Name
Date
Monday, February 6
The Battle of Bunker Hill
By Cathy Pearl
The Patriots had lost early battles in the war. They weren't going to give up.
The American soldiers went to Boston. They surrounded the town. British
soldiers could not attack. They were trapped in Boston. It did not look like
the war would end quickly. The Americans did not want to lose.
In 1775, the Patriots were in charge of two hills near Boston. Hills were
important in the war. They were easier to defend. The British general wanted
to be in charge of the hills. He decided to attack the Americans. He would
force them to leave the hills.
The British soldiers attacked on June 17. They sent a lot of soldiers up the
first hill. It was named Breed's Hill. This is where most of the battle was
fought. The soldiers marched in a straight line. There were people beating
drums. Other soldiers carried flags.
The soldiers got close to the Americans. That is when the Americans fought back. There were 1,600 Patriots on
the hill. They fired their guns as fast as they could. The British soldiers had to slow down. Soon, they had to
retreat.
The British soldiers did not give up. They started up the hill a second time. The Patriots waited for them to get
close. Then they shot at the soldiers again. The British soldiers made it a little closer to the top of the hill. But they
had to give up again. Soon, they had to retreat to the bottom of the hill.
The British general would not give up. He told the soldiers to attack for a third time. The soldiers had to crawl
over the bodies of the soldiers that had already been shot. This time they made it to the top of the hill. The Patriots
had run out of gunpowder. They could not fight back against the British any longer. They had to retreat off Breed's
Hill.
The British soldiers then attacked Bunker Hill. There were not as many Patriots there. They did not have any
ammunition either. The British quickly made it to the top of that hill, too.
The British soldiers had won the battle. The British army had lost a lot. At the beginning of the battle, there were
almost 2,400 British soldiers. At the end, almost 1,100 had been killed or hurt. The Patriots had done much better.
Fewer than 400 soldiers had been killed or wounded.
The Battle of Bunker Hill was the first large battle of the American Revolution. It showed the British that the
Americans were not afraid to fight. It also showed the Americans that the British would not be easy to defeat. Both
sides would struggle while trying to win the war.
Name
Date
Monday, February 6
The Battle of Bunker Hill
Questions
1. How many times did the British soldiers try to get up Breed's Hill?
A. three
B. one
C. two
2. The British army ran out of ammunition during the battle.
A. false
B. true
3. Who won the battle of Breed's Hill?
A. Native Americans
B. British army
C. American Patriots
4. Why were the hills important in the war?
5. How many British soldiers were killed or hurt in the battle?
A. 1,600
B. 2,400
C. 1,100
6. How many Patriots were hurt in the battle?
A. 2,400
B. 400
C. 1,600
Name
Date
Monday, February 6
June 16, 1775
Image Caption: Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774-1789
FRIDAY, JUNE 16, 1775 Historical Context: The Continental Congress chose George Washington to be the
commander of the soon-to-be Continental Army, which was intended to defend the colonists. This is the brief speech
he made in response.
Name
Date
Monday, February 6
1. According to the journal entry, Congress asked George Washington to be _____.
A. a senator
B. a general and commander of the Army
C. the president
D. none of the above
2. Which adjective best describes how George Washington felt about being chosen?
A. excited
B. astonished
C. angry
D. unworthy
3. How did George Washington wish to be paid?
A. wanted no money in return
B. accepting of the salary of $500 each month for pay and expenses
C. wished to only be paid for exact expenses
D. double overtime
4. Based on your prior historical knowledge, where would this journal most accurately be placed in an
historical time frame?
A. prior to the Pilgrims' landing
B. after the Civil War
C. soon after Christopher Columbus arrived
D. before the Revolutionary War
5. Based on your knowledge of U.S. history, how did George Washington perform in his role, in spite of his
initial concerns?
Name
Date
Monday, February 6
6. Express in your own words what valid concerns George Washington might have had when asked to take on
this new position.
Name
Date
Tuesday, February 7
African Americans in the Revolutionary War
By Cathy Pearl
It was 1776. The Revolutionary War had just started. There were a lot of African
Americans living in the colonies. They were not allowed to fight when the war first
started. It didn't matter if they were free or if they were slaves.
Soon, Britain let black men fight. Britain said that they would be free if they helped
them in the war. This meant a lot more people were helping the British. George
Washington changed his mind. He said that African Americans could fight in his army.
Only free black men were allowed to join.
There were about 5,000 free African Americans that fought against Britain. The first
battles were at Lexington and Concord. There were at least nine black men that fought
at these battles. Two of the men who fought there also fought at Bunker Hill. They
were Peter Salem and Salem Poor.
There were black men that formed their own groups in the army. The army was also
called the militia. Smaller groups of the army were called regiments. African American
men served in black regiments. Other men served in white regiments. The black men
were also drummers and spies. They fought bravely. The white men in the army respected them.
African Americans also served in the navy. The navy was started during this war. They were sailors and cooks on
the ships. Thousands of African Americans sailed on the sea. Their courage helped the colonists win battles at sea.
Slaves had a tough choice if they wanted to fight. They could run away from the plantation and join the British
army. But if Patriots caught them, the slaves could be hanged. They could also join the colonial army. But then
men in the British army would try to catch them. The British army would then sell the black men to make money.
All African Americans hoped the war would help them. They hoped that after the war, they would be free. The
Declaration of Independence said that all men were created equal. African Americans thought this would mean
they would be free. If white people were not slaves, then blacks should not be, either.
In some states, African Americans signed petitions. They sent the papers to people who made the laws. The
African Americans wanted to be free.
African Americans were not the only people who wanted the war to end slavery. There were white people who
hoped for the same thing. Quakers did not like slavery. They lived mostly in the northern colonies. The Quakers
spoke out against it. They hoped all men would be freed after the war.
During the war, some colonies made slavery illegal. The war had helped slaves in the North. Many states in the
North got rid of slavery during the late 1700s. This did not always help African Americans. These states made new
laws. The laws limited what African Americans could do in these states.
The war helped and hurt African Americans. In the North, many states outlawed slavery. In the South, slavery
became worse. It would be more than 80 years before African Americans would be free.
Name
Date
Tuesday, February 7
African Americans in the Revolutionary War
Questions
1. How many African Americans fought in the Revolutionary War?
A. One million
B. Five thousand
C. One hundred thousand
2. Slaves could fight in George Washington's army.
A. False
B. True
3. What were smaller groups of men in the army called?
4. Name two African Americans who fought at Bunker Hill.
5. Who spoke out against slavery?
A. George Washington
B. Quakers
C. No one
6. Which states started to outlaw slavery in the late 1770s?
A. Southern States
B. Western States
C. Northern States
Name
Date
Wednesday, February 8
Treaty of Paris - The Revolutionary War is Over
By Cathy Pearl
The end of the war was coming. The colonists were going to beat Britain.
Charles Cornwallis was leading the British army. He took his army to Virginia.
Cornwallis attacked the capital. The governor had to run away.
Then, Cornwallis made a huge mistake. He should have sent half of his army to
New York. But he went to Yorktown. Yorktown was a little piece of land. It was
near the water. Cornwallis thought that British ships would come to help him.
George Washington knew that this was his chance. If he trapped Cornwallis, the
war would be over. He took his army south from New York. A group of ships
from France came. They blocked the water. Cornwallis could not get any help.
The trap had worked.
Cornwallis had fewer men than Washington. Washington knew this. He fired
cannons at Cornwallis for many days. He did not stop. Many of Cornwallis's
troops were hurt or killed. They could not rest. Cornwallis did not quit for a
couple of weeks. Soon, he knew it was hopeless. He was running out of food.
They had to surrender.
It was clear that the Americans had won the war. Britain was shocked that they had lost. They just couldn't believe
that the colonists could beat their army. Britain said they would talk about peace. It was time for the war to end.
The talks started in Paris. It was 1782. Some colonists went to England. They would work out the treaty. Britain
just wanted everything to be over. They gave the Americans almost everything that they wanted.
The United States was now free. They were their own country. No other country could be in charge. The country
went from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River. The colonists did not get Florida. It went back to Spain.
People who wanted the British to win had lost a lot of property. Americans said they would talk to state
legislatures. They would ask that the Loyalists be paid for what they had lost. The Americans asked. But most
legislatures ignored the claims. They did not want to pay money to people who had helped England.
On April 15, 1783, Congress agreed to the Treaty of Paris. They ratified it. It had been almost eight years since the
first battles of the war.
In the end, America had more things to help them win. They were fighting the war at home. Britain had to send
supplies by ship. It took a long time to get things back and forth.
Americans knew the land they were fighting on. They could hide in the forests. If Britain won battles near the
ocean, the colonists went inland. The colonists knew the best places to fight battles.
The most important thing was the spirit of colonists. They did not give up. In the beginning, it didn't look like they
could win. This didn't stop them. They kept fighting and trying. Soon, they were better fighters. George
Washington became a great general. He helped the colonists win the war.
The country was young. There would be many struggles in the future. But for now, everyone was excited. They
had beaten the British in the war. America was free.
Name
Date
Wednesday, February 8
Treaty of Paris - The Revolutionary War is Over
Questions
1. Who won the Revolutionary War?
A. The Americans
B. The British
2. Where did Cornwallis go?
A. Yorktown
B. New York
C. England
3. Which army had more men during the battle?
A. Washington
B. They had the same number of men.
C. Cornwallis
4. When did Congress agree to the Treaty of Paris?
5. What were the borders of the new country?
6. Which country got Florida after the war?
A. Spain
B. England
C. America
Name
Date
Thursday, February 9
American Revolution - Who Had the Better Chance of Winning?
By Cathy Pearl
The American Revolution had started. The American colonists were fighting
to be free from England. Who had the better chance of winning? Both sides
had things that would help them. There were also many things that would
hurt them in the war.
The colonists who wanted to be free were called Patriots. They would have a
tough battle ahead of them. England was very powerful. Some colonists did
not want to fight England. The Patriots would have to fight them, too. The
colonists did not have a lot of training. They did not have many cannons or
gunpowder. England had a navy. The colonists did not.
The colonists did have advantages. The Patriots had rifles. They were very good shots. They had a great leader.
George Washington would be in charge of the army. He had fought in the French and Indian War. He knew how to
fight in a war. He would be a great leader.
The Patriots were fighting on their own land. They would be protecting their homes and farms. They would not
want to give up their land to the British. Many Patriots would die trying to protect what they owned.
The English soldiers were very strong. They had a lot of training. Many of them had fought in other wars. England
also had a strong navy. It was the best in the world. The ships could move the soldiers quickly.
African Americans fought on England's side. England promised freedom to slaves who helped them win the war.
Native Americans also helped England. They did not want the colonists to win. England hired people to fight with
them. These soldiers came from Germany.
Many of the colonists wanted England to win. These colonists were called Loyalists or Tories. Many colonists
were Loyalists. They did not want to be free of England. They thought the other colonists should not fight the war.
They were merchants. They were also part of the English government. Many Loyalists lived in the south. Few
lived in the north.
The Loyalists had a tough time during the war. The Patriots would tar and feather people who wanted England to
win. Many Loyalists had to leave their homes. They went back to England or to Canada. Many lost their homes
and their stores.
England had problems in the war, too. England was fighting three thousand miles from home. Soldiers and
supplies took months to get to the colonies. It also took months for messages to get back to England. English
soldiers were not sure how to fight in the forests. They marched in straight lines. That made it easy for the colonists
to hide behind trees and shoot them.
Both sides had a chance to win the war. There were things that would help them and things that would hurt them.
It would be many years until a winner was clear.
Name
Date
Thursday, February 9
American Revolution - Who Had the Better Chance of Winning?
Questions
1. What was the name for colonists who wanted to fight for freedom?
A. Patriots
B. Loyalists
C. Tories
2. Who was fighting the war at home?
A. American colonists
B. England
C. No one was fighting at home.
3. What happened to many Loyalists during the war?
A. They were tarred and feathered.
B. They lost their homes and stores.
C. Both a and b
4. The colonists had a navy.
A. False
B. True
5. Name three groups of people that helped England fight in the war.
6. Who would lead the American army?
Name
Date
Friday, February 10
The Colonists Protest
By Cathy Pearl
The colonists were angry over the new taxes. They formed groups of people to
protest the new taxes. There were two groups. The men called themselves the Sons
of Liberty. Women were called the Daughters of Liberty.
The Sons of Liberty in Boston were very active. They were very angry over the
Stamp Act. The Sons of Liberty visited many of the people who were supposed to
sell the stamps. They said that they would burn their houses down if they sold the
stamps.
There were many famous men who were members of this group. Paul Revere,
Samuel Adams, John Adams, John Hancock,Patrick Henry, and many others were
members of the Sons of Liberty.
The Sons of Liberty also did fake hangings. They would make straw figures. The
figures looked like British officials. They would pretend to hang the figures. This
showed what would happen if the British officials tried to collect the taxes.
Other groups did what the group in Boston did. In New Jersey, a mob attacked the governor's house. He was not
home at the time. The mob went into the home and threatened his wife. She refused to leave and saved their home.
The Sons of Liberty used other ways to protest the new taxes. They would visit merchants. They would tell them
they should not sell British goods. The Sons of Liberty would also threaten people. They would tell people not to
buy British goods.
The Sons of Liberty were part of the Boston Tea Party. They dressed up as Native Americans. They went to the
Boston harbor. The colonists dumped a load of tea into the water. Many colonists were happy with this. Others
were very upset.
The Daughters of Liberty were not as violent. They would parade around towns. They also organized a boycott of
British cloth. They didn't want any women in the colonies to buy it. The Daughters of Liberty wanted women to
raise their own sheep. Then they could make their own cloth. No one would need to buy cloth from Britain.
The boycott of British cloth worked because of these women. Women would work from sunup to sundown to
make cloth. It was needed to take the place of the cloth that was not bought from Britain. They also worked hard to
think of new drinks so colonists did not have to buy tea.
The women helped poor colonists. Women would meet together in groups. They would spin material made from
wool. The women would give it to poor families. The poor families did not have sheep. They could not make their
own cloth.
The Sons and Daughters of Liberty were very important. They helped colonists boycott British goods. The men
were more violent than the women. What they did would help push England and the colonists to war.
Name
Date
Friday, February 10
The Colonists Protest
Questions
1. Women joined the Sons of Liberty.
A. False
B. True
2. What did women organize a boycott of?
3. Which group was more violent?
A. Daughters of Liberty
B. Sons of Liberty
C. Neither group was violent.
4. Women made their own cloth from:
A. horses' hair
B. sheep's wool
C. cows' skin
5. What did the Sons of Liberty threaten to do to people who sold stamps for the Stamp Act?
6. What did the Sons of Liberty dress up as during the Boston Tea Party?
A. British officials
B. Native Americans
C. Daughters of Liberty