Instructional Sequence
Unit Name:
Taking a Stand
Lesson
Number of days:
10
2
Text(s)
Sleds in Boston Common pages 100-117
(America the Story of Us)
Written Communication
Objectives:
Students will write an opinion piece stating clearly their point of view in the introduction, include three or more reasons supported by facts and details in the
body to support their position, and end with a concluding paragraph that sums up or restates the opinion presented. ( 3- 5 paragraphs)
Prompt:
You want to take a stand on an issue you care about. Write your opinion/position on the issue, and be ready to share it with your classmates.
Possible Topics:
Student should be allowed to use cell phones during the school day, students should not have to take standardize tests, students should get money
incentives, students should/ shouldn’t wear uniforms to school, school official should deal with students who misbehave by_____, schools deal with bullying
by____________, etc.
Task
Purpose
Audience
Pre-writing
Generate your topic
Classroom Peers
Outline your opinion piece
Organize your argument. Outline your
Classroom Peers
introduction which includes your
opinion, outline the body which includes
your position/reasons/details, and
outline your concluding paragraph
which restates your stance.
Write your multi-paragraph opinion
piece
To transitions from outline to prose.
Classroom Peers
Purp
Oral Communication
Objectives:
Students will present their opinion piece to their classmates and speak clearly at an understandable pace. Students may include multi-media components
in their presentations.
Speaking and Listening Standards:
SL 5.4.a; SL 5.5
Comprehension and Collaborative - activities/structures:
Teacher lead discussions, small group, and partner discussions using Kagan Strategies.
Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas – activities/structures:
Students will present their opinion piece to their peers.
Academic Language:
Argument, opinion, speaker’s position, evidence, Patriots, British, England, genre, historical fiction, declaration, and indictments.
Loyalists (Individuals during the time of the Revolution who agreed with how King George ruled the colonies.)
Rebels (Individuals during the time of the Revolution who disagreed with how King George ruled the colonies.)
Reading
Objectives:
Students will read Sleds on Boston Common and close watch the video “America the Story of Us” to discuss how a character took a stand to promote
change in his community and how the colonists took a stand to promote change in the colonies.
Reading Standards:
RL 5.1, RL 5.2, RL 5.6, RL 5, RI 5.3, RI 5.7, RI 5.9
Text Dependent Questions
Question
Answer
How does the author let you know the story takes place in the
It is 1774, British have closed Boston Harbor, and a new royal governor,
historical past? (pg. 102)
Thomas Gage, has been sent to live in Boston.
Who are patriots? Who are some of the patriots mentioned in the
Patriots are people who love and defend their country.
story?
Some of the patriots mentioned in this story are Sam Adams, John
(pg. 104)
Hancock, and William Price.
********************************************************** **********************************************************
*
*
Additional Historical Information may be added here that is not directly Patriots were considered to be rebels. There were colonists during
stated in the text, but offers a look at the different opinions of the
that time who supported the king’s decisions on how the colonies
colonists during that time.
should be ruled and were known as Loyalists.
How does the closing of Boston Harbor lead to hard times for the
people of Boston? (pg. 104)
Henry says there are more and more British soldiers marching on
Boston Common. What do you think “common” means in this
selection?
(pg. 104)
What evidence does the author provide to show how the people of
Boston feel about the British soldiers’ presence in their town?
(pg. 104)
Why did Henry think, “It was the best kind of New England day”?
(pg. 106)
What in the text helps you to infer that Henry’s family is having a hard
time due to the closing of the harbor?
(pg. 107)
Why were Henry and his siblings steaming mad? (pg.108)
Henry’s father told his children to “look sharp but don’t look like you’re
looking” when they go to the Common. What did Henry’s father mean
by this statement? How did Henry and his siblings follow through on
this advice?
(pg. 108)
Why did the author put “our” and “their” in italics? How do those
italicized words show the kids’ feelings?
(pg. 108)
How does Henry stand up for what he believes?
(pg. 110-112)
After King George ordered Boston Harbor to be closed, only his ships
could enter and leave the harbor. There was no trade and very little
work for men on the dock.
Common is a multiple meaning word. In this context, it means a public
open area in a town or city.
The author writes, “Most of us didn’t like General Gage’s troops in our
town. Most of them didn’t like us either.”
The soldiers cut down fences and trees for firewood, took over the
harbor, monitored people’s payment of their taxes, and the colonists
called the British soldiers “lobster backs.”
It was his ninth birthday, there was lots of snow, he got a sled for his
birthday, and it was a perfect day for sledding.
Henry wears Kate’s old mittens, and Ben’s patched leather boots.
Henry and his siblings were mad because the Common was supposed
to belong to everyone in the town. Now there were no open runs to
sled on, and there were no better hills to sled on anywhere in Boston.
General Gage’s troops had taken over the area, and there were 3,000
British living on Boston Common. Henry’s father doesn’t want the
children to get in trouble when they walk through the Common. He
doesn’t want it to look like they are spying on the troops. The siblings
followed through on his advice by being very careful, “We walked
among the barracks, and listened with our eyes and with our ears.”
The author uses our and their in italics to separate the two groups. It
emphasizes that the area went from being our Common to their
Common. The italics also emphasizes how the children felt about their
Common being taken over by the English.
Henry goes up to General Gage and takes a stand for the children’s
right to use the Common. Henry gives the following reasons why they
should be allowed to sled on the Common:
 Boston Common belongs to everyone, not just the soldiers.
 The soldiers have built their cook fires in the middle of the sled
runs.

How did General Gage respond to what Henry had to share?
(p. 112-114)
What evidence does the author provide to show how much Henry
enjoyed sledding on that first day?
It was his birthday and he wished to use his new sled on the
steepest hill in town.
 They only have a short time before they go back to school for
their lessons.
He responded by thinking silently for a moment, “General Gage
crossed his arms and looked out across the snowy Common…No one
spoke a word.” He put his hand on Henry’s shoulder and told him he
had a “fine sled.” Next, he asked who made the sled. General Gage
shared that he had sons and daughters as well and he knew “my own
children would like to sled this hill if they were here.” Finally, he
instructed the troops to let the children use the hill.
Students should be able to cite that second paragraph that begins with,
“I’ll never forget the first time I came down that hill on a sled I could
call my own...”
(pg. 114)
How does Henry feel about General Gage at the end of the story?
(pg. 116)
How did Henry taking a stand promote positive changes for the
children in Boston?
(pg. 115-116)
At the end of Sleds on Boston Common, the War for Independence
begins when troops are ordered to Lexington and Concord. Close
Watch (three or more times) the YouTube video “America the Story of
Us”. Why was it important for the Patriots to take a stand against King
George with the Declaration of Independence?
In the video Richard Slotkin states that during the Continental Congress
the delegates were divided. Why were the delegates divided?
Why was the Declaration of Independence a revolutionary document?
Henry felt joy sledding with the wind in his face, going over bumps
faster and faster and never wanted the ride to end.
When King George sent orders for General Gage to return to England,
Henry thought about the general he met on his birthday who had given
him back the sled run on Boston Common. He remembered him as a
good man.
After taking a stand, Henry, his brothers, and sister were able to sled
down Boston Common on his birthday. General Gage also gave the
children back their pond as well as the sled runs.
In the video “America the Story of Us” General Colin Powell stated that
the Declaration of Independence was a 28 count indictment against
King George. They were declaring their independence because of the
way the British Crown was treating the colonists, and they wanted to
be a free country. The document includes the reasons why they
wanted their independence, and the reasons why the Patriots were
going to war.
They were divided over if they should fight for their rights as
Englishmen of the British Empire or if they should fight for their
independence from England. They realized that once they started
standing up to King George there was no going back; therefore, they
declared their independence.
The Declaration of Independence established a philosophical basis for a
civil Democracy in which all persons are guaranteed rights.
How did the Patriots taking a stand promote positive changes for the
colonists?
After taking a stand, the colonists were free to make decisions for
themselves.
http://www.nps.gov/thst/forteachers/upload/Student%20Handout%20list%20of%20DI%20indictments%20.pdf
A list of the 28 indictments