Good day, Scholars!Good day, Scholars!Brainstorm with your table…which events led to the Brainstorm with your table…which events led to the

American Revolution?American Revolution?

The ColoniesThe Colonies

Unite!Unite!

1st Continental Congress• Meeting held in Philadelphia in 1774 (all the colonies

except Georgia) to discuss what to do about England.• They were not planning to declare independence at

this point, only to find a peaceful solution.• Voted to stop all trade with Britain until they repealed

the Intolerable Acts.• Each colony agreed to start training militia troops in

case they had to fight Britain.– Militia

• Civilians• Not professional soldiers• Volunteer• Minutemen – be prepared to fight with a minute’s notice

Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride• Sam Adams (Sons of Liberty) had spies keeping an

eye out for British troops to attack.– “One if by land. Two if by sea”

• The British finally made a move to arrest colonial leaders in Lexington and attack and destroy a weapons depot in Concord.

• Seeing the signal, Paul Revere and 2 other men jumped on horseback riding throughout the night to warn colonists of the British troop’s arrival.– “The British are coming! The British are coming!”

1st Shots FiredBy the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April's breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood And fired the shot heard round the world.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1863

This quote is talking about the firsts shots fired during the Revolutionary War… this took place in Lexington.

2nd Continental Congress• Finalized the Declaration of Independence

(most important accomplishment)• Voted to organize a national army • Appointed George Washington as its

Commander in Chief.

Last attempt at peace…• Olive Branch Petition

– Colonial leaders wrote a petition to King George asking him to leave them alone and to restore peace.

– King George refused to listen to their pleas.

Common Sense– Written by Thomas Paine– Argued that the only way to be a thriving,

profitable group of colonies was to become independent from Britain.

– It makes sense to govern ourselves.– This book (really a pamphlet) sold over

100,000 copies and was very influential in getting people to join the revolutionary leaders.

Break Up Letter

• Here’s your chance to turn on the drama!

• Write a break up letter to England from the Colonies explaining three reasons why you want to break up.

Reflect on today’s learning…

• Pair share Break Up Letters

Good day, Scholars!Good day, Scholars!

Declaration of Independence• Written by Thomas Jefferson• Wanted to ensuring their Unalienable Rights by

inclding this statement…– "That to secure these rights, governments are instituted

among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed."

• Lists colonial grievances against King George III • Outlines what a government should be

The Declaration of Independence• Reasons for writing it..

• 1. To declare independence…duh!

• 2. To unify the people– About 1/3 were Patriots, 1/3 were Loyalists, and

1/3 were undecided.

• 3. To appeal to other countries for support– Make their struggle public in this document.

Declaration of Independence• What’s NOT in the document is just as

important as what IS…

• Does not mention Parliament– All the blame is placed on King George III

• Does not discuss the rights of Englishmen– Other countries wouldn’t care about the rights

of an Englishman, only about natural rights.

Declaration of Independence

• Does NOT mention slavery– Although it was in the draft, it was removed by

the Continental Congress. They wanted to unite the country and slavery was a controversial topic. Better to leave it out.