As we celebrated Abraham Lincoln's birthday last week, my 7th grade students are spending time delving into his work, speeches, politics and.... best of all.....
Chasing Lincoln's Killer!
I've read this book twice, but this time, my third, I'm finding that Laura Keene is just a nuisance and I really can't let it go... She just wanted to, "cradle the dying president's head in her lap?" Seriously? I know it was 1865, but seriously? Not only is this a wildly inappropriate question to ask of Dr. Leale while he's trying to save President Lincoln's life, but what real benefit would it have in saving Lincoln? None. period.
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| Laura Keene |
When discussing this book with my kids they are appalled that Mary Todd Lincoln would stand for this! Another woman coming into the theater box that night to attempt to comfort HER husband. By the time we all got over this fact and had a good laugh at the time era differences we all agreed Laura Keene was simply looking her her 5 minutes of fame that night in Ford's Theatre.
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My kids are stunned to know that my grandma of 90 years had
to memorize the Gettysburg Address in school AND she can
still recite it today! |
In conjunction to reading Chasing Lincoln's Killer, we are also reading background information about Lincoln's politics, the Battle at Gettysburg, his Gettysburg Address is going to be deconstructed and analysis of photos from that era. I'm excited to learn with them and experience the learning process along side of them! All of these activities will lead us into analysis of speeches of the Civil Rights Era and creating and writing arguments of our own!
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