In Their Own Words: Slave Narratives
Young Adult Literature and the History of Slavery Unit
By Rick Vanderwall

Overview

In this lesson, students will work through an introduction to the Library of Congress collection, "Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1938." They will also browse the narratives on the site, which also offers audio links of the narratives. Finally, they will respond to four narratives.

Student Objectives

Students will:

• Read/listen to four slave narratives.
• Write a response to each narrative.
• Navigate the Library of Congress online collection of ex-slave narratives.

Skills Attained

Students will be able to:

• Read historical documents closely.
• Navigate of the Library of Congress online collection of ex-slave narratives.

Materials Needed

• Computers
• Access to Internet
• Slave Narrative Response Activity Sheets

The Lesson

Anticipatory Set

1. Select two or three students to briefly tell about their most embarrassing moment.
2. Ask, at the end of each story, who could best tell this story.
3. Ask who would be the best teller of the story of slavery.
4. If possible, project the Library of Congress online collection of slave narratives:
   http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/snhtml/snhome.html

Procedures

1. Pass out the "In Their Own Words" Activity Sheet. (below)
2. Explain that the purpose of the activity is to familiarize students with the collection and to hear first-hand accounts of life under slavery.
3. Have students complete the Activity Sheet.
4. Go over the completed worksheet in class and have two or three students read quotes.

Assessment

Award 20 points for completion of the worksheet.

Rick Vanderwall teaches Sixth Grade Language Arts and Social Studies at Price Laboratory School at the University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Return to the main unit page.

Name: ____________________________________

Date: __________________

Period: __________________

Part One

Instructions:

1. Go to this web site: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/snhtml/snhome.html
   Federal Writer's Project, United States Work Projects Administration (USWPA); Manuscript Division, Library of Congress
   
   
2. Select "Browse Narratives by Narrator." Then, select four narratives and read them. Look for a quote from the narratives that give information about each of the subjects below. Then, record the name of the individual you are quoting. Alternatively, you could browse the collection of audio and text narratives offered on the site.
   
   
   • Housing of slaves. Name of Narrator_________________________
     Quote (one or two sentences):
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   • Violent punishment of slaves. Name of Narrator_________________________
     Quote (one or two sentences):
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   • Food that slaves ate. Name of Narrator_________________________
     Quote (one or two sentences):
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   • Forced separation or sale of slaves. Name of Narrator_________________________
     Quote (one or two sentences):

Instructions: Go to the web site http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/snhtml/snhome.html and select "Browse Photographs by Subject." When a menu of subjects appears, select "Adams, Louisa." From the menu that appears, select "Afro-Americans--Punishment and Torture--Alabama." Read the available entries and write a short description in your own words of the Bell Rack and how it was used.