Adventures in Time and Place

Adventures in Time and Place
Grade 4: Pennsylvania
Infographic #4: The Battle of Gettysburg
Page 164

1. To find out about the daily life of soldiers in the Civil War go to "Hey, Historian!"
http://www.nps.gov/gett/gettkidz/kidzindex.htm

Read the opening page (without clicking the blue links).
At the left, click and read Civil War Food. Take note of the keywords at the bottom of the page.
Click the Back arrow. Then click Report the War.
Read the page and study the keywords.
Click back. Study Marching Music and Soldiers’ Letters in the same way.

Online Activity: Historians’ Match Game
Match the Civil War keyword or term with its definition.
Click two cards. Wait to see them turn over. Try again until you find all of the matches.

2. Read the diaries that were kept by a husband and wife during the Battle of Gettysburg. Go to Searchable Civil War Diaries.
http://jefferson.village.virginia.edu/vshadow2/cwdiariesbrowse.html

Under "Franklin Country, Pennsylvania," click Samuel Cormany, 1863.
Click July 1863 and read the entries that describe the battle and its aftermath.
Click the Back arrow twice.
Click Rachel Cormany, 1863
Click July 1863 and read the entries that describe Rachel’s activities during this same time.

Offline Activity: Write a letter home
One of the interesting aspects of the diaries is that the Cormanys lived in the area in which the battle was fought. Samuel was able to see his wife and baby immediately after the battle. Suppose that Samuel’s company was sent to battle in a more distant area. What would he write in letters to his wife? What would she tell him in letters from home? After you read the diaries of Samuel and Rachel, write letters from one to the other and back, using the information that you have learned from the entries.