Before You Begin Choose one of the Civil War topics listed below. Using the library and the Internet, find one research source about the topic. Your source should be at least five hundred words in length, or, if you select a print source, at least four to five pages.

Choose one topic:

a major Civil War battle
Civil War munitions and uniforms
the Emancipation Proclamation
the Gettysburg Address
After you find your source, you should meet with your teacher to get it approved before moving on to the next step.

Good readers rely on a set of skills to help them understand a text. You can use these strategies as you read the research source about the Civil War.

If possible, print a version of the text that you can write on. It is helpful to highlight key points and make notes in the margins. This strategy is called annotating.
When you find words or phrases that you do not know, do not skip over them. There is a series of steps you can take to understand the meaning of these words and phrases, so that you do not miss out on key ideas.
Context clues: Look at the words before and after the unknown word or phrase. Using the surrounding text, or context, can you find any clues to the meaning of the unknown word?
Using a dictionary: To find the specific meaning of a word, including helpful information like part of speech, word origin, and multiple meanings, you can use a dictionary. There are both print and online dictionaries available.
Using an encyclopedia: Some words or phrases may have an important historical or contextual meaning behind them, especially in a social studies or history text. In this case, an encyclopedia is an excellent resource. For example, you would not want to simply use a dictionary to look up George Washington; in fact, an encyclopedia would provide you with a clearer meaning.
After annotating the text, go back and read the text one more time. You might notice new details that you missed the first time.
After you have finished reading the text a second time and have defined any unknown words, jot down some notes about the key points or ideas. It can be helpful to write a quick summary of the source in order to prepare you for your next step: writing a report.
Directions
Choose one Civil War topic from the list below. Research your topic using the library and the Internet. Then, write a report of at least four hundred words.

a major Civil War battle
Civil War munitions and uniforms
the Emancipation Proclamation
the Gettysburg Address
Make sure you correctly cite your research source or sources in your writing.