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I would like to welcome Dr. Michael J. Mullin to The History Book. Dr. Mullin is a professor at Augustana College. Dr. Mullin is the first professor to participate with us in Project Beyond the Classroom and for that, I would like to thank him very much. It is the goal of Project Beyond the Classroom to provide opportunities for students to learn about American History in a different way. Being able to learn from an esteemed professor of history with seemingly limitless knowledge can benefit us all. As a class, we brainstormed and came up with a list of questions we would like to know a little bit more about. With the help of Dr. Mullin, we have an opportunity to dig a little deeper in American History. Again, thank you, Dr. Mullin. My students are excited to read your thoughts.
Questions:
1. Why did the Declaration of Independence exclude certiain groups such as Native Americans, African Americans and women yet the document was based on individual freedom and rights? Was it ever changed?
2. Do you think the Patriots could have won without foreign help?
3. What 2 people do you think were the MOST important in the American Revolution? Why?
4.What do you think was the key to American victory?
5. What was the level of Native American involvement in the American Revolution?
6. How did the Continental Congress fund the American Revolution?
7. What if the Patriots would have lost?
Thank you very much, we are all looking forward to hearing from you.
As we enter the Battles of the American Revolution and the eventual surrender of the British Army (sorry to ruin the ending), we are going to take a look at the state of the Continental Army and the British Army. We are going to discuss the advantages both had and the disadvantages both had. At first glance, looking at the colonists going up against the most powerful military in the world, it may seem that the colonists did not have any advantages. That, however, is untrue. Using your discussion notes in class or reviewing the powerpoint, discuss the advantages and disadvantages of both armies. Task: 1.Describe the state of the Continental Army in the early goings of the American Revolution. 2. Describe the advantages the British army had and HOW the Continental Army took those advantages away.3. Describe the Advantages of the Continental Army4. Describe the Disadvantages of the British Army5. Describe the Disadvantages of the Continental Army. How did the patriots turn their disadvantages into advantages?Points: 20DUE Date: October 30th, 2009
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Between the First and Second Continental Congress meetings, many things happened to increase tension between the Colonists and the Crown. Things such as Lexington/Concord, Bunker Hill, and Battle of Dorchester Heights. These three items seemed to suggest that War between America and Great Britain was a sure thing. As these things were going on, it appeared quite obvious to some that there was no turning back. The Second Continental Congress decided to form a committee to write a document declaring Indepedence from Great Britain. One man was instrumental in raising support for this cause. His name was Thomas Paine. Paine wrote and published a book called "Common Sense" which we have discussed in class. At first, Paine published this book anonymously. For this blog post, we are going to look at Paine's "Common Sense" and the Declaration of Indepdence itself.
Task #1: Why was Thomas Paine's book "Common Sense" so important? What did it do? Why do you think Paine published "Common Sense" anonymously at first? What made this book so popular among the colonists? Do you think that most colonists would have supported Indepednece without "Common Sense" ? Answer all questions I have just posed.
Task #2: The Declaration of Indepdence, written and published by white males, officially announced our break from Great Britain and our quest for Independence. However, the Declaration of Indepdence excluded a few groups of people such as Native Americans, African Americans, and Women. Why was that? How come these groups of people, groups of people who had many people in the thirteen colonies, get excluded from the Declaration? In a document based on equality and individual rights, did it "miss the boat" with these other groups of people?
Points: 20
DUE: October 30th, 2009. 11:00 p.m.
As the American Revolution is about to begin, the Continental Congress formed to decide what to do about King George's repeated refusal to listen to them and his continuing moves to make things harder. The continentl congress was split as far as what to do about the British. Some wanted things to remain peacefully and others wanted to go to war and solve the issue with violence. It was decided that a compromise would be reached in which the Continental Congress would continue to seek peace, yet prepare for war. For this blog post, I want you to explain to me what attempts the Continental Congress made to achieve a peaceful solution and what the Continental Congress did to move towards war. ***You should have 4 attempts at Peace and 4 examples of movement toward War.***Number each example in your lists.
Points: 20
DUE Date: October 16th, 2009. 10:00 p.m.
Your task is to search the World Wide Web (Internet) and find a website that deals with the American Revolution. There are many, many good websites out there, so this task should not be difficult. If the website you find and publish has already been found by another student, yours will get deleted and you will have to find another one--so don't wait too long to do this!
Details:
1. Find a website about the American Revolution.
2. Post a comment with the website address so I can create a American Revolution website list
3. Along with the website address, tell me what you thought about the site.
What was good about it?
What was bad about it?
Is it a cool site?
What are the features? (ie. games? audio? video?)
Who owns the site?
Grade the site with the standard Letter Grade system
Done.
Money: $5,000
Points: 20
DUE Date: October 13th, 2009. 10:00 p.m.
