The American Revolution Project

 

This project is designed for you to have some fun and to demonstrate your knowledge of one particular aspect of the American Revolutionary War.  Several steps need to be competed in order to earn a high grade on this project.

 

Step One:  Pick a topic

You may work on any American Revolutionary War topic as long as it meets with Mr. Roszak’s approval.  Below is a list of possible topics.  Try not to pick a topic that is so large you could write a book about it.  Two people from the same class may not do the same topic.   CHOOSE YOUR TOPIC WISELY.

 

Major Battles                                     Famous People                         Other Topics

Breed’s Hill/Bunker Hill  (1775)        Francis Marion                           spies in the war

Fort Ticonderoga  (1775)                    Marquis de Lafayette                 African-Americans Quebec  (1775)                         Alexander Hamilton                  women in the war

Long Island  (1776)                            Benedict Arnold                        medicine of the war

Trenton & Princeton  (1776)               Henry Knox                               weapons of the war         Brandywine  (1777)                                    Betsy Ross                                 US Navy

Saratoga  (1777)                                  Molly Pitcher                             French help in the war

Bennington  (1777)                             John Paul Jones                          Continental soldier

Monmouth  (1778)                              Nathan Hale                               music of the war

Savannah  (1778)                                Horatio Gates                             winter at Morristown Charleston  (1778-1780)                        Nathanael Greene                      guerilla warfare

USS Bonhomme Richard vs                John Burgoyne (Br.)                  Green Mountain Boys

        HMS Serapis  (1779)                   Friedrich von Steuben                Hessians (mercenaries)

Cowpens  (1781)                                 Thaddeus Kosciuszko                life on the home front

Yorktown  (1781)                               Casimir Pulaski                          Loyalists during war

Blue Licks, KY (1782)                       George Rogers Clark                 privateers at sea

                                                            Charles Cornwallis (Br.)            Native Americans in war

                                                            John Andre (Br.)                        flags of the war                                                                    Deborah Sampson                     

                                                            Martha Washington

 

 

Step Two:  Do research

You may look for information about your topic anywhere you can find it (home, school, library, internet, etc.).  Keep these points in mind:

• You must find information from FOUR (4) sources (at least one book and one website).
• You should take notes, including the bibliographic information from the sources you looked at.
• You must create a bibliography page for your report (It should be on its own paper and each entry should look like the format page you will have in your folder.).
• Do not plagiarize!

 

 

Step Three:  Write a short report

Take the information you find and write an informational essay (report) in your own words.  Pretend you are writing an encyclopedia article for other 5^th and 6^th graders.  Remember these several points:

• Your paper should be two (2) to three (3) pages long. (The title page and the bibliography do NOT count.)
• Write the report in simple past tense…do not use personal pronouns.
• If you handwrite your report, use your best handwriting. Write in blue or black ink.  Do not double space your lines. 
• If you type your report, use a standard font type (Times New Roman, Arial, etc.) and 12 point size. Do double space your lines.
• Maintain clean 1 inch margins on all four sides of each page.
• Write on one side of the paper only.
• Write your report on neat, clean paper…do not submit paper torn out from a spiral notebook.
• Your report should have a title page. The title should be at the top of the page.  Your name(s) should be below your title. 
• There should be NO spelling mistakes, NO punctuation mistakes, and NO grammar
• Attach a properly constructed Bibliography to your report.
• HAVE TWO (2) PEOPLE PROOFREAD YOUR ARTICLE. I CANNOT BE ONE OF YOUR PROOFREADERS!
• DO NOT PLAGIARIZE!

Step Four:  Build a project

Build a project that represents the main idea of your topic.  You may select your project from the list below.  Remember these following points:

• Your project may be tangible (something you can touch) or electronic.
• Electronic projects must be submitted to Mr. Roszak via email or Google.
• Tangible projects may not be bigger than a desktop.
• Decorate your project with any arts and crafts material you wish to use (e.g. construction paper, tin foil, colored tissue paper, fabric, beads, buttons, feathers, crepe paper, stickers, ribbons, yarn, paint, etc.).
• If figurines are placed on the project, they must be dressed appropriately for the era of the American Revolutionary War.
• Your project must have a title or banner or labels attached to it.
• Your project may have battery operated devices (lights, sounds, etc) as long as those devices are appropriate for your topic.
• The bottom line is…you must build something…it would be very embarrassing to have nothing to show the class on presentation day.

 

 

Possible Project List

Select a project from the list below that represents the main idea of your topic.  If you have something else in mind, get approval from Mr. Roszak before you begin to build it.

 

ELECTRONIC PROJECTS

 

 

PowerPoint or Google Slides

 

Photostory

 

 

 

 

TANGIBLE PROJECTS

 

Shoebox diorama

 

Three-fold brochure

 

Two-fold exhibition display board

 

Puppet play

 

Movie poster

 

Board game

 

Cereal box

 

Museum model

 

Picture Book

 

Newscast

 

Radio interview

 

 

Step Five:  Present your project

Your Essay and Project are due on Friday, May 18.  Some points to remember:

• All students will write their own informational essay.
• All students will present their own project.
• If you are absent on Friday, May 18, your essays and projects are due the day you return.
• There will be NO LATE CREDIT for this assignment.

 

DATES TO REMEMBER:

Friday, March 30:           choose your topic

Friday, May 18*                      Presentation Day! (projects and articles due)

 

*date could change based on weather and other school events.

Scoring Guide

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Using questions 1–12 above, now finish the biography about St Patrick below in your own words.

St Patrick was born in … around … He is believed to have died on …

Activity 2: What is the history of St Patrick’s Day?

Visit this site: www.thoughtco.com/history-of-the-st-patricks-day-parade-1773800. Read the article, then complete the following sentences.

• The first recorded St Patrick’s Day parade happened in _______________ (1) in the year _______________ (2).
• In New York, St Patrick’s Day celebrations from 1784 onwards involved the playing of fifes and _______________ (3) and a _______________ (4) was held in Manhattan.
• In the 1800s, the Irish population of New York increased because of the _______________ (5) so there were more St Patrick’s Day celebrations.
• However, the newspapers reported stories of _______________ (6) and so there were efforts to make the celebrations more respectable.
• The parade today has hardly changed since the _______________ (7). Other American _______________ (8), as well as Dublin in Ireland, now also hold large parades.

You must have Flash Player installed on your device in order to play. 

 

Attached is the .PDF file that you will use in class. Only complete page 1, numbers 1-6. 

 

Credit: Erin Kathryn 2014

 

We discussed racial tolerance and the issues that could arise from accepting/not accepting others based on race.  I attached a link to help our students better understand the importance of Martin Luther King Jr. even in 2018.