Revolutionary War 3– Declaration of Independence

We watched episodes 13-22 from the outstanding Liberty Kids video series. (If you have middle school+ age children you might want to check out The Founding of America Megaset)

We also added this weeks’ events & famous people to our lapbook. You can download it {free} by clicking on the image below.

 

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2nd Continental Congress & Declaration of Independence July 1776 

• “There, I guess King George can see that!” John Hancock
• “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal…” Thomas Jefferson

Crossing the Delaware & Battle of Trenton (Crossing The Delaware: A History In Many Voices) – December 26, 1776

Congress prescribes flag – Betsy Ross may have made the first American flag, we do not know for sure. But we do know the first flag was made  June 14, 1777. So the kids & I made our own original American flag.

Daniel Morgan and The Battle of Freeman's Farm September 17, 1777

Saratoga – turning point in war Aug-Oct 1777

     

   

Our activities for the week were fieldtrips (part of our Revolutionary War Road trip). 

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• George Washington- was the first President of the United States of America (1789-1797). He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of the Constitution in 1787.

 

• Nathan Hale –  was a soldier for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He volunteered to be a spy in New York City but was captured by the British. He is best remembered for his last words before being hanged: "I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country."

We made our own spy cipher this week! I had seen directions using lots of mayo lids – but we don’t go through that many in a couple years…. so it was time to improvise! I printed off strips with each letter of the alphabet, next sheet all letters in a different order, and continued until I had 7 strips (this is easy to do in Excel). Then I taped them around a toilet paper roll (we always have lots of those!) To make the code find the first letter of the word and use the letter below it. Continue until you have the word spelled. Then use an underscore and start at the beginning for the next word. Goofy was amused the message looked like gibberish! Remember, this only works if you & the person receiving the message both have the same cipher!

• Thomas Paine - was an English American author, pamphleteer, radical, inventor, intellectual, revolutionary, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. His principal contributions were the powerful, widely read pamphlet Common Sense (1776), the all-time best-selling American book that advocated colonial America's independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain.

(Uncommon Revolutionary: A Story About Thomas Paine)

• Alexander Hamilton -  was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury. As Treasurer he established a national bank, a system of tariffs, and friendly trade relations with Britain.

 

• Baron von Steuben - was a Prussian-born military officer who served as inspector general of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He taught them the essentials of military drills, tactics, and disciplines. He wrote the Revolutionary War Drill Manual, the book that served as the standard United States drill manual until the War of 1812

We practiced drilling to become our own army.

• Lafayette- was a French aristocrat & military officer who served as a major-general in the Continental Army under George Washington during the Revolutionary War. He returned to France to negotiate an increase in French support. On his return, he blocked troops led by Cornwallis at Yorktown while the armies of Washington prepared for battle against the British.

NOTE: Sometimes we skim through these books. I cannot guarantee the books thoroughly as we only uses parts or look at pictures. So forgive me if there is something in these recommendations that I don’t see =-)

Check out the rest of the American Revolutionary War Series below and for more fun history units check out my Colonial American / Early Settlers Unit and Early Explorers Unit below.

• American Revolutionary War # 1 – War is Brewing
• American Revolutionary War #2 - The Shot Heard Round the World
• American Revolutionary War #3 - Declaration of Independence
• American Revolutionary War #4 - Freedom at last!