Virginia SOL USI.9.e
The Standard
describing major political texts during the war including, but not limited to Lincoln’s Inaugural Address, the Emancipation Proclamation, the Gettysburg Address, and Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address
Virginia Standards of Learning for History and Social Science
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students identify when and why Lincoln issued four key wartime documents and speeches. They explain each text’s main message and connect it to preserving the Union, ending slavery, or healing the nation.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can match each text to its date, audience, purpose, and central idea. The student can use a short excerpt to explain how Lincoln’s goals changed during the war.
Common Misconceptions
- Students often think the Emancipation Proclamation immediately freed every enslaved person, but it applied only to areas in rebellion. They may also confuse the Gettysburg Address with emancipation or think the Second Inaugural began the war.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: Choose one Lincoln text and write three sentences stating when it appeared, its main message, and how it addressed the war.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Arrange document cards and Civil War event cards on a classroom timeline, then explain each pairing to a partner.
Write a response to this prompt: How did Lincoln’s message change from preserving the Union to ending slavery and rebuilding the nation?
Play a matching game with excerpt, title, date, purpose, and audience cards from the four Lincoln texts.
Compare a Lincoln speech with a recent presidential speech after a national crisis, noting each speaker’s purpose, audience, and call for unity.
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Printable USI.9.e Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to USI.9.e, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.
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Related Standards
- USII.2.c
describing the legacies of Abraham Lincoln and the Gettysburg Address, Ulysses S. Grant, Robert E. Lee, Hiram Revels, and Frederick Douglass
- USII.2.a
describing the impact of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and the political aftermath of the Civil War
- USI.9.d
describing how individuals influenced the course of the Civil War, including, but not limited to Jefferson Davis, Ulysses S. Grant, Robert E. Lee, William Tecum...
- USII.2.d
describing the role of Congress and the Supreme Court in specific plans and policies including, but not limited to Lincoln’s Ten Percent Plan;
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