Last updated: May 5, 2025
Lesson Plan
Missouri Compromise, 3rd & 4th Grade
Missouri Compromise. Compromise that spilt America in half
Image: NPS
- Grade Level:
- Upper Elementary: Third Grade through Fifth Grade
- Subject:
- Social Studies
- Lesson Duration:
- 60 Minutes
- State Standards:
- Missouri: #3a. Concept F - Knowledge of continuity and change in the history of Missouri & U.S.; Westward Expansion and settlement in the U.S. Discuss issues of Missouri statehood.
Kansas: KCCRSSL.3.1 - Engage in range of collaborative discussions. - Additional Standards:
- Oklahoma: 4.3.2.B Explain how the characteristics of culture affect the ways in which people live.
- Thinking Skills:
- Understanding: Understand the main idea of material heard, viewed, or read. Interpret or summarize the ideas in own words. Applying: Apply an abstract idea in a concrete situation to solve a problem or relate it to a prior experience. Analyzing: Break down a concept or idea into parts and show the relationships among the parts. Creating: Bring together parts (elements, compounds) of knowledge to form a whole and build relationships for NEW situations. Evaluating: Make informed judgements about the value of ideas or materials. Use standards and criteria to support opinions and views.
Essential Question
Is compromise necessary for the success or survival of a representative government?
Objective
Students will be able to identify the concept of what a compromise is and correlate the components of a compromise into the Missouri Compromise.
Student Friendly Objective: I will know what a compromise is and how this concept was used as the United States was admitting more states into the Union.
Background
Emphasize that when discussions about Missouri entering into the Union occurred there were an equal number of slave and free states in the Union.
Brief introduction of slavery.
Character Composites:
- Characters involved in Forming the Compromise
- Henry Clay
- Tallmadge
- 19th century Farmers
- 19th century Traders
- Women
- Native American/American Indian
Blank map of the United States of America circa 1820 The "Missouri Question" 1819 Map
Intro Video Over What Kids Argue and Compromise Over, 30 sec.
Preparation
Blank Map of Missouri Compromise
Intro Video Over What Kids Argue and Compromise Over: 30 sec. Brief Introduction to Slavery
- Characters Involved in Forming the Compromise
- Henry Clay
- Talmadge
- 19th Century Farmers
- 19th Century Traders
- Women
- Native American/American Indian
The "Missouri Question" 1819 map
Materials
Lesson Hook/Preview
Teachers will lead a whole class activity inviting students to discuss what to have for lunch. The teacher will select four choices from the discussion. The teacher will then designate each corner as a choice: students then go to a "choice corner" that most closely represents what they want for lunch. In their corners, students then conduct a mini collaboration session to determine the best reason why their choice would be best for the whole class. Once each group has reached consensus (appox. 4 minutes), the teacher brings the class back together. A designated representative from each "choice corner" then presents their case, and students are allowed to re-choose after each corner has presented their case.
- Discuss with students what reasons "moved" people to and from their corners.
- Discuss with students what is hard about having four choices.
Have pairs share out, recording their responses on the board for class display. Have students vote on which would be the most beneficial response for all students.
- Discuss with students what challenges they faced while constructing their compromises.
- Discuss with students the benefits and drawbacks of compromises.
- Ask students about other times in their lives they've had to make compromises. Segue their responses into discussing how the young US government faced monumental compromises in order to keep the union growing.
Procedure
- Put students into collaborative groups (no more than 4 in a group)
- Using the blank map: determine how the state of Missouri will enter the union.
- Color code the map to represent the free and slave states BEFORE Missouri is admitted.
- Within each collaborative group/think tank, come up with possible solutions for the following questions:
- How can Missouri be admitted into the Union (United States) and still maintain a balance of free and slave states?
- What has to be moved?
- What has to be shifted?
- What would Missouri have to do in order to give both sides (free and slave) something they wanted?
- Teacher shows the results of the actual Missouri Compromise.
- Students are invited to evaluate the effectiveness of the Compromise:
- In what ways were the voices of the People represented?
- In what ways were the voices of the People not heard?
- Can you think of anyone that was left out of the discussion?
- What happens to an idea that impacts everyone when it is not voted on by everyone?Teachers: talk about a time in which you came late to family discussion, you did not get a vote and had to go along with a decision that was made. Ask: how did you feel?
- Teachers: talk about a time in which you came late to family discussion, you did not get a vote and had to go along with a decision that was made. Ask: how did you feel?
Supports for Struggling Learners
Essential Question Representation
Missouri Compromise:
Why was it created? To balance the power between Free and Slave States in Congress
Who did it benefit? The leaders who wanted to keep expanding the United States territory.
What did the MO Compromise do in reality? It functionned as a band-aid on the issue of slavery. It allowed slavery to expand alongside free states at the same rate. Balance was the number one goal, not ending slavery. It made the country larger, but not more unified.
Give students the above information and have them create a visual representation of the essential knowledge of the Missouri Compromise
Have students display their work and then have the class post-
- Glows (what they learned from their poster) and
- Grows (what is a question they still have about their poster?) on their work with post-it notes.
Give students a chance to discuss their learning with their peers.
Enrichment Activities
Have learners:
Construct a propaganda poster that would be for the passage of the MO Compromise.
- Include reasons why the MO Compromise was created and how it was designed to HELP the country.
- Benefits (how would the MO Compromise help people (which people and how?).
Construct a propaganda poster that would be AGAINST the passage of the MO Compromise.
- Include reasons why the MO Compromise would make the situation worse.
- Negatives (how would the MO Compromise hurt people (which people and how?).