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.