Teaching the Civil War interactively

If you have never been to Gettysburg you will have a hard time imagining how the battle unfolded.  Yes you can get a good picture of the battle from maps, correspondences and still photos but… it is not the same as seeing it in person.  Many people will never make the trek to Pennsylvania due to various reasons.  Those who never get the chance can get a better understanding of the battle from websites that combine interactive maps with videos recreating the events that took place.  Sites such as this show how the United States as we know it, was saved by the action that took place over three days in July of 1861.  A good site to visit is civilwar.org.     

I found civilwar.org to be a good site that combines interactive maps with narrative and video recreation of Gettysburg and other major battles of the Civil War.  Civilwar.org is a site run by the Civil War Trust whose mission is the preservation of our nation's endangered Civil War battlefields.  This site is useful for teachers as well.  There are links to lesson plans for grades 3-12, teacher workshops,   field trip suggestion and a student research section.  The goal of the Civil War Trust is to educate.  They believe that “As a history teacher, you can make a big impression in leading young Americans to care about the Civil War and the fate of its battlefields.”

Things you can do:

• 360° views
• In4- 4 minute videos about various aspects of the war
• Photos
• Books
• Maps
• Blogs
• News
• Social media links and Apps

http://www.civilwar.org/

http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/gettysburg.html