Documenting the Lives of Slaves
Nightjohn and Sarny Unit
By Rick Vanderwall

Overview

In this second activity documenting the lives of slaves, you will prepare students for reading Gary Paulsen's Nightjohn and Sarny. You will introduce students to the Library of Congress collection, "Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1938." Students will search through the narratives for specific information that documents the lives that slaves had from survivors. They will then record what they have found on an activity sheet. After completing the activity sheet, they will compare the testimony that they have gathered in a small group discussion. Each group then will report back to the entire class by describing one of the areas listed on the worksheet.

Student Objectives

Students will:

• View the ex-slave narratives archived in the Library of Congress collection.
• Search the site for references to specific topics.
• Compare collected information with other students.

Skills Attained

Students will be able to:

• Read a historic narrative closely.



• Understand the lives and experiences of others by studying collected testimony.

Materials Needed

Access to the Internet or hard copies of the slave narratives.

The Lesson

Anticipatory Set

1. Discuss with students what the best methods might be for learning about the lives of people. Ask about how their family stories have been passed from generation to generation. Time permitting, have students share any family stories they may have relating to how their ancestors came to this country.



2. Introduce students to the Library of Congress collection, "Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1938."

Procedures

1. Pass out the slave narrative activity sheet.



2. Read the activity instructions and explain them to the students.



3. Allow students to go the web sites or pass out copies of specific narratives for classes with less Internet research experience.



4. Assign students to groups and then assign each group a topic from those listed on the sheet.



5. Instruct them to compare findings and report back to the group. What did they learn from these first hand accounts of life under slavery? What feelings were exposed through these narratives? How might learning about slavery become more meaningful when students "hear" the voices of the enslaved?

Assessment

To grade students’ work, you can use a rubric, such as the one below:

Grading Element	Points (out of 35 total)
Completion of the activity sheet	25
Participation in group report	10

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

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Activity Sheet

Name: __________________________________________________

Date: __________________________________________________

Period: __________________________________________________

Instructions: Go to the Narratives Section of this web site and select a narrative from the list offered. Then, go to the Library of Congress site, http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/snhtml/snhome.html: "Federal Writer's Project, United States Work Projects Administration (USWPA); Manuscript Division, Library of Congress," and select "Browse Narratives by Narrator." Select narratives and look for a quote from the narratives giving information about each of the subjects below. Be sure to record the name of the individual you are quoting.

1. Housing of slaves, Name of Narrator_________________________

Quote (one or two sentences):

2. Violent punishment of slaves, Name of Narrator_________________________

Quote (one or two sentences):

3. Food that slaves ate, Name of Narrator_________________________

Quote (one or two sentences):

4. Forced separation or sale of slaves, Name of Narrator_________________________

Quote (one or two sentences):

5. Work that slaves performed, Name of Narrator_________________________

Quote (one or two sentences):

6. Religious practice of slaves, Name of Narrator_________________________

Quote (one or two sentences):

7. Education of slaves, Name of Narrator_________________________

Quote (one or two sentences):