Teaching with Museum Collections: Family Life at Arlington House

A. Title

• Lesson plan title: Family Life at Arlington House
• Name, title, school name and location of lesson developer: Social Studies Teachers
  • Melissa Meck, Barbara Jordan Public Charter School, Washington, DC (Grades 5 – 8)
  • Jeremiah Feather, Carl Sandburg Middle School, Fairfax County, VA (Grades 7 – 8)
  • Alice Chandler, Duke Ellington School of the Arts, Washington, DC (Grades 9 - 12)
• Grade Level: Middle School, adjustable for higher or lower grades
• Length of lesson: Nine 45 – 55 minutes lessons (Two additional extension activities)

B. Overview of this Collection-Based Lesson Plan

• Park name: Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial
• Description: Through object-based inquiry students will be able to explore what life was like in Virginia during the 19^th century, and how a popular family lived during that time period. This unit will give students insight into the Custis and Lee families. It allows students to be able to analyze, synthesize and evaluate life pre-through-post Civil War America in the South.
• Essential question: What was it family life like in Arlington House and plantation as part of the distinguished Custis and Lee families during the 19^th century?

C. Museum Collections Used in this Lesson Plan

Objects, specimens, documents, photographs:

1. Engraving of Washington Family. Paper. L 62.5, W 80 cm Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial, ARHO 121.
2. Black and White Washington Family Portrait
3. Mrs. Lee’s Nightgown. Linen. W 117.5, L 108.8 cm Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial, ARHO 2282.
4. Portrait of Annie Lee. Oil, canvas. L 90, W 80 cm Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial ARHO 1925
5. Sampler. Fabric, silk on linen. L 46.3 W 43.8 cm Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial, ARHO 1979
6. Photograph of Lee on Traveller. Paper. W 6.2, L 10.2 cm Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial, ARHO 5478
7. George Washington’s Hair. Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial, ARHO 5024
8. Robert E. Lee’s Locket of Hair. Metal, glass, paper, hair. L 4.3, W 3.4cm Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial, ARHO 5026
9. Statuette. "The Three Graces,” Marble. H 57.5, D 15 cm. Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial, ARHO 4
   
   Primary documentary sources

D. National Educational Standards

Era 3 – Revolution and the new nation (1754 – 1820s)
Standard 1C - The student understands the factors affecting the course of the war and contributing to the American Victory.
Grade Level 5-12 – Appraise George Washington’s military and political leadership in conducting the Revolutionary War. (Assess the importance of the individual)

Era 4 – Expansion and reform (1801 – 1861)
Standard 1C - The student understands the ideology of Manifest Destiny, the nation’s expansion to the Northwest and the Mexican-American War.
Standard 4 - The sources and character of culture, religious and social reform movements in the antebellum period.

Era 5 – Civil War and Reconstruction (1850 – 1877)
Standard 2 – The course and character of the Civil War and its effects on the American people
Standard 2B – The student understands the social experiences of the war on the battlefield and homefront.Grade Level 5-12 – Compare women’s homefront and battlefront roles in the Union and the Confederacy.

E. Student Learning Objectives

The student will;

• Critically analyze specific artifacts of the museum collection of Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial.
• Demonstrate understanding of the Lee family history, family relationships, and the family’s legacy.
• Compare and contrast family life and relationships in the 1800s with family life today.

F. Background and Historical Context

The Custis-Lee family was arguably one of the most important and influential families in American history. They first came to America in the early 1600’s and settled in Virginia. They came with wealth and acquired huge tracts of land and hundreds of slaves. Soon, they were some of the wealthiest people in North America. Robert E. Lee’s great-great grandfather, Robert “King” Carter was one of the richest men in the English colonies. But family members became dissatisfied with colonial rule by the mid 18^th century and began agitating for independence.Richard Henry Lee of Stratford Hall was the representative at the Continental Congress who first formally proposed that the colonies declare their independence from Great Britain. He and his brother Francis Lightfoot Lee were the only two brothers to sign the Declaration of Independence. Their brother Arthur assisted Benjamin Franklin negotiate the alliance with the French government that was instrumental in winning the war. The most important of the Custises was the widow Martha Custis who married George Washington. She became the first First Lady of the United States. It is possible that without these two families there might not have been a United States of America as we know it.

The family at Arlington included George Washington Parke Custis, grandson of Martha Washington and step-grandson of the president. He built Arlington House as both a home and a memorial to George Washington. Custis devoted his life, with 55 years at Arlington, to promoting Washington’s memory and beliefs. He married Mary Lee Fitzhugh. They had four children. Only one survived to adulthood, their daughter, Mary Anna Randolph Custis who married Robert E. Lee.

The Lees made Arlington their home for thirty years until the Civil War. Six of their seven children were born in an upstairs chamber of the house. George and Mary Custis died in their bedroom at different times during the 1850s and were buried in the forest behind the house. At the beginning of the Civil War Robert E. Lee chose to fight for Virginia – for home and family - against the United States. He left Arlington House to become a southern general. Ultimately he became the South’s greatest general but at an enormous cost: The US government seized Arlington during the war and made a large part of it into Arlington National Cemetery. No one in the Lee family ever lived at Arlington again.

The importance of Arlington to the Custis and Lee must be measured differently than by what homes mean to owners today. Many important life events took place within their walls. A house was not merely a structure. It was, and is, a place and witness to a family’s important events and rites of passage, such as birth, marriage, and death. By studying a home like Arlington you can see and appreciate how different life was for people living during the mid-19^th century. You can also learn how much we have in common with them. The fact that they were such an historic family matters less when you consider them as humans making their way through their world just as we do today.

Lee and Custis Family Tree.

Family Biographies:

Henry Lee III – “Light Horse Harry” (1756-1818)

Henry “Light Horse Harry” Lee was born January 29, 1756 at his father’s estate, Leesylvania, near Dumfries, VA. He graduated from Princeton in 1773. Like so many young men of that time, he was enthralled by the cause of American independence. Henry enlisted soon after the war began and was promoted captain of dragoons in 1776. By 1778 he proved so capable that he was given an independent command of irregulars. With them, he made his reputation and name, “Light-Horse Harry.” After the war, he married the love of his life, cousin Matilda Lee of Stratford in 1782 and began a life in politics. After eight years of marriage, Matilda died. Light Horse Harry continued in politics and married Ann Hill Carter in 1793. He became increasingly hostile to political opponents and reckless in business. The pinnacle of his career came in 1799 when he was appointed to the US House of Representatives. By the time his son, Robert Edward, was born in 1807, Harry had fallen into deep debt. Four years later he was nearly killed in a riot in Baltimore, MD protesting the Madison administration. Henry left the country the following year, and never returned to his family. He died March 25, 1818 on Cumberland Island off the coast of Georgia.

Ann Hill Carter Lee (1773-1829)

Ann Hill Carter Lee was born in 1773. Her father, Charles Carter of Shirley Plantation, was one of the wealthiest men in Virginia. She was the tenth of 23 children born to her father and two different mothers. Little is known about her early life. She married Henry “Light Horse Harry” Lee at Shirley on June 18, 1793. Already in financial difficulty, Ann’s father made certain that Lee could not touch her inheritance. For the next few years they lived at Stratford, his first wife’s family estate where son, Robert, was born on January 19, 1807. Harry moved the family to Alexandria, VA in 1811. Harry was nearly killed at the beginning of the War of 1812, and left the country the following year. Ann raised their five children. Increasingly ill, she struggled, relying on Robert as her chief emotional support. She died within days of Robert’s graduation from West Point, June 29, 1829.

Daniel Parke Custis (1711-1757)

Daniel Parke Custis was born October 15, 1711. His father was John Custis IV, a wealthy planter and powerful member of the Virginia Governor’s Council. According to tradition, John and Daniel’s mother, Frances Parke Custis, had a stormy marriage and John thought little of his son’s abilities. As Daniel grew into maturity, John would not approve of any woman to marry his son. That is, until Martha Dandridge came into his life. It is said that she charmed John. Martha and Daniel were married in 1749. They had four children but the two eldest died of small pox. Daniel died, July 8, 1757 of unknown causes.

Martha Custis Washington (1731-1802)

Oldest daughter of John and Frances Dandridge, she was born June 2, 1731, on a plantation near Williamsburg. At 18, she charmed the father of Daniel Parke Custis and married Daniel in 1749. They had four children but two died of smallpox. Soon after, Daniel died leaving Martha a very wealthy widow at 26 years old. At such a young age it was expected she’d remarry. On January 6, 1759 she married the tall and dashing colonel of the Virginia Militia, and soon to be world changing revolutionary, George Washington. Together they raised her children and later two grandchildren. The grandchildren, Eleanor and George, were raised as the first two presidential children. She died of “severe fever” on May 22, 1802.

George Washington (1732-1799)

George Washington was born into a wealthy Virginia planter family and enjoyed the benefits of it but he longed for more. Interested in the frontier, Washington became a surveyor. At 16 he helped survey the Shenandoah lands of Thomas, Lord Fairfax. By the age of 21 he’d become so accomplished and knowledgeable of the frontier that he was commissioned a lieutenant colonel of the Virginia militia and subsequently commanded the militia during the French and Indian War. He married the widow, Martha Custis, in 1759. Together, they raised her children, and two of her grandchildren. He never fathered children of his own. As a general during the Revolution and as this nation’s first president, Washington’s place as the “Father of the Country” is well established. But it is as “father” to George Washington Parke Custis that the familial tie between Mount Vernon and Arlington came to be.

John Parke Custis (1755-1781)

Eldest surviving child of Daniel Parke Custis and Martha Dandridge Custis, John, or “Jackie,” was only two when his father died. Two years later his mother married George Washington and he and his sister, Martha, were taken to Mount Vernon to be raised. He and Martha were raised in great privilege but neither would live long lives. Martha suffered from epilepsy and died during a seizure at 17 years old. Now the only surviving child, John moved quickly to marry, marrying Eleanor Calvert of Maryland in 1774. The two would have seven children but only four survived to adulthood. In 1781, John was serving as an aide to his stepfather, George Washington, when he became seriously ill. He died of what was called “camp fever” on November 5, 1781. He was only 26. After his death, his mother and stepfather arranged with his widow to split up their four children with the two eldest being raised by the widow and the other two by the Washingtons.

Eleanor Calvert Custis (1754-1811)

Eleanor, or “Nelly,” Calvert was the daughter of Benedict Calvert of Annapolis, MD, and the granddaughter of Frederick Calvert, the sixth Lord Baltimore – the last proprietary governor or “owner” of the Province of Maryland before the American Revolution. She met John Parke Custis while he was studying in Annapolis and soon won his heart. They were married early in 1774 and would have seven children (four surviving) before the death of her husband in 1781. Her four children were split up with two raised by her and the youngest two by her in-laws – the Washingtons. She married Dr. David Stuart and would have another dozen children but she remained very involved in the lives of the two children taken in by the Washingtons, Eleanor and George. She died September 28, 1811.

Mary Fitzhugh Custis (1788-1853)

Daughter of William Henry Fitzhugh, wealthy planter and friend of George Washington’s, she married Washington’s step grandson, George Washington Parke Custis, on July 7, 1804. She was only 16 years old when she became the mistress of Arlington, but she was strong, organized and devout. Throughout her life she had a profound influence on the lives of everyone at Arlington especially her son-in-law, Robert E. Lee, who had lost his own mother as a young man. She believed that slavery was wrong and influenced her husband greatly on how he treated his slaves with the ultimate goal of freeing them. In the meantime, she became a teacher for all the slaves at Arlington, believing that it was through education that their misery alleviated and their condition improved. Her death in 1853 so moved Robert E. Lee that he became confirmed in the Episcopal Church of Virginia.

G. Materials Used in this Lesson Plan

• Local Items Similar to Museum Collections used in the Lesson Plan.
  • Pictures of students, their families and pets
  • Family tree organizer
  • Student/Teacher family heirlooms
  • Student/Teacher collections or hobbies
  • Articles or other examples of non-traditional families
  • Cross-stitching materials (fabric, needle, thread)
  • Stitch example
  • Student activity materials (butcher paper, markers, glue sticks, etc.)
    
• Charts
• How to Read an Object chart
• Family Trees
• Genealogy

H. Vocabulary (modified and used Merriam & Webster Dictionary definitions)

• Heirloom – something handed on from one generation to another
• Sampler – a piece of needle work testing skill in embroidering
• Engraving – to drawl or scratch figures, letters, or designs on to an object such as metal or stone
• Typhoid Fever – a disease with symptoms of fever and diarrhea
• Hence – consequently
• Chemise – a woman’s one-piece undergarment
• Reconnaissance – an exploratory military survey of enemy territory
• Iconic (Icon) – religious or religious-like image
• Tedious – tiresome
• Descendants – offspring of a particular person [progenitor]
• Disfigured – to the spoil the appearance
• Reproduction – to produce again from an original
• Artifact – something made and used by humans of archeological or historic interest, may also be called an object.

I. Teacher Tips

• Print out copies of all museum collection objects identified in the lesson unit plan.
• Make multiple copies of
• all museum objects for students to use through out unit plan.
• Make overheads or power point presentations for the lessons to assist in instruction.
• Laminate the print outs for future use.
• Buy stitching material for students to try stitching.
• Use textbook, classroom, and/or internet resources to develop notes or a handout describing the different types of families and their structure for lesson one.
• If there are students who have special circumstances, such as foster care, they may use their foster parents’ family tree if they are unable to use their own for this activity.
• Music for the time period can be found on line.
• Genealogy information can be found on genealogy sites such as the http://www.census.gov/genealogy/www/, https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/sis/resources/data-tools/quickfacts.html, http://www.archives.gov/genealogy/, http://www.ellisislandrecords.org, and many other web sites.

J. Lesson Implementation Procedures

Activity One - We are Family

1. Warm up – Journaling activity (Suggested time: 15-20 minutes)
   Ask students to take 10 minutes to describe and define the word “family.” Encourage them to think about their own families as well as other families that they know. Ask students to share their thoughts and ideas with the class.
   
2. Informative Session (Suggested time: 20 -30 minutes)
   Provide notes or hand outs to students in the class listing and describing the different types of families and their structure. (See Teacher’s Tips) After discussing and explaining the different types of families, assign students to write a paragraph explaining and characterizing their type of family based on the information provided. For higher grade levels or more advanced classes, the teacher may want to make the writing assignment requirement longer and as a homework assignment. The teacher may collect paragraph for assessment.

Activity Two – Family Ties and Family Trees

1. Introduction: (Suggested time: 10-15 minutes)
   Provide to students with a short biography and/or timeline of significant accomplishments of the life of Robert E. Lee, including his marriage to Mary Anna Randolph Custis.
   
2. Visuals (Suggested time: 15-20 minutes)
   Display the family tree of the Custis and Lee families. Begin the family tree with Martha Custis and George Washington by briefly describing Martha’s first marriage to Daniel Parke Custis and their children. Explain their fate and how the Washingtons raised their grandchildren George Washington Parke Custis and Nelly Custis. Display the Engraving of Washington Family (Artifact ARHO 121) showing the family. Review the different types of families and structure. Ask students to characterize this type of family. Point out that there was a brief period between Martha’s marriages that she was a single parent. While displaying the family tree, show Robert E. Lee’s family tree. Ask students to characterize the type of family of the Lees. Briefly review the Lee’s seven children and their pictures using the family tree [see above https://www.nps.gov/museum/exhibits/arho/familyTree.html]. Have the student’s hypothesize why Anne Carter Lee’s picture is the only one that is not a photograph. Don’t reveal the answer, but instead use it as a “teaser” for activity seven.
   
   3. Assessment (Suggested time: Remaining class period and homework/project)Assign students to design and complete their own family tree. Require that they complete at least three generations. They should include at least first and last names, maiden names of women, and the year of birth and death in their assignment. On the back of their family tree, the students should write at least one paragraph explaining how they obtained this information (i.e. oral history, written document, internet, etc). For higher grade levels or more advanced classes, the teacher may want to make the required number of generations to track further back. Enrichment points could be given to students who show exceptional creativity or who can provide photographs.

Activity Three – Compare and Contrast Engraving and Print of Washington Family

(Total suggested time: 55 minutes)

Background
These popular images of the Washington family were reproduced over the years, including “The Washington Family, 1789-1796, after an original by Edward Savage, published by N. Currier [ARHO 121]. There are images of the Washington family, including one that depicts a black male figure standing behind Martha Washington [black & white image of the Washington family]

For this exercise students are to be given copies of each image. Each student will make quick written observation notes on a sheet of paper of what they see in the images that differ. After students take the notes, they as a class, will be asked to share their notations and develop a list of contrasts and comparisons in the differences between the two images.

Group Work
Students will form groups of four/five with each student taking on the role of one of the figures in the engraving. A dialogue of what each person could be thinking is to be presented before the class. Some students in the group may perform the written dialogue and others may choose to write the imagined dialogue of the engraving figures (Teacher discretion based on students learning styles). During class or for homework (based on availability of time), students can record their presentations on audio or video. Teacher/student resources may not allow for this part of the activity.

Reflection
Students will write a response to the following:
What do these images tell you about reproduction of historical images during that time period?
Do you feel this has influenced history? Explain your response.

Activity Four – Family beyond people; Pets and Heirlooms

Part 1- Pets
(Suggested time: 55 minutes)
Provide printout of the historic photograph of Robert E. Lee on Traveller, dated to the 1860s, to each class member. Each student reads the caption. The class will hold an analytical discussion on what Traveller did for Lee’s image, ask students:

• Do you share this view of Lee, why, why not?
• Do you feel this picture provides a more human look at the man away from the battlefield, why, why not?
• Do you see Traveller as a pet and/or his friend that he possibly shared his deepest thoughts with?

Reflection
Students will write a reflection comparing Lee and Traveller and the student and a favorite pet. If there has been no pet have the students discuss a movie or TV show that had a pet in it.

• Does it provide meaning to a person’s life beyond people?

Explain response in 100 – 200 words, bring in photo of a favorite pet and write whether or not your pet would have been welcome at Arlington House.

Part 2 - Heirlooms
(Suggested time: 55 minutes)
Make copies of the Sampler [ARHO 1970], Nightgown [ARHO 2282], and Washington’s Hair ARHO 5024]. Randomly hand out one similar object and the museum object to each student. Group the students based on having the same museum object. Allow time for discussion and planning a 3–5 minute presentation on their museum and similar objects. The presentation should be creative. Provide examples for students such as making up a song through word substitution of an existing song, creating a commercial for the item such as Nightgown Gap commercial, or lastly writing a poem about the object.

Groups will then present their piece. Then there will be a 10 minute discussion on family heirlooms such as jewelry, dishes, etc.

Reflection
Write a reflection on one of the following:

• What heirlooms would you like to receive from your family?
• How does the study of these heirlooms change or not change of heirlooms as an important family link?

Additionally, students can develop a ‘mini-exhibit’ on the piece, including a drawing, photograph, caption with materials and measurements, with historical background and an interpretive paragraph or two. They can also prepare an oral presentation of the piece.

Activity Five: Robert E. Lee’s absence in the family due to military obligation

(Suggested time: 55 minutes)

Have students role play as residents of Arlington. Have them list items they would have missed when they were away for an extended period. In particular, give heads up those artifacts from Arlington House that Lee missed when he was away from his family. Have a student(s) read out loud for the class the accompanying info regarding Annie’s portrait and Mrs. Lee’s Nightgown.

Reflection
Imagine you are Robert E. Lee and write a reaction for one of the following. Explain why you chose why you chose that one.

• Robert in giving Mrs. Lee the gown.
• Robert finding out that the portrait, of the now deceased daughter, was taken during the war.

Provide an anecdote in your life that you want to share in your reflection regarding an item that is dear to you because it reflects a time in a persons’ absence in your life.

Activity Six: Women at Arlington house, The Sampler

Multiple Intelligences Used – Linguistic, Visual, Kinesthetic, Spatial
Materials Needed – Stitching brought from home, picture of Sampler, fabric swatches, needle, and tread.
Vocabulary – Sampler, Reproduction and Hence.

Lesson (Suggested time: 55 minutes)

1. Anticipatory Set (10 minutes) – Have students write a journal activity based on this quote from Mrs. Lee:
   • In looking over my dear mother’s papers the desire of her love was that all our slaves should be enabled in Africa . For years this has been the subject of her hopes and prayers not only for their own benefit but that they might right aid inn the work of carrying gifts and Christianity to that dark heathen country.
     • What is Mrs. Lee talking about?
     • Who is Mrs. Lee talking about?

(Note: This is a quote from a letter that Mrs. Lee wrote. She is describing her mother’s wishes to let enslaved African Americans or free African Americans to go to Africa, specifically the colonized Liberia to spread Christianity to a non-Christian society. If this quote does not work for your class, many other can be found online.)

2. Step 1 (10 minutes) – Bring from home a sample of stitch work on a shirt, throw, or other piece of material to show to students. Show this piece of material in class. Ask students a series of questions about the article regarding style, color, maker, skill, time period, etc.
   
3. Step 2 (10 minutes) – Take out a picture of the SAMPLER. Ask students similar inquiry questions regarding the SAMPLER. Expand the discussion to give a brief history of the SAMPLER. Discuss the function of the SAMPLER. Further explain that stitch work was a common activity of women in the 1800s. Read what the SAMPLER states. Mention that the picture is the original SAMPLER, however, due to its poor condition, that the one hanging in Arlington house is a reproduction and review vocabulary terms of reproduction and sampler.
   
4. Step 3 (25 minutes) – Hand out fabric swatches, needle and thread purchased or donated from a fabric store. Instruct students to make a SAMPLER of their own including 2 vocabulary words used in the unit.

Assessment – Swatches and Questions and Answers class time.

Activity Seven: History through Objects

Multiple Intelligences – Visual, Linguistic

Materials Needed – Select five items from the virtual exhibit [such as calling card case, ornament, or other personal Lee belonging] and similar local objects, prepare overheads of the items for the teacher, questions for the students.

Vocabulary – Heirloom, Engraving, Typhoid Fever, Iconic, Descendants, and Disfigured.

Individual Educational Program NEEDS – For students who do not write well, the teacher can substitute a drawing, photograph or tape recorded answer to the questions.

Lesson(s) (Suggested time: Two 55 - 60 minute sessions)

1. Anticipatory Set (5 minutes) – Find a quote from a family member and use it as a journal prompt for the students.
2. Step 1 (10 minutes) – Discuss with students the importance of heirlooms and how heirlooms connect with the people that owned them. Review what previously discussed about heirlooms. Discuss how we look at other people’s heirlooms and what we can learn about them.
3. Step 2 (15 minutes) – Move on to the objects specifically. Discuss the PORTRAIT OF ANNIE LEE. Discuss why it is a painting and not a photograph. Discuss the brief history of the portrait. Show the THREE GRACES STATUE. Discuss the brief history of the statue. Show the LOCKET OF HAIR with a picture of Lee and a lock of his hair. Discuss the brief history of the LOCKET OF HAIR. Review the ENGRAVING OF WASHINGTON FAMILY and GEORGE WASHINGTON’S HAIR and its history.
4. Step 3 (20 minutes) – Divide students in 3 different groups. Give one group the PORTRAIT of the THREE GRACES; the second group, Washington’s LOCKET OF HAIR with Lee’s picture; and the last group the ENGRAVING AND Washington’s HAIR. Have students (individually first) answer questions about the documents such as:
   • What does the artifact look like?
   • What was the purpose of the artifact?
   • What is the significance of the artifact?
   • What does the artifact tell us about the Arlington families?
   • Who did the artifact belong to and what does this tell us?

Include any additional questions you would like the students to answer.

5. Step 4 (10 minutes) – Have the students who are review the same object gather together and discuss and share the questions about their artifact.

Homework Complete final write up of the questions on your artifact and bring to school prepared to share what you have written.

1. Step 5 (25 minutes) – Divide students into new groups of 3, each member of the group using a different artifact (i.e. One person has Annie/Statue, one person has the locket, and one person has the Engraving/hair). Have each student share what they wrote/know about their artifact.
2. Step 6 (30 minutes) – Have students do a final write up on all three artifacts. The students should answer questions such as:
   • What do all of the artifacts tell us?
   • What is significant about all of the artifacts?
   • What is the history behind all of the artifacts?
   • What can we learn today with these artifacts?
   • How are all of the artifacts connected?
   • What did you like most about your artifacts?

Include any additional questions you would like the students to answer.

1. Assessment – Have students turn in a final report to include their individual write up and their group write up.

Activity Eight: How to read an object

Multiple Intelligences – Visual, Linguistic, Kinesthetic
Materials – How to read an object worksheet, Artifacts.
Vocabulary – Artifact, object, reproduction

Bring a range of 15 – 20 items/artifacts (Locate local objects, new or old, that are similar to items in the virtual exhibit and some photographs).

Lesson Plan (45 – 55 minutes)

1. Anticipatory Set (10 minutes) – Display all of the objects for the students to see and ask the students to discuss the objects, what makes them unique, what they think about them, how are they all alike, different?
2. Step 1 (5 minutes) – Break students up in to pairs and let each group choose an object.
3. Step 2 (20 minutes)– Hand out the How To Read An Object chart to all of the groups and direct them to analyze the document they choose using the How To Read An Object worksheet.
4. Step 3 (20 minutes) – Have each group take turns presenting their findings to the class.

Activity Nine: Wrap Up Activity and Discussion

Have students develop a class portfolio that includes products and items developed in this unit. Each student will pick two or three things from this lesson (one sample must be a written work) into their portfolio. These items will encompass what they learned in the unit on Family Life at Arlington House.

Suggested Rubric –
Well written papers for each class activity = A
Well written papers with one missing activity = B
Two activities missing / or written with revisions needed = C

Discussion – Have students discuss one item of information they feel they have learned for life that relates to the Family Life of Robert E. Lee.

K. Evaluation/Assessment for Measurable Results

• Reflections
• Paragraph on the family
• Family Tree
• Culminating Report
• Portfolio
• Stitch Work
• Journal Entries
• Map and write up (for extension/enrichment activity)

L. Extension and Enrichment Activities

Extension Activity 1. Slide Show (Alternate Wrap-Up Activity)
Multiple Intelligences – Musical, Visual
Materials Needed – Pictures in slide show format or over head format, projector and stereo.

Lesson (55 minutes)

Anticipatory Set (10 minutes) – Discuss with students what music and pictures tell us about today and about history.

Step 1 (20 minutes) – Show a slide show of the pictures in the collection while playing music of the time period. This slide show can be done with out music; however, it is recommended that you include it. Slide show can be done with a projector, overheads or power point.

Step 2 (25 minutes) – Have students reflect on the images, music and whole experience with The Arlington House Family.

Assessment – Reflection.

1. Extension Activity. Geography Lesson (55 minutes)
   Teachers provide blank US Map and Regional DC map and have students research and label the follow locations and physical features:
   1. Mexico
   2. Virginia
      1. Arlington
      2. Alexandria
      3. Lexington
      4. Fairfax
      5. Mt. Vernon
      6. Arlington Cemetery (Arlington House)
      7. Richmond
      8. Harpers Ferry
      9. Appomattox Courthouse
      10. Petersburg
   3. Washington DC
   4. Appalachian Mountains
   5. James River
   6. Rappahannock River
   7. Potomac River
   8. Atlantic Ocean
   9. Gulf of Mexico
   10. Give students the opportunity to color the map.

1. Homework – Have students do a short write up answering one of the following questions:
   1. What about its location made the Arlington House special?
   2. Why was acquiring the Arlington House a strategic military move for the Union Army?
   3. What route might Lee have traveled on his way home from the Mexican War?

M. Resources

Virtual museum exhibit at www.nps.gov/museum/exhibit/arho or www.nps.gov/arho Arlington House Official National Park Handbook Movie on Arlington House we watched – Danny Glover Letters from Mrs. Lee about ArlingtonLetters from Mr. Lee about Arlington

Annotated related web sites with url addresses

www.nps.gov/arho
www.nara.gov
www.loc.gov
http://library.wlu.edu/research/guides/history/rel.asp
www.stratfordhall.org
Birthplace of Robert E. Lee www.mountvernon.org
www.tudorplace.org
Home of G.W.P. Custis’s sister, Martha Custis Peter www.woodlawn1805.org
Home of G.W.P. Custis’s sister, Nellie Custis Lewis www.arlingtonblackheritage.org Arlington VA Black Heritage Museum www.moc.org
Museum of the Confederacy
https://www.si.edu/
www.discoverychannel.com
www.historychannel.com
http://www.galileo.org

Related organizations
Mount Vernon Ladies Association
Local Historical Plantations/Estates
Daughters of the Confederacy
Daughters of the American Revolution
Arlington National Cemetery
American Association for State and Local History

N. Site Visit

Arlington House: The Robert E. Lee Memorial

• Pre-visit: Do lessons 1 and 2 to become familiar with the Arlington House families.
• Site visit: Contact Arlington House staff for more information on touring the house. Visit the park web site at www.nps.gov/arho.
• Post-visit: Reflect on the visit with your students and complete other lessons.
• Virtual visit: Virtual Museum Exhibit on Robert E. Lee and Arlington House at https://www.nps.gov/museum/exhibits/arho/index.html and www.nps.gov/arho

Mount Vernon

• Pre-visit: Do lessons 1 and 2 to become familiar with the Arlington House families
• Site visit: Contact local park service at Arlington House to get more information on touring the house. www.mountvernon.org
• Post-visit: Reflect on the visit with your students and complete other lessons.
• Virtual visit: www.mountvernon.org

Robert E. Lee Birthplace

• Pre-visit: Do lessons 1 and 2 to become familiar with the Arlington House families
• Site visit: Contact local park service at Arlington House to get more information on touring the house. www.stratfordhall.org
• Post-visit: Reflect on the visit with your students and complete other lessons.
• Virtual visit: www.stratforhall.org

Alternate Site Visits

Visit local historic houses and become familiar with families who lived in these houses. National Park Service www.nps.gov