The American Vote
Civil WarAll 5 grade bands · K-2 through APFree download

1860

Lesson plan.
Abraham Lincoln vs John C. BreckinridgeAbraham Lincoln won without carrying a Southern state, revealing a national divide that immediately preceded secession and civil war.

The 1860 U.S. presidential election sent Abraham Lincoln (Republican) to the White House. Abraham Lincoln took 180 of the 303 electoral votes to John C. Breckinridge's 72. Abraham Lincoln led the national popular vote with 39.65%. The race falls within the Civil War era; the lesson packets below dig into its central debates, with Slavery in the territories among the major themes.

What is in each packet
Cover
Cycle metadata + band eyebrow
Lesson plan
Instructor — timing, materials, standards
Reading
Sized to grade band (K-2: ~250 words → AP: ~650)
Background
Curated cycles — 5-7 vocab terms + primary-source excerpt
Student worksheet
K-2: 3 questions → AP: 8, mixed format
Answer key
Instructor — rationale on every item
Discussion prompts
3 prompts tied to era
DBQ (AP only)
Long-essay + 5-point rubric + second source
Download by grade band
  • K-2
    Story
    4 pp
    20 min
    Free
  • 3-5
    Reading
    5 pp
    35 min
    Free
  • 6-8
    Reading
    6 pp
    50 min
    Free
  • 9-12
    Source
    8 pp
    75 min
    Free
  • AP
    DBQ
    12 pp
    105 min
    Free