TeachRock

Disclaimer

This lesson contains primary source documents and other materials that may include terms and images reflecting the attitudes, perspectives, and beliefs of different times that today are considered offensive and demeaning. Teachrock.org does not endorse the views expressed in these documents, but recognizes the value such materials provide for historical inquiry. For guidance on introducing controversial historical materials into the classroom, we suggest reviewing this document from The Library of Congress.

Materials Needed

1. A device with access to the internet for each student.

Preparation:

1. Display Gallery Walk – Jubilee Singers Tour Stops around the room
2. On a whiteboard or a big sheet of paper, create a space titled “Fisk University and Jubilee Singers Quick Facts”

Motivational Activity:

1. Play the YouTube video “Homecoming: A Film By Beyoncé | Official Trailer | Netflix” and ask students:
   • Have you seen this documentary? 
   • Have you seen Beyoncé’s 2018 Coachella performance?
   • What is she celebrating in her performance? (HBCU- Historically Black Colleges and Universities)
   • What is an HBCU?
   • Why do you think Beyoncé chose to celebrate HBCUs in this performance?
   • Why are HBCUs important?
2. Explain to students that in this lesson they will be exploring one of the first HBCUs established in the country in order to understand the last years of Reconstruction.

Procedure

Part 1: Reconstruction and Fisk University

1. Break students up into groups of four and explain that they will now look at a HBCU that was started following the Civil War in 1866. Inform students that Fisk University was started in Nashville, Tennessee to educate formerly enslaved African Americans. By 1871, the university was struggling financially and students are going to examine documents to explore why this happened and how it reflects the later years of Reconstruction (1871-1877) in the United States.
2. Distribute one copy of Handout – Fisk University and Reconstruction Document Set to each group. Explain to students that they will work with their group members to jigsaw the document sets. View instructions for a jigsaw activity here. (Note to teacher: provide a way for students to look up the meaning of words they are unfamiliar with in the document set.)
3. Distribute one copy to each student Handout – Fisk University and Reconstruction Document Set Questions (Teacher’s Guide available here). Explain to students that each member of the group will choose one document set (1-4) to become the “expert” on by reading the document set and answer the aligning questions independently.
4. After students have completed their document set and answered the aligning questions they will then get into “expert” groups with students who completed the same document set from other groups. Display Image 1, Expert Group Discussion and instruct students to discuss using the bullet points as guidance.
5. After students are finished in their “expert” groups, have them rejoin their original groups. Instruct each member to take turns presenting their document set to the group while helping them answer the questions that align to each document set. 
6. If time allows or for homework, have students complete the Handout – Exit Ticket and instruct them that they will share their answers with the class the following day/period.

Part 2: The Jubilee Singers and the End of Reconstruction

1. To begin the second day of this lesson, ask students to share their responses from the previous day’s exit ticket with the class. Explain to the class that they will explore what Fisk University did to raise money in 1871.

2. Play the audio Library of Congress audio “Swing Low, sweet chariot” for the class. Then ask students:
   • Have you heard this song before? If so, where?
   • Do you know the history behind this song, if so what do you know?
   • Have you heard of the Fisk Jubilee Singers before? If so, where?
   • If you haven’t heard of the Fisk Jubilee Singers before, who might they be?
     

     Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, The William Gladstone Collection of African American Photographs

3. Display Image 2, The Original Jubilee Singers and inform students that “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” originated from when African Americans were enslaved in the United States before the Civil War. It was made popular by the Fisk Jubilee Singers, an a capella choral ensemble created in 1871 at Fisk University. Using their personal devices, ask half of the class to read the “About The Fisk Jubilee Singers” webpage and the other half of the class to read the “Our History” on the Jubilee Singers website.
4. Ask students to call out facts from what they read and write them in the space “Fisk University and the Jubilee Singers Quick Facts” already set up in the room.
5. Ask students the following questions to enrich their understanding of the facts they shared:
   • What did Fisk do to raise money for the school starting in 1871?
   • Why is the music they sing significant and important for the United States?
   • Why is the story of the Fisk Jubilee Singers important?
     

     CIA.gov

6. Display Image 3, The Jubilee Singers Tour Timeline, 1871-1879 to refer to in the next activity.
7. Distribute Handout – The Jubilee Singers Tour Graphic Organizer (adapted from the Library of Congress Primary Source Analysis Guide found here) and explain to students they will now look at some of the stops on the Jubilee Singers tour by analyzing the Gallery Walk – Jubilee Singers Tour Stops already displayed in the room. (Optional: Play this video of the Jubilee Singers performing as students circle the room.)
8. Ask students to fill out the graphic organizer as they visit each stop around the room. Then ask students:
   • How does what you read confirm what we learned yesterday about the last years of Reconstruction?
   • What is something that surprised you about what you read?
   • Was there anything that you read that didn’t line up with what you learned yesterday about the later years of Reconstruction? (For example: the myth of the North being better; despite obstacles there were still successes for the Jubilee singers; desegregation of Pullman train cars and raising the money for Jubilee Hall.)
   • Why do you think the Jubilee Singers were successful in their tour and were able to raise the money to build Jubilee Hall?

Summary Activity:

1. Distribute Handout – Compromise of 1877 and ask a student to read aloud the Compromise of 1877. Instruct students to summarize the compromise in their own words on the handout and ask several students to share their summaries with the class.
2. Instruct students to complete the writing prompt on the handout. Then ask students:
   • What do you think the end of Reconstruction meant for the country and African Americans moving forward after 1877?

Extension Activities:

1. Create a visual timeline of the Jubilee Singers tour using images and primary sources from the Library of Congress.
2. Watch Chapter 1 of the Jubilee Singers: Sacrifice and Glory documentary.
3. Using the Library of Congress Newspapers Archive, further explore what newspapers published about the Jubilee Singers.  When you find an article, answer the following questions:
   • What does the newspaper say about the Jubilee Singers?
   • What do you find interesting about the article?
   • What questions do you have? How can you find out more about it?
4. Watch the Beyoncé documentary, Homecoming.
5. Will the Jubilee Singers perform near you this year? Look at their upcoming performance schedule here.
6. Research another Historically Black College and University (HBCU), considering the following questions:
   
   • When and where was it founded?
   • Did they have a similar or different experience to Fisk University?
   • Do they have a similar group like the Jubilee Singers?

Classroom Activity – Jigsaw Gallery Walk – Jubilee Singers Tour Stops Handout – Compromise of 1877 Handout – Exit Ticket Handout – Fisk University and Reconstruction Document Set Handout – Fisk University and Reconstruction Document Set Questions Handout – Fisk University and Reconstruction Document Set Questions (Teacher’s Guide) Handout – The Jubilee Singers Tour Graphic Organizer

College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Social Studies Standards

History

• D2.His.1.9-12. Evaluate how historical events and developments were shaped by unique circumstances of time and place as well as broader historical contexts.
• D2.His.3.9-12. Use questions generated about individuals and groups to assess how the significance of their actions changes over time and is shaped by the historical context.
• D2.His.5.9-12. Analyze how historical contexts shaped and continue to shape people’s perspectives.
• D2.His.14.9-12. Analyze multiple and complex causes and effects of events in the past.

California History–Social Science Content Standards

8.11 Students analyze the character and lasting consequences of Reconstruction

• 2. Identify the push-pull factors in the movement of former slaves to the cities in the North and to the West and their differing experiences in those regions.
• 3.Understand the effects of the Freedmen’s Bureau and the restrictions placed on the rights and opportunities of freedmen, including racial segregation and “Jim Crow” laws.

District of Columbia Social Studies Standards

11.2. Students analyze the transformation of the American economy and the changing social and political conditions in the United States in
response to the Industrial Revolution

• Explain the impact of the Hayes-Tilden Presidential election of 1876 and the end of reconstruction on African Americans (i.e., the rise of Jim
  Crow laws, lynching, the First Great Migration). (P, S)

Massachusetts History and Social Science Framework Standards

Topic 5. The Civil War and Reconstruction: causes and consequences [USI.T5]

• 6. Analyze the consequences of the Civil War and Reconstruction (e.g., the physical and economic destruction of the South and the loss of life of both Southern and Northern troops; the increased role of the federal government; the impeachment of President Johnson; the13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments; the expansion of the industrial capacity of the Northern U.S.; the role of the Freedmen’s Bureau and organizations such as the American League of Colored Laborers, the National Negro Labor Council, the Colored Farmers’ National Alliance and Cooperative Union; the accomplishments and failures of Radical Reconstruction; the presidential election of 1876; and the end of Reconstruction)

Social Studies – National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS)

• Theme 1: Culture
• Theme 3: People, Place, and Environments
• Theme 4: Individual Development and Identity
• Theme 5: Individuals, Groups, and Institutions
• Theme 7: Production, Distribution, and Consumption
• Theme 9 : Global Connections
• Theme 10: Civic Ideals and Practices

Common Core State Standards

College and Career Readiness Reading Information Text Standards for Grades 9-12

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.1 Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.2 Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.7 Analyze various accounts of a subject told in different mediums (e.g., a person’s life story in both print and multimedia), determining which details are emphasized in each account.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.8 Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false statements and fallacious reasoning.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.11-12.1 Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters uncertain.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.11-12.7 Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words in order to address a question or solve a problem.

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Writing for Grades 9-12

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.1 Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.2Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.4 Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1-3 above.)
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.7 Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.1 Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.4 Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1-3 above.)
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.7 Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Speaking and Listening for Grades 9-12

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.1 Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9-10 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.2 Integrate multiple sources of information presented in diverse media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) evaluating the credibility and accuracy of each source.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.4 Present information, findings, and supporting evidence clearly, concisely, and logically such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and task.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1 Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 11-12 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.2 Integrate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) in order to make informed decisions and solve problems, evaluating the credibility and accuracy of each source and noting any discrepancies among the data.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.4 Present information, findings, and supporting evidence, conveying a clear and distinct perspective, such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning, alternative or opposing perspectives are addressed, and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and a range of formal and informal tasks.

Learning for Justice Social Justice Standards

JU.9-12.15 I can identify figures, groups, events and a variety of strategies and philosophies relevant to the history of social justice around the world.