Scott's major contribution to the Union cause was his Anaconda Plan, the strategy for holding the Mississippi River Valley and blockading Southern ports. Students will take part in a role playing activity in their learning teams. They are to assume the role of Abraham Lincoln and make a decision about how to respond to the confederate attack on Fort Sumter in April of 1861. Students should divide the research up among the group members and work together to plug information into their decision making model to analyze alternatives and explore relevant values that come into play. The rest of the class should be taking notes that can be used to make educated objections to the President's decision.
Students can score participation points for solid objections.