Lesson Plan

Overcoming Obstacles: George Washington Carver’s Pathway to Education

A young teenage boy standing with his hand on a table, looking to the right
Grade Level:
Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade
Subject:
Social Studies
Lesson Duration:
90 Minutes
Common Core Standards:
5.L.4, 5.L.5, 6.L.4, 6.L.5, 7.L.4, 7.L.5, 8.L.4, 8.L.5
State Standards:
MO Social Studies (5th) Knowledge of:
Theme 1 principles expressed in documents shaping constitutional democracy in the U.S.
Theme 2 continuity and change in the history of Missouri and U.S.
Theme 6 relationships of the individual/groups to institutions
Additional Standards:
National History Standards
Era 4; Standard 3B- debates over slavery
Era 5; Standard 3B- Reconstruction
Era 6; Standard 2B- scientific racism, race relations, the struggle for equal rights
Era 7; Standard 3A- social tensions and consequences in postwar era
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. 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

What character traits does a person need to possess when facing obstacles that could prevent them from achieving a dream?

Objective

In this lesson, students will follow the path of George Washington Carver as he pursued educational opportunities that were denied to him in the Missouri community where he was born. Students will gain an understanding of the challenges he faced due to pervasive racism and discrimination as he left the present location of George Washington Carver National Monument to pursue better opportunities in life. Students can find inspiration for their own goals through Carver's perseverance and success.

Background

After my first few lessons in reading and writing, I resolved to get an education, to get all that I could out of books.

These words describe the dream and determination of an orphaned child, about 10 years old, who survived slavery and a kidnapping as an infant, and severe illness throughout childhood. Born enslaved near the end of the Civil War on the southwest Missouri farm of Moses Carver, George Washington Carver lost his mother, Mary, and a sister, during a violent kidnapping in which they both were abducted by outlaws and taken south toward Arkansas. Ransomed for a racehorse and returned alone, George never knew the fate of his mother or sister. Added to this sorrow, he developed an illness he later called whooping cough. It nearly killed him.

Under the Missouri Compromise, Missouri was admitted into the United States as a slave state in 1821. This unsatisfactory and acrimonious legislation resulted in the extension of slavery for another 40 years. It was during this time that Moses Carver, who was born in Ohio, moved from Illinois with his wife Susan to the far, southwestern corner of Missouri, where it bordered closely with Arkansas, Indian Territory (later: Oklahoma), and Kansas Territory. The border region was frequented by bandits and outlaw gangs, was geographically isolated from the rest of the country, and was a dangerous place during the Civil War. This place shaped the early life of George Washington Carver. 

In this lesson, students will follow the path of George Washington Carver as he pursued educational opportunities that were limited or denied to him in the Missouri community where he was born. Students will gain an understanding of the challenges he faced due to pervasive racism and discrimination as he left the present location of George Washington Carver National Monument to pursue an education and better opportunities in life. Students can find inspiration for their own goals through George Washington Carver’s perseverance in earning an advanced degree in Iowa and his career life of service to others through his career at Tuskegee Institute, Alabama.

About This Lesson

George Washington Carver National Monument encompasses the land that was the Moses Carver farm - birthplace and childhood home of George Washington Carver. The 240-acre site looks much like it did during young Carver’s time on the land, from about 1864-1876. Tallgrass prairie and woodlands were bisected with plentiful streams, all of which were populated by an abundance of native flora and fauna. Carver was deeply impacted by his childhood experiences on this land.

This historic place is located in Newton County, Missouri. Areas of significance include: Agriculture; Science; Sculpture; Social/Humanitarian; Biography. The National Historic Places Register Reference Number is 66000114.

This lesson is based on the National Register of Historic Places files for George Washington Carver National Monument, Walking in Credence – An Administrative History of George Washington Carver National Monument, He Shall Direct Thy Paths: The Early Life of George Washington Carver – a Historic Resource Study for George Washington Carver National Monument, Thirst for Knowledge – Historic Context for the 1872 Neosho Colored School, and primary source materials available in the museum collection. The lesson was authored by VIP (Volunteers In Parks) Edward A. Williamson, Ph.D., Drury University, the Education Coordinator at George Washington Carver National Monument, and the staff of Teaching with Historic Places.

 

Where it Fits Into the Curriculum

Topics

This lesson works with units on the expansion of slavery - especially following the Louisiana Purchase, the Missouri Compromise and Missouri Statehood, the Civil War era in the Trans-Mississippi West, the Missouri-Kansas border war, the Reconstruction era and social settings, segregation and Jim Crow laws, racism, and the character traits of determination, perseverance, and resilience.

National History Standards addressed (grades 5-12)

Era 4 Expansion and Reform (1801-1861)

  • Standard 3B: The student understands how the debates over slavery influenced politics and sectionalism. 5-12: Explain the Missouri Compromise and evaluate it political consequences.
Era 5 Civil War and Reconstruction (1850-1877)
  • Standard 3B: The student understands the Reconstruction programs to transform social relations in the South. 7-12: Analyze how African Americans attempted to improve their economic position during Reconstruction and explain the factors involved in their quest for land ownership. [Analyze multiple causation]
Era 6 The Development of the Industrial United States (1870-1900)
  • Standard 2B The student understands "scientific racism", race relations, and the struggle for equal rights. 7-12: Analyze the scientific theories of race and their application to society and politics. [Examine the influence of ideas]
Era 7 The Emergence of Modern America (1890-1930)
  • Standard 3A The student understands social tensions and their consequences in the postwar era. 7-12: Examine rising racial tensions, the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan, and the emergence of Garveyism. [Analyze cause-and-effect relationships]

Missouri Social Studies Learning Standards K-5 (5th grade)             

Theme 1 Knowledge of the principles expressed in documents shaping constitutional democracy in the U.S.
E. Describe the character traits and civic attitudes of historically significant individuals in U.S. history from c. 1800-2000.

Theme 2 Knowledge of continuity and change in the history of Missouri and the U.S.
B. Examine cultural interactions and conflicts among Native Americans, European Americans, and African Americans from c. 1800-2000. 
 
C. Identify and describe the contributions of historically significant individuals in the U.S. history from c. 1800-2000.

G. Identify political, economic, and social causes and consequences of the Civil War and Reconstruction.
 
Theme 6 Knowledge of relationships of the individual and groups to institutions and cultural traditions
E. Examine the changing roles among Native Americans, Immigrants, African Americans, women and others from 1800-2000.
 

Missouri Social Studies Grade Level Expectations 6-8

Theme 5 Continuity and Change

A. Analyze political compromises over slavery in the territories to explain intensifying sectional conflicts.

Objectives for students          
Learners will:
1) Analyze the impacts that slavery and racism had on George Washington Carver’s life, listing two or more permanent results.
2) Map George Washington Carver’s travels in pursuit of his education and discuss the reasons he relocated each time. 3) Examine George Washington Carver’s determination and perseverance to explain how he responded to incidents of racism in his life.
4) Compare and contrast George Washington Carver’s obstacles to education to those that students may face today.
5) Research educational institutions in their local community, or state, or nation that were historically segregated and discuss how racial segregation resulted in unequal educational opportunities for black and white students probable impacts on students.

Materials for students
1) Four maps
  • Plat map of Marion Township, Newton County, Missouri, 1880 (Map 1)
  • Historic base map of Carver Farm, Newton County, Missouri (Map 2)
  • Base map, 1882 atlas map of Neosho, Missouri 1882 (Map 3)
  • Map of George Washington Carver’s education quest (Map 4)
2) Two readings
  • 1897 or Thereabouts, George Washington Carver (Reading 1)
  • Equipment, Edgar A. Guest (Reading 2)
3) Eight images
  • George Washington Carver’s sketch of birthplace cabin (Image 1)
  • Birthsite location, George Washington Carver National Monument (Image 2)
  • Carver as young teen, c. 1876 (Image 3)
  • George Washington Carver’s sketch of 1872 Neosho Colored School and Watkins Home (Image 4)
  • “Aunt” Mariah Watkins sitting with children, 1903 (Image 5)
  • Stephen Frost, teacher at Neosho Colored School, c. 1875 (Image 6)
  • George Washington Carver as a college graduate (Image 7)
  • George Washington Carver at Tuskegee Institute, c. 1935 (Image 8)

Visiting the Site


George Washington Carver National Monument in Diamond, Missouri is the birthplace and childhood home of George Washington Carver. Located in the southwestern corner of the state, the park features a one-mile walking trail, picnic grounds, and visitor center which is open daily from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. The visitor center features a museum with interactive exhibits, a documentary film, and a gift shop. There is no fee to visit the park. Educational field trips are available year-round by reservation. Programs include guided tours of the trail at 10:00 am and 2:00 pm, Junior Ranger booklets, weekend presentations, and special events throughout the year, including Carver Day in July and Prairie Day in September. For further information call 417-325-4151 or visit www.nps.gov/gwca.

 

Preparation

Download lesson plan, including the maps, readings, and photographs/images.

Materials

Each numbered section is one square mile; blue oval indicate locations of rural, one-room schools; Moses Carver farm is indicated in red

Download Map 1: Plat map of Marion Township, Newton County, Missouri, 1880 (Map 1)

Detailed map of the 240 acre Moses Carver Farm, showing orchards, streams, fields, and woodlands

Download MAP 2 Historic Base Map Carver Farm

Showing historically Black neighborhood that included the Watkins home and the historic Neosho Colored School

Download MAP 3 Detail of Historic Base Map of Neosho MO 1882

Map of Missouri, Kansas, and Iowa showing the path of travel George W. Carver took and the towns where he lived while pursuing an education

Download Map 4 G.W. Carver's Education Quest

Autobiographical letter

Download Reading 1 1897 or Therabouts, G.W. Carver

Poem chosen by G.W. Carver to read during 1942 commencement address at Selma University

Download Reading 2 Equipment, Edgar A. Guest

George Washington Carver's sketch of the birthplace cabin

Download Image 1 Birthplace Sketch

Photo of birthplace location today

Download Image 2 Birthplace Location

Photograph of George Washington Carver at 10-12 years of age

Download Image 3 Young George Washington Carver

George Washington Carver's sketch of the Neosho school that he attended

Download Image 4 Neosho School Sketch

Mariah Watkins shown in a formal portrait

Download Image 5 Mariah Watkins

George Washington Carver's teacher at the Neosho school

Download Image 6 Stephen Frost

George Washington Carver, taken at Iowa State College as he graduated with a masters degree in agriculture

Download Image 7 George Washington Carver 1896

George Washington Carver, taken at Tuskegee Institute, Alabama

Download Image 8 George Washington Carver

Lesson Hook/Preview

What character traits does a person need to possess when facing obstacles that could prevent them from achieving a dream? Use maps, photographs, and George Washington Carver's own words to determine some of the difficulties he faced and how he succeeded in earning an advanced education and a life of service to others.  

Setting the Stage


George Washington Carver, the renowned African American scientist and educator, is known for his work with agricultural products, especially sweet potatoes and peanuts. Schools were named for him, books written about his life, and his birthplace became a national park. However, he began life during the grim time of slavery, as the property of Moses Carver. Ten years earlier, Moses purchased a teenager named Mary for $700. Children born to her were born into slavery. She gave birth to her first son, James, in 1859.

Near the end of Sometime during the Civil War, George was born. The area was plagued by bandits and outlaws. Mary and George , and possibly a sister, became victims of a violent kidnapping. They both were abducted by outlaws and taken south toward Arkansas. Ransomed for a racehorse and returned alone, George never knew the fate of his mother. His father had died when George was an infant. Added to these sorrows, he developed an illness he later called whooping cough. It nearly killed him. 

Growing up on the Moses Carver farm while recovering from whooping cough, which severely weakened his health, George was cared for primarily by Susan Carver. He was given easier household chores. At every opportunity, he explored the woodlands on the farm and developed his observation skills, forming questions about the natural world - questions that no one could answer.

Mr. and Mrs. Carver were very kind to me and I thank them so much for my home training. They encouraged me to secure knowledge, helping me all they could, but this was quite limited.

With the end of the Civil War came freedom for young George but it would be many years before he learned just what it meant. So-called freedom was defined by the oppressive rules of a white-dominated society. Many attempts and many roadblocks lay between George Washington Carver and completion of his educational achievements.

The Reconstruction era, 1865-1877, was a time after the Civil War when African American men could vote, actively participate in the political process, acquire land, seek employment, and pursue other civil rights. Reconstruction came and went as Carver left childhood behind and became an adolescent. He had developed a keen mind and his health improved. His desire for an education grew strong and at around 10-12 years of age, he attempted to enter the local one-room school, across the road from the Carver farm.

As we lived in the country no colored schools were available so I was permitted to go 8 miles to a school at town (Neosho). This simply sharpened my apetite (sic) for more knowledge.

White citizens of the Diamond community near the Carver farm would not tolerate this African American child in their school and sent him away. Little did Carver know that Missouri’s post- Civil War constitution permitted rural schools to integrate, meaning there could be racially mixed classes. Instead, white people enforced racial segregation, a demoralizing separation of students based on race, through violent intimidation and later, through Jim Crow laws. Jim Crow was a derogatory depiction of African Americans, making them appear to be less that human. This stereotype permeated white society, supported the false belief of racial superiority, and justified the use of violence to enforce legalized racial segregation. African Americans had few options to fight this oppression.

George Washington Carver determined to move to Neosho (see Map 3), the nearest town with a school for African American students. This decision set his feet on a path that would lead him through many fearful and difficult times on the way to achieving his goal of earning an education. By 1876, young Carver was attending classes at the Neosho Colored School. The word “colored” was used by whites, African Americans, and by George Washington Carver. However, it is considered an insulting word today and using it is insensitive.

Two very important people impacted George during his time in Neosho. Mrs. Mariah Watkins lived with her husband, Andrew, near the school George attended. The couple took in the orphaned teen as one of the family. When Mariah saw George’s determination to gain as much education as possible, she gave him the charge to learn all he could and then go out into the world and give his learning back to the African American community. She planted an idea that would later bear fruit in his career.

Stephen Frost was George Washington Carver’s first formal teacher. He had been born enslaved and possessed very limited education or training to be a teacher. However, one of Carver’s classmates said Mr. Frost was an ideal teacher with the power to influence, inspire and impart knowledge and wisdom to his pupils. Mr. Frost gave Carver a merit award for perfect studies and good conduct. George Washington Carver said his appetite for more knowledge was sharpened and he decided to move on.

For the next twenty years George Washington Carver was compelled to move from place to place in the states of Missouri, Kansas and Iowa, experiencing racism and discrimination in his pursuit of education. He developed an “I can” attitude to sustain himself through his various encounters with people and situations along the way. In 1894, he graduated from Iowa Agricultural College (now Iowa State University) with a bachelor’s degree in agriculture. Then, in 1896, he completed a master’s degree in agriculture from the same institution and accepted a job offer from Booker T. Washington.

Carver moved to Alabama to become Director of the Agriculture Department at Tuskegee Institute, a school founded in 1881 by Booker T. Washington. The school was one of the few that provided higher education for African American students in the South, at a time when racial segregation in every aspect of southern society. was strictly enforced through the use of violence and intimidation by white supremacist groups. It was at Tuskegee Institute that George Washington Carver finally found a way to give his learning back to those who needed it, just as Mariah Watkins instructed him. Carver remained at Tuskegee until his death in 1943.

Procedure

Determining the Facts


READING ONE  1897 or Thereabouts – George Washington Carver’s Own Brief History of His Life

Questions for Reading One
  1. What information establishes that George Washington Carver was born into slavery?
  2. What “pets” did George Washington Carver say he enjoyed as a child?
  3. How did Carver’s experiences at this site influence his future life?
  4. Because of his childhood illness, what were two results on the health of young Carver?
  5. What was something that George Washington Carver greatly desired and that Mr. and Mrs. Carver encouraged him to secure?
                 
READING TWO  Equipment, Edgar A. Guest
Edgar Guest was a poet and host of a radio program. When asked in 1942 to be the commencement speaker at Selma University in Alabama, a school for African American students, George Washington Carver chose this poem of Guest’s. Graduating students faced racial segregation and injustice as they entered the work force with their degrees. Carver had insight of the world they were facing.

Questions for Reading Two
  1. How does this poem capture the character of George Washington Carver?
  2. Why do you think Carver chose this to read to a group of students graduating from college?
  3. According to the poem, what character trait comes from within a person’s soul?

Visual Evidence


Map 1: Plat map of Marion Township, Newton County, Missouri, 1880
  1. What is the furthest distance between two schools?
  2. In what section is School #1?
  3. What are two geographic features on the M. Carver farm?
  4. How far would young George walk to the nearest school if he lived near the spring on the M. Carver farm?

Map 2: Historic base map of Moses Carver Farm, Newton County, Missouri
  1. Based on research and archaeological investigations, this map depicts how the M. Carver farm may have appeared during George Washington Carver’s childhood years. What features of the farm indicate Moses Carver’s prosperity?
  2. Locate the site of the “slave cabin,” where George and his brother Jim were born. What direction is its placement from the Moses Carver residence?
  3. Oral history accounts tell of a time when Moses Carver’s farm was attacked by outlaws and Moses was hung by his thumbs in a tree near the cabins. The outlaws left him hanging in the tree but Susan Carver somehow freed him. He survived the torturous episode. The tree’s location is marked on this map.
  4. As a child, George Washington Carver spent much time cultivating his secret garden in the woodlands of the farm. Locate the woodlands and discuss why he said he kept his garden it was not far from the house.

Putting it all together   

In this lesson, students learned that George Washington Carver was born near the end of the Civil War, experienced a traumatic first year of life, and was too young to have many recollections of slavery. They learned that he grew up in the years immediately following emancipation in a society where racism and discrimination resulted in limited educational opportunities for African Americans. Use the following activities to help students.

In violation of the provisions of the 1865 Missouri State Constitution, young George was not allowed to attend the rural school in his neighborhood and had to travel to the town of Neosho (about 8 nearly 10 miles away) to attend a segregated school (the 1872 Neosho Colored School). The 1875 Missouri State Constitution demanded separate schools for African Americans, a precursor to the “separate but equal” situation legalized by the 1896 Plessy v Ferguson decision. In Neosho, Missouri this resulted in the establishment of the Lincoln School in 1891, after Carver left for Kansas and other locations.

Separate educational institutions were maintained throughout much of the United States until the 1954 Brown v Board of Education decision. The Lincoln Schools in Neosho were integrated in 1954.

Activity 1: Trace George Washington Carver’s Education Journey
Using the list below, starting after he left Neosho, have students trace on George Washington Carver’s travels journey in search of an education on a map of the United States. 

Separate educational institutions were maintained throughout much of the United States until the 1954 Brown v Board of Education decision. The Lincoln Schools in Neosho were integrated in 1954. When George Washington Carver left Neosho, Missouri he traveled to the following locations:

1) Fort Scott, Kansas (Carver attended the Fort Scott Colored School, now the Post Hospital building at Fort Scott National Historic Site. This building is on the National Register of Historic Places.)              
2) Olathe and Paola, Kansas
3) Minneapolis, Kansas (Carver met the requirements for his high school diploma in this city.)               
4) Kansas City (Carver took business courses here.
5) Highland, Kansas (Carver applied for admission to Highland College and was accepted by mail, only to be turned away when he arrived at the campus. Irvin Hall is an original part of Highland College dating back to 1858 and is on the National Register of Historic Places.
6) Beeler, Kansas (Carver’s homestead in Ness County, Kansas is on the National Register of Historic Places.
7) Winterset, Iowa
8) Indianola, Iowa (Carver enrolled at Simpson College to study art. Science Hall, the site of some of Carver’s art classes is on the National Register of Historic Places.
9) Ames, Iowa (Carver transferred to Iowa Agricultural College, now Iowa State University and received an undergraduate and graduate degree. Morrill Hall and Agricultural Hall on the campus of Iowa State University where Carver attended classes along with Budd House, in the city of Ames, where Carver briefly lived are on the National Register of Historic Places.
10) Tuskegee, Alabama (Carver began teaching at Tuskegee Institute in 1896. He resided in Tuskegee until his death in 1943 and is buried on the campus of Tuskegee University. Many buildings on the Tuskegee University campus are listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Tuskegee Institute.
11) The farm where George Washington Carver was born (now George Washington Carver National Monument) and the church where he spoke when he returned to Neosho, Missouri in 1908 (Second Baptist Church) are both listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Activity 2: George Washington Carver’s Recollections on Race Relations Have students refer to copies of Carver’s “1897 or thereabouts” (Reading 1) and “Equipment". (Reading 2). Using these resources and other (primarily online) sources have students discuss Carver’s travels and the status of race relations, prejudice, and discrimination as he went from location to location. Did race relations improve or deteriorate over time as he traveled? Did location have any impact on race relations?
www.nps.gov/gwca
https://digitalcollections.lib.iastate.edu/islandora/object/isu%3ACarver
https://specialcollections.nal.usda.gov/george-washington-carver-correspondence-collection
https://simpson.edu/dunn-library/george-washington-carver
https://www.nps.gov/tuin/index.htm

Activity 3: Equipped for Life – Self Determination
Provide students refer to with the text of Edgar Guest’s poem Equipment (Reading 2). This poem was a favorite of George W. Carver’s. He recited it in a recording made for the 1942 commencement ceremony at Selma University because he was too ill to attend in person. After students read the poem have them discuss the meaning of the term “I Can” with respect to George Carver’s life and experiences. Then have them discuss what Guest meant by the phrase, “you are the handicap that you must face”. What would might this phrase have meant to George W. Carver? What does the phrase mean to students today? Next, ask students to brainstorm a list of obstacles they face today. Working individually or in small groups, have them create a poem, song, rap, or prose to represent their thoughts on facing and overcoming obstacles in school or in life.

Activity 4: Fact Finding - History of  Segregated Education
Have students research the history of educational facilities in their hometown (or their state) to see if they included segregated institutions. George Washington Carver received his first formal educational experiences in the 1872 Neosho Colored School in Neosho, Missouri. Segregated education was maintained in Neosho with the construction of two Lincoln Schools (one in 1891 and one in 1940) until 1954 when the entire school system was desegregated.

 


 

Vocabulary

slavery
Missouri Compromise
acrimonious
Reconstruction
Jim Crow
racism

Contact Information

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Tags: teaching with historic places george washington carver george washington carver national monument african american heritage african american education segregated schools resilience determination courage famous missourians african american scientists

Last updated: July 8, 2022