Great Civil War Projects You Can Build Yourself (Build It Yourself series) [Paperback]

Maxine Anderson (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up | Series: Build It Yourself series

From uniforms and submarines to potato cannons and regimental flags, this interactive book explores the history and inventions of the Civil War through building projects and activities. Finished products include a set of Civil War drums, secret codes, and a Civil War spy glass. Detailed step-by-step instructions, diagrams, and templates for each project are interspersed with historical facts, biographies, anecdotes, and trivia about the real-life models. Most of the building can be done using simple household supplies: construction paper, tape, markers, glue, cardboard tubes, string, yarn, aluminum foil, and cardboard boxes.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8–This interesting collection of projects is divided into two sections: On the Battlefield and On the Homefront. Subsections include Bands and Music and Soldiers' Food; they contain background information and two or three projects. Although this is not a comprehensive history of the war, Anderson includes little-known facts that will interest children unfamiliar with the conflict and Civil War buffs alike. The more than three dozen projects and recipes range from simple to quite difficult. Readers learn how to make a lean-to, a quilt, a working telegraph, and more. Most of the required materials are household items or are easily obtainable at a hardware store. The instructions are complete, but are illustrated with only gray-and-white drawings. Some of the same activities are found in Janis Herbert's The Civil War for Kids (Chicago Review, 1999), which offers a more complete history, but has fewer projects. A useful resource for any Civil War curriculum.–Donna Cardon, Provo City Library, UT
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 7-10. Each section in this large-format book introduces an aspect of life on the battlefield or the home front during the Civil War. The discussion is followed by one or more related craft projects. Presented as illustrated lists of materials and directions, they include instructions for making such diverse items as cornbread, hardtack, a flag, a telegraph, a pinhole camera, a periscope, a Union or Confederate jacket, a rag doll, ink, paper, a quilt, and a model of the Monitor or the Virginia. Besides the drawings that accompany these projects, other illustrations include many period photographs and engravings. Slate blue highlighting for pictures and sidebars provides the only color. Though the historical text is generally written at high-school level, the instructions for projects will be accessible to many middle-school students. There are no source notes, but a glossary and lists of books and Web sites are appended. Useful for Civil War reenactments as well as school projects. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Nomad Press (August 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0974934410
• ISBN-13: 978-0974934419
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.9 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #512,226 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A couple dozen CIvil War projects for young students to do in class, February 3, 2006

By 

Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Great Civil War Projects You Can Build Yourself (Build It Yourself series) (Paperback)

"Great Civil War Projects You Can Build Yourself" is a prime example of the supplemental books that are out there for teachers to get ideas for projects their students can do for a particular unit. Maxine Anderson provides a brief introduction to the Civil War that talks about how it all began and who were some of the important political and military leaders on both sides, but obviously a history textbook is going to give young students more details (i.e., the names, dates, and places that students will need to know on the test). But the two main sections of the book are devoted to projects that help students understand what live was like on the battlefield and on the homefront.

There is some background material for these products, so this is not just a "How to" book. The first section of "On the Battlefield" looks at bands and music during the Civil War before providing a pair of projects where you get to make your own Civil War bugle and drum. In the first half of the book there are projects for making a pinhole camera; a Union Fort Sumter, South Carolina Palmetto, and/or California 100 flag; the ironclads "Monitor" and "Virginia"; a lean-to shelter; a paddlewheeler; periscope; telegraph; and signal flags. There is also the opportunity to make some battlefield food from Union hardtack (if the students have been misbehaving I suppose), Confederate Johnny Cakes (spread with butter or molasses, which, as Anderson points out, was "a treat Confederates didn't often get), or the cornbread popular on both sides. Anderson even explains how to make your own Union or Confederate jacket, as well as a forage cap or Zouave fez, which might be more reasonable.

The "On the Homefront" section looks at how civilians deal with hardships and deprivations during the war. The projects consist of making your own berry ink and handmade paper; four patch quilt block, pillow or wall hanging, and/or four patch quilt; corn husk, rag, and/or hanky dolls; fan or cameo; banjo or tambourine; and Underground Railroad lantern. This time the food related projects consist of making your own fruit dehydrator, molasses taffy, and rock candy.

For each project Anderson provides a list of "What You'll Need," and step-by-step instructions on "What To Do." The back of the book has Templates for Projects, such as circles, squares and stars to go along with some of the key elements in the flags. Throughout the book there are reminders to "Know Your Slang," so that you will learn "web feet" is a term the cavalry had for the infantry and a "housewife" was your sewing kit. You will also find Civil War Facts & Trivia (e.g., President Lincoln had to cross the street from the White House to check telegraph messages) scattered throughout the book, along with dozens of informative sidebars where Anderson talks about everything from photographer Mathew Brady and inventor John Ericsson to the color uniforms used to different branches on the battlefield and Southern food prices.

There appear to be only two other titles in the Build It Yourself series to date, "Great Colonial American Projects You Can Build Yourself" and "Amazing Leonardo Da Vinci Inventions You Can Build Yourself," but hopefully there will be more in the future because it would be nice for history teachers to have more choices for incorporating these sort of projects into various units. Obviously you do not have to do all of them, but there are certainly enough in this volume that you could do a couple of different ones each year for a while before you started repeating yourself (unless, of course, you get really hooked on something like making your own rock candy or pinhole camera).

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cool Book for Kids, October 11, 2005

By 

Sheri Bell-Rehwoldt "bookwriter" (Salt Lake City, UT) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Great Civil War Projects You Can Build Yourself (Build It Yourself series) (Paperback)

We all know that a great way for kids--and adults--to learn new information or a new skill is to take book knowledge and apply it. This book offers readers many opportunities to sew, build, construct, and cook up items applicable to the Civil War, using ordinary objects. Who knew you could easily fashion a bugle from garden hose or a periscope from a milk carton?! I also enjoyed the trivia and slang terms that are sprinkled throughout the book. I now know a "hospital rat" is someone who fakes an illness!

Kids, and adults, will get a lot out of this book. And teachers can put it to great use in the classroom.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beyond the Textbook, June 5, 2006

By 

WIG (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Great Civil War Projects You Can Build Yourself (Build It Yourself series) (Paperback)

We have just finished our unit on the Civil War. The projects in this book are fantastic. My eighth graders used many of them to create a Civil War museum. They then presented their museum to fourth graders using their artifact to teach a key aspect of the Civil War. Even my most reluctant learners did an exceptional job. I highly recommend this book to any teacher of American History and/or any student