Assignment 3: Create a Colonial Newspaper

In this assignment, you will work with your collaborative groups to construct a colonial newspaper about a particular event, person, or act that helped to influence the colonists decision to fight for independence from Britain. Each group will consist of 5 members with specific roles: Editor, Press, Writer, Illustrator, and Advertiser. Each role is dependent upon the other to complete the assignment. The goal of the assignment is to see how well you understand the influence of specific events, people, or acts that contributed to the colonists' cause. Your teacher will provide you with a scoring guide for your newspaper, an example of an actual newspaper to help guide you in your creation, and a detailed duty card explaining what is expected from each group member. Please see your teacher if you have any questions about the assignment or post questions about the assignment here.

Assignment 2: Political Cartoon Analysis

In this assignment, you will be analyzing political cartoons. I have given you a link below to help you practice document analysis. First, use the link I have included to analyze the political cartoon. Then, check your accuracy by rolling your mouse over the different areas of the document. You will do an analysis of "Bostonians Paying the Excise Man" . Complete a document analysis sheet. In your reply to this post, explain at least three elements (exaggeration, symbolism, stereotype, humor, caricature, etc.) the illustrator uses and what they represent. Also include if you think the cartoon depicts the patriot or loyalist perspective. Use images and symbols from the political cartoon to support your belief. Once you have completed your analysis, check the synopsis located on this page to see if you have included all important scenes.

Document Analysis Worksheet

Practice for Political Cartoon Analysis

Synopsis of "Bostonians Paying the Excise Man"

Assignment 1: What was the American Revolution?

This is your first assignment in a series of three on the American Revolution. In this first assignment, I would like you to tell me in your own words what was the American Revolution? Was it only a war, or was it more than that? Use the sites below to help you answer this question. When defining the American Revolution, site-specific examples that you have found in the sites below.

The Global Village
This site will help you understand what was going on in the world during the Revolutionary period.

Thomas Paine
Read about the influence of Thomas Paine and watch the video. This link will give you an idea about what an impact Thomas Paine's ideas about freedom had on the colonists.

American Revolution Timeline
Using this time line, you can see how a gradual progression of events eventually led to the war for independence

Chronicle of the Revolution
This link lets you see different newspaper stories in different important cities during the Revolutionary period. You will read about some of the events that helped colonists decide that they would champion the cause for independence from Britain.

PBS Road to Revolution Game
This interactive quiz lets you see what life was like for colonists. You will see why colonists became angered by the taxes that were being imposed.