A timeline of major causes and key events will help your students connect to the historical events surrounding the American Revolutionary War.
To start off, let's talk about some timeline activities that you can implement in your classroom today. As they read and learn, it's important for students to create a social studies timeline of important events. Students should focus on the causes of the American Revolution and major events.
American Revolution Timeline Activities:
1. Timeline Task Cards
Here is one of my personal favorite activities to use during my Revolutionary War unit: American Revolution Task Cards. Each task card has a brief description of each event. Students read the cards and answer a question that accompanies each card. It is a great hands-on approach to the American Revolution timeline. I keep this colorful, visual timeline up on my bulletin board all year round. It's a fun activity that's perfect for review or substitute lesson plans.
2. Blank Timelines
Learning about the American Revolution requires taking in a lot of information. Using a blank timeline, helps kids organize what happened and better understand the cause and effect relationships of events. The timeline can be kept in students' interactive notebooks
3. Important People and Battles of the Revolution
Use graphic organizers to sort the leaders and the battles of the Revolution. By sorting the information and synthesizing what happened, students are able to process the information. Graphic organizers provide differentiated options for processing information.
What's important to Include in a Timeline of the American Revolution?
Background knowledge about The French and Indian War
1754 to 1763
From 1754 to 1763, Great Britain and France fought each other in the French and Indian War. The British soldiers and the French forces were battling for land. Even though France got help from Native Americans (hence the name French and Indian war), Great Britain won the war. The victory gave Britain control over most of the colonies in North America. The war gave the British more land, but it also left them with big problems. By the end of the war, Great Britain was in huge financial debt. To boost the British economy, the King decided to make up this debt by taxing the American colonies.
Taxes on the Colonists
1764 - 1765
The French and Indian War cost Great Britain a lot of money. King George paid British troops to travel to overseas, fight, and protect the colonists. They decided the colonies should pay for the cost of the war by paying taxes. The laws and taxes imposed by the British on the 13 Colonies included the Sugar Act, Stamp Act, Tea Act, Navigation Acts, Wool Act, Hat Act, the Proclamation of 1763, the Quartering Act, Townshend Acts and the Coercive Intolerable Acts.
The Boston Massacre
March 5, 1770
The colonists living in Boston were angry about the taxes placed on them by the British government. On March 5, 1770, violence erupted. A crowd of colonists were gathered outside of the tax building. They were calling the British soldiers names, throwing rocks and snowballs, and taunting them. They called them “lobsterback” making fun of their red coats. As the crowd of colonists got rowdier, one of the British soldiers fired his musket into the crowd. As the crowd panicked, so did the soldiers. More shots were fired. In the end, five people were killed, and 6 people were wounded. The colonists called this the Boston Massacre.
The Boston Tea Party
December 16, 1773
Word of the Boston Massacre spread across the other British colonies. The colonists wanted to retaliate or fight back. One strategy was to create committees across the colonies to share in the terrible things they believed the British were doing and what the colonists should do about it. Another strategy was to take physical action. One night in 1773, several dozen Boston colonists snuck onto British ships illegally and threw all the British tea into the Boston harbor. This was called The Boston Tea Party. While the colonists cheered, the British planned a new attack.
The First Continental Congress
September 5, 1774
After frustration from the Intolerable Acts reached a new high, the colonies joined together in September 1774, to unite as one government. Each colony (except Georgia) sent a delegate, or representative to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to meet and discuss what to do about the British. They drafted a document that redefined the colonies relationship with England. They wanted the British Parliament to know why they were upset and what they planned to do about it. They expressed their grievances and threatened a boycott of all British goods if the British did not repeal, or end, the Intolerable Acts. At the end of the 31-day meeting, the delegates agreed to meet back in May of 1775 if the British did not meet their demands.
Battles of Lexington
April 19, 1775
When the minutemen heard the British forces were coming, they met the British in Lexington in the middle of town. The 70-man militia was up against 700 trained British soldiers. No one knows who fired first, but a shot went off and the British attacked the small, unprepared militia. This shot was labeled the “shot heard around the world” because it was the first shot of the American Revolution. Eight minutemen were killed. The minutemen quickly retreated and the British marched on to Concord. This was an easy victory for the British.
Battle of Concord
April 19, 1775
The British continued marching to Concord. The minutemen patiently waited for the British on the outskirts of town. The British entered the town and searched for the hidden supplies of guns and ammunition. As the minutemen waited, more and more colonists arrived ready to fight. Eventually, the minutemen crossed the North Bridge and attacked the British. The element of surprise helped the colonists defeat the British causing them to retreat.
The Second Continental Congress
May 1775
As planned, the Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in May 1775. Each of the thirteen colonies had delegates representing them. These powerful men included George Washington from Virginia, John Adams from Massachusetts, and Benjamin Franklin from Pennsylvania. The Congress knew the colonies needed to become more organized and powerful if they hoped to beat the British. They quickly chose George Washington as the leader of the new army. Finally, they needed to declare their independence from Great Britain. It was time to write the Declaration of Independence.
The Coercive Acts (Intolerable Acts)
June 1, 1775
After the Boston Tea Party, the British Army leaders were very angry with the colonists. The British Parliament decided to flex their government muscles and pass a set of laws called the Coercive Acts. To punish the colonists, they closed off the Boston Port and took away the Massachusetts Charter. This placed the Massachusetts colony under direct British control. The British called it the Coercive Acts because coerce means force. The colonists called it the Intolerable Acts. Intolerable means unbearable.
Battle of Bunker Hill
June 17, 1775
The Battle of Bunker Hill was a battle for control of the Boston Harbor. At the time of the battle, the British were stationed in Boston. The colonists surrounded Boston and attacked. The two sides battled on and off for a day. Eventually, the colonists ran out of ammunition and had to give up. The British won the battle of Bunker Hill.
"Common Sense" by Thomas Paine
January 9, 1776
"Common Sense" was a 48-page pamphlet written in common language designed to persuade colonists to join the patriot movement. He argued that it was common sense for the colonists to become independent from Great Britain. He posed questions like: Why should a large continent be tied to a tiny island thousands of miles away? Why should colonists submit to laws that hurt them? Why should colonists be loyal to a king who oppresses him? Common Sense became extremely popular selling over 100,000 copies.
The Declaration of Independence
July 4, 1776
Wanting to break away from the British crown, the Continental Congress nominating a drafting committee to compose a declaration of independence. Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the document. On July 2, 1776, Congress accepted the ideas of independence. For the next two days, members of Congress debated the details of the document. On July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was approved by 12 colonies. The New York delegates approved it eleven days later. The Declaration of Independence was read aloud in town squares and published in newspapers. In 1781, Massachusetts became the first state to declare July 4th a holiday. This was a turning point for the United States of America.
Battle of Trenton, New Jersey
December 26, 1776
After a series of disastrous losses for the Continental Army, the Americans Army continued to get pushed out of New York. Then, on Christmas night, General George Washington moved his American troops into Trenton, New Jersey. The Patriots surprised German troops fighting for the Britain. The Americans won the battle. This revived hopes that the war just might be winnable.
Battle of Saratoga
September 19, 1777
The British attacked the Americans at Freeman’s Farm just north of Albany, New York. The British overpowered the Americans. The Americans withdrew. Even though the British won, they were badly hurt. Their reinforced supplies did not show up. The British made the foolish decision to attack the Americans again. This time, the Americans won, and the British had to retreat and surrender.
Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
1777-1778
The Continental Army was stationed at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania for the winter. It became a training site for the American soldiers. During that winter, leaders of the Continental Army instituted a series of reforms that helped professionalize the army and make them better soldiers. Valley Forge has been called the “Birthplace of the American Army”.
Yorktown, Virginia
Sept. 28 to Oct. 19, 1781
The Battle of Yorktown, also called the Siege of Yorktown is considered the last major land battle of the American Revolutionary War. The French government sent soldiers to support the Americans. There were 8,800 American soldiers and 7,800 French soldiers against 6,000 British soldiers. The Continental Army led by General George Cornwallis, surrounded the British army causing British General Charles Cornwallis to surrender.
Treaty of Paris
The Treaty of Paris ended the American Revolutionary War and brought peace to America. On November 30, 1782, the British and American governments signed the peace treaty.
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