The American Revolution
The following is an overview of two units of instruction that will take a look at the American Revolution. The first unit has been developed for the fifth grade to study the lives of people who played key roles in the American Revolution. The second unit is for an eleventh grade United States history class which will explore the American Revolution and discover a deeper understanding of the attitudes and motives of the people who played key roles in it.
Biographies of the American Revolution (5th Grade)
Student Audience:
This elementary school is located is a suburb of a large metropolitan area in the state of Indiana. It is the county seat with a population of approximately 30,000. The town is a mixture of old restored historical buildings and Victorian streets and a new growing economy that is evident in new construction in both the business sector and the residential areas. This K-5th grade building is located in an older area of the town that serves five hundred students that come from a variety of economic and social backgrounds. The administrators and teachers of this school strive for success for all students, and they do this by working together as a team to meet the school and state academic goals.
This unit will be taught in a regular classroom of twenty eight students. Some, but not all, of the students have had a basic introduction to inquiry research skills at lower grade levels. There are a variety of learning levels in the classroom so it will be important to provide resources for all levels of learners. Most students in the class are enthusiastic about learning. These students will be easily motivated by an interesting, fun project. However, there are a few students who are not very motivated to learn. For these students the talk show format of the final project will get them interested in working. In addition, closer supervision by the teacher and media specialist by way of one-on-one conferencing with these students as they progress through the unit will help them.
Connection to the “real world” will occur in several places throughout this project. As students research their person they will look for information that can be related to the students’ lives in the present. In the evaluation process they will be asked to think about things that are happening in today’s world that might relate to events during the revolution. The final project the students will produce will be an interview talk show as seen on television today, in which they will present their information.
Information Inquiry Role and Unit Overview:
The American Revolution is part of the curriculum for the 5th grade at this school. This unit will introduce the students to important figures from this time period, their roles in key events of this time period, and provide an opportunity for the students to use critical thinking skills as they as they research and present their information. The social studies teacher, language arts teacher, and media specialist will collaborate together on this unit that will include research skills, reading and writing skills, and technology skills.
Project Overview: As part of the study of the American Revolution students will do a unit on biographies of individuals who played key roles in the American Revolution. Each student will choose a person to research and by using a variety of resources they will gain an understanding of the life of this person and what his or her role was during this period in history. Students will get an insight to what life was like at this time, the different viewpoints of the individuals about the war, and the effect of the war on their lives. They will present this information in both written and oral formats. Students will write a one to two page paper on their person. They will create a PowerPoint presentation from the information gathered. As a final project they will be put in groups of four and produce a television interview talk show, “Dateline 1776”, where each student will have the opportunity to do an interview, be the interviewee, run the camera for taping, and be the director.
Unit Objectives:
Social Studies – Students will develop an understanding of the British and American leaders of the American Revolution and describe their role in key events. They will identify and evaluate the contribution of women during the American Revolution, and they will also identify individuals from other countries who assisted in the Revolution. Students will also lean to identify and interpret primary and secondary source material.
Language Arts - Students will read and analyze information related to individuals during the American Revolution. They will construct their own meaning of the lives of these individuals and their part in the American Revolution. This information will be reflected in the student’s written and oral presentation of the material.
Media/Technology – Students will learn strategies for using a variety of research tools, both in print and on computers. They will lean effective note taking and citation skills. Students will use a variety of technology tools to produce creative written and oral presentations.
Collaborative Roles:
Social Studies teacher – Introduce the American Revolution and the people the students will be researching. Assist students with research and presentations.
Language Arts teacher – Read aloud of fiction book about the American Revolution and teach the reading, writing and spelling skill necessary for presentations. Assist students with research and presentations.
Media Specialist – Teach note taking and citation skills. Instruct students on research strategies and resources, and technology skills needed for use of PowerPoint and video taping. Assist students with research and presentations.
Time Frame: Teachers and media specialist will schedule four meetings over two weeks to set up the plan for the unit. The unit will take four weeks to complete plus one day for student evaluation. Teachers and media specialists will plan an additional meeting at the completion of the unit for evaluation.
Week one – Students will choose the person they will research. The first two days will be introduction of the unit and the media specialist will teach note taking one day and citation skills the next day. She will introduce the research strategies and resources the second day. The next three days will be research.
Week two - Three days of research and two days of writing paper.
Week three – Two days to complete writing paper. Technology instruction on the third day and students will begin putting together their PowerPoint presentations.
Week four – Students will be divided into groups of four and put together their plans for their final presentation “Dateline 1776” which will be presented on the last day of the week.
The day after the presentations, the students will be asked to fill out an evaluation of the unit.
Activities:
Social Studies – research and class discussion. Create chart for wall to post names of people the students are doing biographies on and what side of the war they were on, Patriots or Loyalists. Provide sheet with questions for students to guide them in their research.
Language Arts – Read Aloud My Brother Sam is Dead and develop vocabulary unit to go with it. Have students create a journal (folder) for notes and citations as they do research. Write a one to two page paper on individual they are researching.
Media Specialist – Instruct students on note taking and citation skills, research strategies and the resources available for them to use. She will introduce or review the use of PowerPoint. Media specialist will also instruct students on use of video equipment and assist with their final presentations.
Common Piece of Literature: The piece of literature that was chosen for this unit is the book My Brother Sam is Dead by James and Christopher Collier. This historical fiction novel gives authentic information about the American Revolution while it tells the story of a family that is torn apart by conflicting loyalties caused by the war. It brings in many of the historical figures and their part in the war, and relates them to the lives of the characters in the book. This book offers the opportunity for students to use critical thinking skills as they hear the different points of view that are offered by the characters in the book. They can relate these points of view to the individuals they are researching, and get a better understanding of the kind of personal conflicts the people of that time were going through. This is an excellent book for students this age and can give the students a chance to feel what it was like living in this time period.
Work Sheet: The following page of questions is designed to guide the students in their research. It is not the only information a student can use, but it is developed to pose challenging questions that will make the students use higher order thinking skills.
Biographies of the American Revolution
1. Name of person
2. When was he/she born and when did he/she die?
3. Was he/she a loyalist or Patriot?
4. Where did he/she live?
5. What was his/her occupation before, during and after the Revolutionary War?
6. In what ways was his/her life remarkable?
7. What human qualities were most influential in shaping the way this person lived and influenced his or her time?
8. What are the two or three most important lessons you might learn from the way this person lived?
9. Many people act out of a “code” or set of beliefs which dictate choices. It may be religion or politics or a personal philosophy. To what extent did your person act by a code? Were there times when the code was challenged and impossible to follow?
10. Give three other interesting facts about the person you are researching?
Come up with two interesting questions of your own.
Names of the American Revolution
John Adams Abigail Adams
Samuel Adams Benedict Arnold
Crispus Attucks Ann Baily
John Burgoyne Margaret Cochran Corbin
Charles Cornwallis Elizabeth Drinker
Benjamin Franklin Elizabeth Freeman
Thomas Gage Grace Galloway
George III Nathan Hale
Nancy Hart Alexander Hamilton
Mary Ludwig Hayes John Hancock
Benjamin Harrison Patrick Henry
Stephen Hopkins Thomas Jefferson
Miss Jenny John Paul Jones
Thaddeus Kosciusko Richard Lee
James Madison Francis Marion
James Otis Thomas Paine
John Penn Molly Pitcher
William Pitt Lydia Mintern Post
Paul Revere Betsy Ross
Suzanne Howell Rowsen Edward Rutledge
Deborah Samson Roger Sherman
Fredrick von Steuben Charles Townshend
Mercy Otis Warren George Washington
Martha Washington Anthony Wayne
Phillis Wheatley
Student Resources:
Online Databases: Databases with access through School Website
World Book Online
Biography Resource Center through Inspire
Websites:
Liberty: The American Revolution http://www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/
Spy Letters of the American Revolution http://www.si.umich.edu/spies/
Archiving Early America http://earlyamerica.com/series.html
Amazing Women in War and Peace
http://userpages.aug.com/captbarb/femvets.html
Yahooligans Revolutionary War http://yahooligans.yahoo.com/around_the_world/countries/united_states/history/colonial_life__1585_1783_/american_revolutionary_war/
Kids Click http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/searchkids.pl?keywords=Revolutionary+War&searchtype=all
Benjamin Franklin http://www.english.udel.edu/lemay/franklin/
Who Served Here? Baron von Steuben http://www.ushistory.org/valleyforge/served/steuben.html
Colonial Hall http://www.colonialhall.com/index.php
Betsy Ross Homepage http://www.ushistory.org/betsy/
Revolutionary War Biographies http://eduscapes.com/42explore/revolt3.htm
Selected Portraits from the Collections of the Library of Congress http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/list/235_poc.html
America’s Story From America’s Library
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi
American Revolution.org http://www.americanrevolution.org/home.html
Books:
Listed here are just a few titles. Check the media center catalog and public library for additional titles.
Heroines of the American Revolution: America’s Founding Mothers
By Diane Silcox-Garrett
American Revolution Biographies v. 1 & 2
By Linda & Rosteck Schmittroth
Those Remarkable Women of the American Revolution
By Karen Zeinart
The Secret Soldier
By Ann McGovern
Revolutionary War Leaders (Series)
By various authors
Journal of a Revolutionary War Woman
By Judith Greenley
Betsy Ross: Patriot of Philadelphia
By Judith St. George
Assessment:
Student assessment will be completed by the individual teachers and media specialist.
· Social studies teacher will assess students with rubric that was designed by this teacher to grade information and participation of student in social studies area.
· Language arts teacher will access students with rubric that was designed by this teacher to grade writing and participation of students in language arts area.
· Media specialist will access students with rubric that was designed by him/her to grade note taking and citation skills. The rubric will contain criteria such as accuracy, neatness and number of resources (see example below). All three together will grade the final presentations based on a rubric that was designed by all three instructors. This rubric will contain criteria such as how well students worked together in a group and helped each other out. It will also grade presentation on appropriateness of the information presented, creativity of the presentation and participation of group members. This will be done at the completion of the final projects.
Student Name: ______CATEGORY / 4 / 3 / 2 / 1
Sources / All sources are accurately documented in the desired format. / All sources are accurately documented, but a few are not in the desired format. / All sources are accurately documented, but many are not in the desired format. / Some sources are not accurately documented.
Notes / Notes are recorded and organized in an extremely neat and orderly fashion. / Notes are recorded legibly and are somewhat organized. / Notes are recorded. / Notes are recorded only with peer/teacher assistance and reminders.
Number of sources / Four or more sources were used. / Three sources were used. / Two sources were used. / One source was used.
State Academic Standards are listed with correlating Information Literacy Standard numbers. (ILS listed below)
SOCIAL STUDIES
The American Revolution: 1763 to 1783
5.1.12 Identify major British and American leaders and describe their roles in key events, such as the First and Second Continental Congresses, drafting and approval of the Declaration of Independence (1776), publication of Common Sense, and major battles of the Revolutionary War. ILS 1 2 3
5.1.13 Assess the influence of other countries, such as France, Spain, Russia, Germany, Poland, and the Netherlands, in the American Revolution; identify individuals from other countries who assisted the American cause. ILS 1 2 3
5.1.14 Identify and evaluate contributions of women during the American Revolution, including Abigail Adams, Martha Washington, Mercy Otis Warren, and Molly Pitcher. ILS 1 2 3 5 6 7
Chronological Thinking and Comprehension
5.1.20 Read historical fiction and nonfiction about an event of the American Revolution and reconstruct the literal meaning of passages by identifying who was involved, what happened, where it happened, what events led to these developments, and what consequences or outcomes followed. ILS 1 2 3 5 6