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Social studies activity

Indiana's Story: Crossroads, the Underground Railroad & Two Presidents

Abraham Lincoln spent almost his whole childhood in Indiana — from age 7 to 21! He grew up in a tiny log cabin and had to help his family survive in the wilderness. He never went to school for more than a few months. But he taught himself to read. Let's think about what it means to be so determined that nothing stops you.

Hands OnAbout 25 minutesScreen-freeParent help expected

Materials and setup

How this changes by age

Pre-K (ages 3–4)

Abraham Lincoln spent almost his whole childhood in Indiana — from age 7 to 21! He grew up in a tiny log cabin and had to help his family survive in the wilderness. He never went to school for more than a few months. But he taught himself to read. Let's think about what it means to be so determined that nothing stops you.

Difficulty 1 of 3

Steps

  1. Use your finger to 'write' your name in the carpet or on a table — that's how young Abe Lincoln practiced writing in the dirt with a stick!
  2. Tell the story: 'Young Abe Lincoln in Indiana lived in a tiny log cabin in the forest. But he walked miles to borrow books. He read by firelight at night.' Ask: 'What if YOU wanted to read but couldn't go to school?'
  3. Draw young Abraham sitting by a fire with a book, in a small log cabin in the forest.
  4. Ask: 'What is one thing you really want to learn? How could you teach yourself if no one taught you?'

Learning objectives

  • Wonder at the idea of teaching yourself when no school is available
  • Notice that Lincoln's Indiana childhood was defined by determination, not resources
  • Ask: what happens when someone refuses to give up on learning?

Kindergarten (ages 5–6)

Indiana sat right in the middle between the states of the South and freedom in Canada — which made it a critical highway on the Underground Railroad, a secret network of brave people who helped others find freedom by traveling north. A man named Levi Coffin helped over 2,000 people find freedom through his Indiana home. His house had so many hiding places that people called him 'the President of the Underground Railroad.' Draw his secret safe house!

Difficulty 2 of 3

Steps

  1. Find Indiana on a US map. Point to Kentucky below it and Canada above it. Trace the route with your finger — Indiana is right in the middle!
  2. Talk about it: 'The Underground Railroad wasn't actually a train. It was a secret network of houses where brave people hid others while they traveled north to freedom at night.'
  3. Draw a house with hidden spaces: a basement, a hidden room behind a bookshelf, a space under the stairs. Add tiny people hiding inside.
  4. Draw a map showing the safe route from Kentucky, through Indiana, to Canada.
  5. Write or dictate: 'The Underground Railroad was secret because _____.'

Learning objectives

  • Understand that the Underground Railroad was a secret network of brave people helping others find freedom
  • Explain why Indiana's location between other states and Canada made it important
  • Retell the story of Levi Coffin and what he did to help others

Early elementary (ages 6–8)

Abraham Lincoln lived in Indiana from age 7 to 21. He grew up in a small log cabin, helping his family clear forests and survive in the wilderness. His stepmother Sarah believed in him and pushed him to keep reading and learning — Lincoln later said she was the most important person in his education. He left Indiana at 21 with almost nothing — and 30 years later he was President. Create a storyboard showing how his Indiana childhood shaped who he became.

Difficulty 2 of 3

Steps

  1. Fold your paper into four boxes to make a storyboard.
  2. Box 1 — Arrival (1816, age 7): Draw the Lincoln family arriving in wild Indiana forest. Write: 'They had to clear the trees themselves. Abe helped chop wood every day.'
  3. Box 2 — Hard Times (1818, age 9): Draw young Abe reading by firelight in the log cabin while his family struggles. Write: 'Lincoln's family had very little — no school, no store nearby, no easy way to get books. Yet Abe never stopped trying to learn.' Ask: 'How would growing up this way change you?'
  4. Box 3 — Sarah (1819): Draw new stepmother Sarah encouraging Abe to read. Write: 'She didn't just care for him — she BELIEVED in him. Lincoln said she was essential to everything he became.'
  5. Box 4 — Departure (1830, age 21): Draw young Lincoln leaving Indiana on foot with almost nothing. Write: 'He had no money. No job. But he had read everything he could find. What do you think happened next?'
  6. Write one sentence under each box, and a final sentence: 'Indiana shaped Lincoln because _____.'

Learning objectives

  • Sequence four key moments in Lincoln's Indiana childhood and explain their effects on him
  • Analyze the role of hardship AND support in shaping Lincoln's character
  • Write evidence-based sentences connecting specific events to Lincoln's later achievements

Upper elementary (ages 8–10)

Here is a fact that still seems impossible: Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis — the men who led the two sides of the Civil War — were born within 100 miles of each other in Kentucky, within one year of each other. Lincoln's family moved to Indiana when he was 7 and he grew up there on the frontier. Davis's family moved to Mississippi, where they prospered on a plantation. Both started life close together geographically, but their childhoods diverged fast. How did two people born so near each other end up on opposite sides of the most divisive moment in American history?

Difficulty 3 of 3

Steps

  1. Research Lincoln's Indiana childhood (1816-1830) and Davis's Kentucky/Mississippi childhood. Create a two-column comparison chart: birthplace, family wealth, education, experiences with the institution of slavery, and adult beliefs.
  2. Research Indiana's role in the Underground Railroad: find at least three specific towns that were 'stations,' and research Levi Coffin. Write: what did it take to be someone who helped freedom-seekers, and what risks did they accept?
  3. The key question: Lincoln grew up in Indiana — a free state — and saw free Black people living as neighbors. Davis grew up on plantations surrounded by forced labor. Write a paragraph arguing how their environments, not just their characters, pushed them in opposite directions.
  4. The dilemma: If YOU had been born into Davis's world — wealthy, surrounded by the institution of slavery, told your whole life it was normal and right — how certain are you that you would have thought differently? This is a genuine question with no easy answer. Write your honest response.
  5. Write a 5-7 sentence analytical paragraph: to what degree do our surroundings determine who we become? Use Lincoln and Davis as your evidence.
  6. Connection: Indiana sent about 208,000 soldiers to the Union Army — one of the largest contributions of any state in total numbers (Iowa had the highest percentage). Why would a state that Lincoln called home fight so hard for the Union?
  7. In 1908 the first Indianapolis-built Model T cost about $850. Imagine you run a small Indiana parts shop making headlights for $2 each, selling them to the factory for $5. If the factory orders 500 per month, calculate monthly profit. Would you hire one helper at $40 a month or buy a second press?
  8. Indiana limestone quarries cut the blocks used in the Empire State Building. Draw a limestone block 4 feet by 2 feet by 2 feet and calculate its volume in cubic feet. If limestone weighs about 160 pounds per cubic foot, how heavy is your block? Sketch the pulley rig you'd build to lift it.

Learning objectives

  • Compare Lincoln's and Davis's nearly identical origins and analyze what diverged their paths
  • Research specific Underground Railroad stations in Indiana and evaluate the personal risks involved
  • Write a paragraph arguing that environment shapes beliefs — using specific biographical evidence
  • Engage honestly with the moral dilemma of how circumstance shapes moral choices
  • Connect Indiana's personal link to Lincoln to the state's extraordinary Civil War contributions

Safety and evidence note

Read the full activity before beginning. An adult should supervise tools, heat, food, outdoor work, movement, and experiments as appropriate. Completion records that the activity was done; the child’s explanation, work sample, photo, or demonstration is stronger evidence of learning than a completion check alone.

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