Lesson Plan: The Road to the American Revolution

Date: October 5, 2000 and additional class periods if needed.

Objectives: The students will

I. identify the key political players in North America during the late colonial and early revolutionary period.

II. outline the geographical and political effects of the British victory in the French and Indian War.

III. Distinguish between  primary and secondary sources and evaluate their usefulness when analyzing the causes American Revolution.
 

SOL Connection:

 

1. Standard 5.3d

2. Standard 5.3e

3. Standard 5.3f

5.3e  Essential Question: What steps did England take to increase control over its colonies?

Essential Knowledge


* cost of the French and Indian War.
* Cost of British troops in the Colonies.
* Cause and Effect of the Stamp Act.


Warm Up Activity (Anticipatory Set): What Do You Know About the American Revolution?

A) Post the following questions on the board or overhead.

B) Have students write down their answers in the "warm-up" sections of their notebooks.

C) Place a large Strongly Agree, Agree, Strongly Disagree, and Disagree in each corner of the room.

D) Review the answers orally by having students move around the room to reflect where they stand.

1) A "revolution" takes place when the people of a nation rise up and use violence to bring about sweeping changes in government.

2) Most people in the Colonies wanted to break away from Great Britain and become independent.

3) Taxation was the main issue that separated the Colonists from Great Britain.

4) Great Britain has always been a democracy and close friend of the United States. 

Main Activity (Instructional Input):  "I Have... Who Has?" Vocabulary Master Structure

A) Create and distribute vocabulary flash cards in the "I have... Who Has?" Structure. The terms come from Chapter 7 Sections 1 and 2 pp. 182-192 (The Years of Conflict) in Why We Remember.

B) Students were assigned these terms for homework and should have the terms in front of them in writing.

  1. Allies
  2. Blockade
  3. Cede
  4. Proclamation
  5. Customs-duties
  6. Revenue
  7. Writs of Assistance
  8. Repeal
  9. Boycott

C) For this activity, the cards can be created by printing or saving the file and cutting the cards across the page. They become flash cards by folding them along the center. Cards work best if they are laminated.

D) Students begin by reading a card with "Who has..." The person with the "I have..." side must respond. Students can work in pairs to keep all students involved.

E) For mastery, reshuffle the cards and have the students go through the definitions again. Time the students to see how well they do.

Guided Practice: Analyzing the Causes of the American Revolution

A) The following activity is designed to help students locate information in their textbooks.

B) Distribute the chapter summary for Chapter 7. This chapter summary comes from the publisher materials for Why We Remember.
The chapter summary has key vocabulary terms taken out turned into a fill-in-the-blank activity.

C) Accommodation:  The terms have been provided in a word bank along with the page numbers. 

D) Allow students 15 to 20 minutes to complete the fill-in-the blank activity.

Check For Understanding: Reviewing the Reading

A) Choose students to read single sentences aloud. 

B) Have them indicate which term must be inserted correctly in the blanks.
 

Wrap-Up Activity (Closure): Using Primary and Secondary Documents

A) Distribute the document entitled "Stamp Act Passed; Citizens React" (printed from http://www.cyberlearning-world.com/nhhs/amrev/report.html)

B) Ask students to identify the author and the publication.

1) Is the source primary or secondary? How can you tell?

2) How can primary sources be used to learn about the causes of the American Revolution?  Is this a good source to use. Reveal that this "source" was created by students for an on-line web project.

3) Discuss the differences between primary and secondary sources.

Web Resources: The American Revolution Home Page: http://www.dell.homestead.com/revwar/files/INTOLER.HTM

The Road to Independence: http://odur.let.rug.nl/~usa/H/1994/ch3_p7.htm

The North American Review: The Origins of The American Republic  http://www.cyberlearning-world.com/nhhs/amrev/revpaper.htm

Evaluation: The lesson will be evaluated by:

I. the accuracy of student's written responses, specifically, the number of correct responses on the fill-in-the blank chapter review worksheet; 

II. student's scores on future tests and quizzes.
 
 


George Cassutto's Cyberlearning World

     [Lesson Plan of the Day]     [Cassutto Memorial]    [About the Author]    [Search]    [Civics Lesson Plans]