosphere or tone that matches different parts of the poem. The images may communicate symbolism and/or metaphors.	Images create an atmosphere or tone that matches some parts of the poem. The images may communicate symbolism and/or metaphors.	An attempt was made to use images to create an atmosphere/tone but it needed more work. Image choice is logical.	Little or no attempt to use images to create an appropriate atmosphere/tone.
Voice- Consistency	Voice quality is clear and consistently audible throughout the presentation.	Voice quality is clear and consistently audible throughout the majority (85-95%) of the presentation.	Voice quality is clear and consistently audible through some (70-84%) of the presentation.	Voice quality needs more attention.
Voice - Pacing	The pace (rhythm and voice punctuation) fits the poem and helps the audience really "get into" the poem.	Occasionally speaks too fast or too slowly for the poem. The pacing (rhythm and voice punctuation) is relatively engaging for the audience.	Tries to use pacing (rhythm and voice punctuation), but it is often noticeable that the pacing does not fit the poem. Audience is not consistently engaged.	No attempt to match the pace of the reading to the poem or the audience.

Digital Storytelling: Poem on Lincoln

Category	10	9	8	7
Theme (Content)	Relevant, telling, quality details give the reader important information that goes beyond the obvious or predictable. Theme is conveyed.	Supporting details and information are relevant, but one key issue or portion of the storyline is unsupported. Theme is cloudy.	Supporting details and information are relevant, but several key issues or portions of the storyline are unsupported. Theme is difficult to detect.	Supporting details and information are typically unclear or not related to the topic. No apparent theme.
Flow & Rhythm (Sentence Fluency)	All sentences sound natural and are easy-on-the-ear when read aloud. Each sentence is clear and has an obvious emphasis.	Almost all sentences sound natural and are easy-on-the-ear when read aloud, but 1 or 2 are stiff and awkward or difficult to understand.	Most sentences sound natural and are easy-on-the-ear when read aloud, but several are stiff and awkward or are difficult to understand.	The sentences are difficult to read aloud because they sound awkward, are distractingly repetitive, or difficult to understand.
Word Choice	Writer uses vivid words and phrases that linger or draw pictures in the reader's mind, and the choice and placement of the words seems accurate, natural and not forced.	Writer uses vivid words and phrases that linger or draw pictures in the reader's mind, but occasionally the words are used inaccurately or seem overdone.	Writer uses words that communicate clearly, but the writing lacks variety, punch, or flair.	Writer uses a limited vocabulary that does not communicate strongly or capture the reader's interest. Jargon or cliches may be present and detract from the meaning.
Adding Personality (Voice) x 2	The writer seems to be writing from knowledge or experience. The author has taken the ideas and made them "his own."	The writer seems to be drawing on knowledge or experience, but there is some lack of ownership of the topic.	The writer relates some of his own knowledge or experience, but it adds nothing to the discussion of the topic.	The writer has not tried to transform the information in a personal way. The ideas and the way they are expressed seem to belong to someone else.
Grammar & Spelling (Conventions)	Writer makes no errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.	Writer makes 1-2 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.	Writer makes 3-4 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.	Writer makes more than 4 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.
Images x 2	Images create a distinct atmosphere or tone that matches different parts of the poem. The images may communicate symbolism and/or metaphors.	Images create an atmosphere or tone that matches some parts of the poem. The images may communicate symbolism and/or metaphors.	An attempt was made to use images to create an atmosphere/tone but it needed more work. Image choice is logical.	Little or no attempt to use images to create an appropriate atmosphere/tone.
Voice- Consistency	Voice quality is clear and consistently audible throughout the presentation.	Voice quality is clear and consistently audible throughout the majority (85-95%) of the presentation.	Voice quality is clear and consistently audible through some (70-84%) of the presentation.	Voice quality needs more attention.
Voice - Pacing	The pace (rhythm and voice punctuation) fits the poem and helps the audience really "get into" the poem.	Occasionally speaks too fast or too slowly for the poem. The pacing (rhythm and voice punctuation) is relatively engaging for the audience.	Tries to use pacing (rhythm and voice punctuation), but it is often noticeable that the pacing does not fit the poem. Audience is not consistently engaged.	No attempt to match the pace of the reading to the poem or the audience.

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