Last updated: December 15, 2022
Lesson Plan
What is a Buffalo Soldier to Wear?
- Grade Level:
- Upper Elementary: Third Grade through Fifth Grade
- Subject:
- Social Studies
- Lesson Duration:
- 60 Minutes
- State Standards:
- Ohio 3.SS.1, 3.SS.2, 4.SS.9, 4.SS.11, 5.SS.5, 5.SS.6, 5.SS.10
- Thinking Skills:
- Remembering: Recalling or recognizing information ideas, and principles. 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.
Essential Question
How did the Buffalo Soldiers uniforms adapt to the various climates they were stationed?
Objective
Army regulations determine what soldiers can wear. Between 1866 and 1902, the Buffalo Soldiers experienced a variety of climates as they were stationed out west and abroad. How did Army regulations adapt their uniform policies based on the firsthand experiences of the soldiers?
Preparation
Park Ranger will need access to a Projector that can connect to a computer or laptop. Presentation is stored digitally and displayed using PowerPoint.
Have students split into an even number of groups, at least 2 students per group (group sizes are at the discretion of the teacher).
Procedure
Students will learn about the climate of various areas the Buffalo Soldiers were assigned. They will take on the roles as a General in the Army in charge of military uniform regulations. Working in groups, they will decide what the best changes to the Buffalo Soldiers uniforms are needed so they can succeed in their missions.
Vocabulary
Temperature: the state of the atmosphere at a place and time as regards heat, dryness, sunshine, wind, rain, etc.
Average: number that is calculated by adding quantities together and then dividing the total by the number of quantities
Climate: the weather conditions prevailing in an area in general or over a long period
Precipitation: any liquid or frozen water that forms in the atmosphere and falls back to Earth
Latitude: the angular distance of a place north or south of the equator
Longitude: the angular distance of a place east or west of the meridian (Greenwich, England)
Buffalo Soldier: nickname applied to African American soldiers who served in an all-Black unit in the Army between 1866 and the Korean War