Using books by Jean Fritz, students learn about the Revolutionary War. They have opportunities to analyze historical characters, form opinions on historical events, write and respond creatively to literature. The unit takes around four to five weeks.
Learning Unit
| LU Title: American Revolution and Jean Fritz | Author(s):Shannon Brach |
| Grade Level:5 | School :Adirondack Central School |
| Topic/Subject Area: American Revolution | Address: Forestport, NY 13338 |
Overview
Using books written by Jean Fritz students will gain information about the Revolutionary War. Students will be provided with opportunities to analyze historical characters, form opinions on historical events, write and respond creatively to literature. This unit will take approximately four to five weeks to complete.
Content Knowledge
| Declarative | Procedural |
| Gain information about history through literature | Students will write journal entries |
| Identify and explain the importance of historical figures | Students will construct a Venn diagram |
| Identify historical characters and their contributions to the American Revolution | Students will create wanted posters |
| Identify the hardships of war | Students will write a point of view essay with evidence |
| Identify major events leading to the Revolutionary War | Students will construct a timeline |
| Recognize that literature has its own set of vocabulary | Students will look up and define vocabulary words |
Essential Questions
- Identify and explain reasons the Revolutionary War was fought?
- What roles did Paul Revere, Samuel Adams, and John Hancock play in the Revolutionary War?
- What was life like in the United States during the Revolutionary War?
Connections to NYS Learning Standards
List Standard # and Key Idea #: Write out related Performance Indicator(s) or Benchmark(s)
ELA Standard 1: Students will read, write, listen, and speak for information and understanding.
Performance indicator:
- Select and use strategies that have been taught for notetaking, organizing, and categorizing for information
- Ask specific questions to clarify and extend meaning
- Make appropriate and effective use of strategies to construct meaning from print, such as prior knowledge about a subject, structural and context clues, and an understanding of letter-sound relationships to decode difficult words
- Support inferences about information and ideas with reference to text features, such as vocabulary and organizational patterns
- Present information clearly in a variety of oral and written forms such as summaries, paraphrases, brief reports, stories, posters and charts
- Select a focus, organizational, and point of view for oral and written presentations
- Use a few traditional structure for conveying information such as chronological order cause and effect, and similarities and difference
- Use the process of pre-writing, drafting, revising, and proofreading (the “writing process”) to produce well constructed informational texts
- Observe basic writing conventions, such as correct spelling, punctuation, and capitalizing, as well as sentence and paragraph structures appropriate to written forms
ELA Standards 2: Students will read, write, listen and speak for literacy response and expression.
Performance Indicator:
- Understand the literacy elements of setting, character, plot, theme, and point of view and compare those to features to the other works and to their own lives
- Use inference and deduction to understand text
- Read aloud accurately and fluently, using phonics and context cues to determine pronunciation and meaning
- Present personal responses to literature that make reference to the plot, characters, ideas, vocabulary, and structure
- Observe the conventions of grammar and usage, spelling and punctuation
ELA Standard 3: Students will read, write, listen and speak for critical analysis and evaluation
Performance Indicator:
- Recognize that the criteria that one uses to analyze and evaluate anything depend on one’s point of view and purpose for the analysis
- Evaluate their own strategies for reading and listening critically (such as recognizing bias or false claims, and understanding the difference between fact and opinion and adjust those strategies to understand the experience more fully
- Express opinions (in such forms as oral and written reviews, letters to the editor, essays or persuasive speeches) about events, books, issues, and experiences, supporting their opinions with some evidence
- Monitor and adjust their own oral and written presentations to meet criteria for competent performance (e.g., in writing the criteria might include development of a position, organization, appropriate vocabulary, mechanics, and neatness. In speaking, the criteria might include good content, effective delivery, diction, posture, poise and eye contact)
- Use effective vocabulary and follow the rules of grammar, usage, spelling, and punctuation in persuasive writing
ELA Standard 4: Students will read, write, listen and speak for social interaction
Performance Indicator:
- Listen attentively and recognize when it is appropriate for them to speak
- Take turns speaking and respond to others’ ideas in conversation on familiar topics
- Recognize the kind of interaction appropriate for different circumstances, such as story hour, group discussions, and one-on-one conversations
Social Studies Standard 1: Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in the history of the United States and New York
Performance Indicator:
- Understand basic ideals of American democracy as explained in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution and other important documents
- Explain those values, practices, and traditions that unite all Americans
Social Studies Standard 4: Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of how the United States and other societies develop economic systems and associated institutions to allocate scarce resources, how major decisions-making units functions in the U.S. and other national economies, and how an economy solves the scarcity problem through market and non market mechanisms.
Performance Indicator:
- Know that scarcity requires individuals to make choices and that these choices involve costs
- Study about how the availability and distribution of resources is important to a nation’s economic growth
Social Studies Standard 5: Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the necessity for establishing governments; the government system of the U.S. and other nations; the U.S. Constitution; the basic civic values of American constitutional democracy; and the roles, rights, and responsibilities of citizenship, including avenues of participation.
Performance Indicators:
- Explain the probable consequences of the absence of government and rules
- Describe the basic purposes of government and the importance of civic life
Initiative Activity
Students will view a short video from School House Rock titled America Rock. After viewing the video students will be introduced the first piece of literature in this unit, And Then What Happened, Paul Revere? by Jean Fritz. As a class we will begin a K-W-L chart that will be updated and displayed throughout the unit.
Learning Experiences
1. Initiating activity
Students will start with an engaging activity that introduces the American Revolution period and key figures like Paul Revere, Samuel Adams, and John Hancock. This serves as a foundation for the literature and activities that follow.
2. Vocabulary introduction
Introduce key vocabulary from the 1700s that will help students understand the language and context of each book. It is helpful to cover vocabulary before starting each text. Relevant books include:
- And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?
- Why Don’t You Ride a Horse, Sam Adams?
- Will You Sign Here, John Hancock?
Each book offers historical insight through unique vocabulary, allowing students to connect with the language of the time.
3. Journal writing
Each student will receive a journal to accompany the readings. Journals are used for:
- Writing summaries of each chapter or segment
- Recording personal thoughts and opinions
- Offering detailed explanations of events
- Making inferences about historical figures’ motivations
- Drawing maps and pictures related to the events
Journaling helps students develop a personal connection to the material and practice reflective writing.
4. Character traits analysis
The teacher will model character trait analysis using a graphic organiser for one of the three main figures, such as Paul Revere. Students will then choose from John Hancock or Samuel Adams to create their own graphic organisers. This activity includes:
- Listing personality traits observed in the character
- Noting key actions or decisions made by the character
- Reflecting on the character’s impact on historical events
This exercise encourages students to analyse personality traits and make inferences about the historical figures.
5. Literature circles
Divide students into small groups, each assigned a different book by Jean Fritz. Each group will take on roles, such as summariser, questioner, or connector, to explore the book’s themes and discuss its events. The aim is for students to:
- Collaborate in understanding the book’s themes
- Discuss and answer each other’s questions
- Relate historical events to present-day ideas
Literature circles allow students to actively engage with the content and encourage peer-to-peer learning.
6. Creative writing: letters from history
Students will write a fictional letter as if they are a historical figure from the book. They should focus on:
- Describing an event from the character’s perspective
- Using vocabulary from the time period
- Reflecting on the emotions the character might have felt
Writing from the perspective of a historical figure encourages empathy and provides a creative way to reinforce the historical content.
7. Final project: timeline and presentation
For the culminating project, students will create a timeline of major events discussed in the books. Each student will:
- Place events on a chronological timeline
- Write a brief description of each event’s significance
- Present their timeline to the class, explaining each event’s role in the American Revolution
This project reinforces chronological understanding and summarises learning through a visual presentation.
And Then What Happened, Paul Revere? by Jean Fritz
Make a list of Paul Revere’s many jobs and skills
Pretend that you are Paul Revere. Write an entry in your journal describing the Boston Tea Party.
Make a map that shows the location of important events that occurred along the route of Paul Revere’s famous ride.
Vocabulary: Ornament, scrawl, incident, sentries, petticoat, spurs, steeple, companions, engagements, statehouse
Will You Sign Here, John Hancock? by Jean Fritz
List and describe John Hancock’s nine conveyances, or vehicles. Why do you suppose he had so many?
Explain why you think the Continental Congress chose George Washington over John Hancock as Commander in Chief of the Army.
John Hancock was one of the richest men in the colonies. Find three details in the book that supports that statement.
Vocabulary: crimson, extravagance, emblazoned, conveyances, inspector, cargo, procession, unanimously, gracious, pewter, gout
Why Don’t You Get A Horse, Sam Adams? by Jean Fritz
Draw a picture showing how Sam Adams dressed at the beginning of the book; then write a description of his appearance.
Why do you think Samuel Adams would not ride a horse? Name one thing you dislike doing and explain why you dislike it.
Pretend you are Sam Adams. Write a short speech outlining your opinions on England’s role in the colonies and America’s independence.
Vocabulary: domesticate, pedestal, tailor, heave, hoist, bridle, agitator
| Vocabulary | Essay | Short Answer | Summaries | |
| 4 | -Complete-Relevant | -Addresses Topic-No Grammatical Errors-No Punctuation Errors-No Spelling Errors | -Rephrases Answers-No Grammatical Errors-No Punctuation Errors-No Spelling Errors | -All Facts are Important-No Grammatical Errors-No Punctuation Errors-No Spelling Errors |
| 3 | -Complete-Not Relevant | -Addresses Topic-Few Grammatical Errors-Few Punctuation Errors-Few Spelling Errors | -Rephrases Answers-Few Grammatical Errors-Few Punctuation Errors-Few Spelling Errors | -Some Important Facts-Few Grammatical Errors-Few Punctuation Errors-Few Spelling Errors |
| 2 | -Complete-Not Relevant | -Deviates from Topic-Many Grammatical Errors-Many Punctuation Errors-Many Spelling Errors | -Rephrase Answers-Many Grammatical Errors-Many Punctuation Errors-Many Spelling Errors | -Few Important Facts-Many Grammatical Errors-Many Punctuation Errors-Many Spelling Errors |
| 1 | -Incomplete-Not Relevant | -Doesn’t Address Topic-Several Grammatical Errors-Several Punctuation Errors-Several Spelling Errors | -Doesn’t Rephrase Answers-Several Grammatical Errors-Several Punctuation ErrorsSeveral Spelling Errors | -No Important Facts-Several Grammatical Errors-Several Punctuation Errors-Several Spelling Errors |
| 0 | -Incomplete-Blank | -Incomplete | -Incomplete | -Incomplete |
Culminating Performance
Include rubric(s)
In cooperative groups, the students will be asked to write and perform a play based on the life of Paul Revere, John Hancock or Sam Adams. Students will write their scripts and publish them on Microsoft Word. Students will also be responsible for creating props and costumes that will recreate the correct time period. (Character costumes can be made out of poster board, cut a holein the board for a face and then draw and color on clothing.)
Students and teachers will evaluate group performances using a rubric. The goals of each performance are strong character development based on historical facts; costumes and props that reflect correct time period, and clearness and projection of speech and sound effects.
| Play | Character Portrayal | Script | Clearness & Projection |
| 4 | -Accurate portrayal, character fully developed-Costumes reflect time period-Costume neat and attractive | -Logically and thoroughly developed-Interesting and creative captures the audiences’ attention- Language reflects time period | -Speaks clearly and loudly throughout the entire performance |
| 3 | -Accurate portrayal most of the time-Most of the costume reflects time period-Costume neat | -Logically developed-Interesting, captures audiences’ attention-Language reflects time period most of the time | -Speaks clearly and loudly most of the time |
| 2 | -Little accuracy in portrayal and development-Little reflection of time period in costume-Costume untidy | -Logically developed most of the time-Captures audiences’ attention most of the time-Language vaguely appropriate to time period | -Speaks clearly but not loud enough for entire performance |
| 1 | -Inaccurate portrayal-Costume does not reflect time period | -Illogical development-Does not capture audiences’ attention-Language does not reflect appropriate time period | -Inaudible |
Prerequisite Skills
Students will need comprehension skills, phonemic awareness, dictionary skills, knowledge of the writing process, computer skills, and basic knowledge of the Revolutionary War.
Modifications
This integrated literature and social studies unit will be taught in the presence of the reading specialist. The resource teacher as well as classroom teacher will aid students with special needs. It is easily adaptable for all levels of learners.
Unit Schedule / Time Plan
This unit will take approximately four to five weeks to complete depending on the number of activities one chooses to incorporate.
Technology Use
Students will have access to the computer program America Rock and they will also be given an opportunity to access web pages that have been book marked by the teacher. The students will use these web sites to gather more information about the Revolutionary War.
Students will also be using Microsoft Word and Print Shop Deluxe to type scripts and letters.
Programs: Microsoft Word, Print Shop Deluxe, School House Rock program: America Rock
Web Sites: Students
Tour Paul Revere’s House paulreverehouse.org
Read Longfellow’s poem Paul Revere’s Ride
View Paul Revere’s most famous engraving The Boston Massacre
American Memory: Documents and historical materials that portray the people and events that have made our nation what it is today. From library of Congress Collection.
Web Site: Teachers
Teachers Guide to: The Revolutionary War: Birth of a Nation (Lists major battles and highlights of the war)
Bibliography
Fritz, Jean (1996). And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?.New York, NY: Putnam & Grosset Group
Fritz, Jean (1997). Will You Sign Here, John Hancock?. New York, NY: Putnam & Grosset Group
Fritz, Jean (1997). Why Don’t You Ride A Horse,Sam Adams ?. New York, NY: Putnam & Grosset Group
The Mailbox, Intermediate December/January 1997-1998, 22, 25-28
Further reading: How to Write a Lesson Plan: 7 Steps