CKLA: The American Revolution
In this unit, students will focus on what caused the thirteen North American colonies to break away and become an independent nation.
What’s the story? Students will learn that disagreements about principles of government led colonists in North America to seek independence from Great Britain.
What will my student learn? Students will learn about the important events and people that led to the colonists' decision to declare independence from the British government. They will also read two literary selections from that time period.
Students will review the stages of the writing process and will engage in a variety of writing activities, such as recording key information from what they are reading about the American Revolution. These activities will prepare them to write a five-paragraph cause-and-effect essay focused on what they have learned.
Conversation starters Ask your student questions about the unit to promote discussion and continued learning:
1. Why did the British government tax the colonists? Follow up: Why did that make the colonists angry?
2. Who were the Sons of Liberty? Follow up: What form of protest did they lead in Boston Harbor? How was this act of protest named?
3. In what ways was Samuel Adams different from other political leaders of the time?
4. What does the Declaration of Independence outline? Follow up: Who wrote it and who reviewed it? What do you think was meant by “the pursuit of happiness”?
5. At the beginning of the war between the British and the colonists, who seemed more likely to win the war? Why? Follow up: What was the morale of the army when George Washington wrote to the Continental Congress? What did you read that makes you think that?
6. What event happened that signified that the Continental Army had won the Revolutionary War?
Students use the vocabulary words they've discussed and used over the past three weeks to complete Frayer Models for the following words: self-actualization, self-reliance, moral dilemma, and ambiguity.
Some students really love Frayer Models while others absolutely hate them, but they shouldn't typically take more than 10 minutes per term, and that would honestly be a very long time indeed.
To the extent that it takes longer than 10 minutes per term, students might be enjoying themselves, prone to perfectionism, OR "overthinking it" and not utilizing resources like the definitions provided OR the internet; students are ENCOURAGED to use the internet to help in terms of generating ideas for pictures, sentences, non-examples, etc.
To the extent that even with the assistance of the mighty internet, it's still taking longer than 10 minutes per term, please stop working on this assignment and send a quick email letting me know.
Frayer models are NOT an assessment. Nor are they meant to demonstrate mastery of a word or concept. Frayer Models are part of the work that goes into understanding a word and cementing its meaning over time.
Although our Frayer Models are structured and used a bit differently, check this video out about the general practice if you're extremely bored: Teacher Toolkit: Frayer Model (Elementary) - YouTube
As always, students are ENCOURAGED to use Google, the dictionary, you, or any other resource that will help them complete the assignment; paraphrasing will always be a more powerful tool than rote copying, but rote copying is okay and honestly what the doctor orders sometimes (so long as it's understood on some level). Unfortunately, it's not logistically feasible for students to take their Vocabulary Journals home.
Additionally, it is an expectation that Bears read EVERY NIGHT for 15-20 minutes (no, really). This should be a book, comic, graphic novel, manga, magazine, etc. of their choosing. READ, BABY READ!
Audiobooks count (especially if your Bear is a reluctant reader)!
Audiobooks are especially powerful when your Bear can follow along with a physical copy.
There are a number of great podcasts on the Bromwell Digital Resources page, including a personal favorite: Tumble.
Books that you read with or to your Bear count double!
Seriously, there's nothing more powerful than reading with or to your (g)Rizzly or Kodiak. Five minutes of reading to your Bear is easily worth 10 minutes of them pretending to read 😉
Digital reading counts but is not preferred; reading comprehension is higher with print material.
(Not so) Fun Fact: Most people think they are an exception to this rule ... but indeed, they are not. This is likely due to some form of egocentric bias.
Reading on Paper Versus Screens: What’s the Difference? (brainfacts.org)