Fort McHenry Measurements Today

OBJECTIVES:

The students will:

1. calculate the perimeter of the fort's walls.

2. calculate the area of the inside of the fort.

3. draw lines of fire for the fort's walls to illustrate how the shape of the fort aided in its defense.

MATERIALS: "Fort McHenry Today" handout

ACTIVITIES:

1. Divide the students into cooperative groups and distribute the "Fort McHenry Today" handout. Have the students determine the perimeter of the fort's walls. Remind them that all of the dimensions are on the drawing. They will have to be accurate in planning how to determine the number of walls and the matching length measurement.

2. Have the students use the inside measurements on the diagram to determine the area of the grounds. Ask the students to consider the following: If 1,000 soldiers were protecting the fort, did they have a lot of space to hide from British bombs and rockets? What was the true purpose of the fort?

3. Have the groups draw all the possible lines of fire from the fort. Do they now understand the popularity and effectiveness of the five-pointed, star fort design? If this design was so important in 1812, why was Fort McHenry obsolete by the end of the Civil War?

Lesson #7: Fort McHenry Measurements Today

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