In this album, we will share primary sources and other supporting materials that can be used to teach about George Washington, the Founding Mothers, and the founding of the nation.
Social Studies/History Virtual Book Club George Washington Founding Mothers
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The female review. Life of Deborah Sampson, the female soldier in the War of Revolution This entire book is available. Each page is a separate image. It would be easy to find a few pages with excerpts suitable to use in class.
The Letterbook of Eliza Lucas Pinckney 1739-1762
Book of Ages: The Life and Opinions of Jane Franklin by Jill Lepore
Thank you for finding these! I have been inspired by both of them. I believe they will inspire my girls, too!
America in Class has some good source collections including:
Civilians in the American Revolution, Women, Margaret Morris, Mary Jemison, Esther Reed, Eliza Wilkinson, Anna Rawle, Primary Sources for Teachers, America in Class, National Humanities Center -- this has Esther Reed's full broadside in addition to other accounts.
Fighting the American Revolution, Soldier Narratives, Black Soldiers, Prisoners, Prison Ship, Primary Sources for Teachers, America in Class, National Humanities Center -- includes excerpts from enslaved soldiers from American and British troops.
As I looked for more historical fiction I stumbled across The Indigo Girl by Natasha Boyd. Since my daughter lives in South Carolina, it peaked my interest to read about a young girl who takes over her father's business interests in the colonies and began the indigo trade in the Low Country of South Carolina. I was thrilled to find more about Eliza Pinckney as I read in Founding Mothers.
Edited
I really like the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. It has interactive maps, lesson plans and student activities. With a focus on teaching history through literacy.
https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-resources/curriculum/2-american-revolution
Shadow of Liberty I love this book. It talks about Washington and three other presidents and their relationships with their slaves. It is based on diary excerpts as well as interviews and letters. Well written by a well-known author.
Introducing young learners to our country's history can be challenging. They don't have much, if any, background information to connect to, & they have a LOT of misconceptions. Our fourth grade standards begin with Colonization & the events leading up to the Revolutionary War. There is a video series for children called "Liberty's Kids" that I use with my classes, that follows the adventures of a young British lady traveling to the colonies. She is supposed to be the guest of Benjamin Franklin, however, he is detained in England while being accused in Parliament of being a traitor and organizing the Boston Tea Party. The series really brings these events to life, & since I wait to show each episode after we've studied the events, they have at least a little knowledge to relate it to. I also found worksheets online (I don't remember where) that go along with every episode. They are very simple questions for students to answer while watching, and we discuss the answers/events at the end.
One very helpful resource I use when teaching the Revolution/Washington is The American Battlefield Trust Website on The American Revolution
https://www.battlefields.org/learn/revolutionary-war
I use their "Animated Map" each year when teaching this unit.
Thanks for sharing this resource! The Animated Map is wonderful. I plan on using it as well.
I am excited about the Animated Maps. Great way to make maps come to life!
Several years ago I was given a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. It includes excellent paintings from American history. When I discuss George Washington I display two oil on canvas painting that I have in the form of laminated posters. They are Gilbert Stuart's "George Washington, 1796" and Emanuel Leutze's "Washington Crossing the Delaware." I am sure many libraries across the nation have these resources as well.
When I am teaching from this period in history I like to use letters and paintings. Here are a few I found interesting.
https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/05-05-02-0256 This is a letter to George Washington from Mercy Otis Warren in May of 1790.
https://www.masshist.org/database/viewer.php?item_id=3374&img_step=1&noalt=1&br=1&mode=dual#page1 This letter is from Mercy Otis Warren to Hannah Winthrop.
https://marthawashington.us/items/show/13.html This one is from Martha Washington to Fanny Bassett Washington, October 23, 1789.
https://cnu.libguides.com/c.php?g=23248&p=136712 This is a beautiful picture of Martha Washington.
These make connections with students and start dialog that helps them understand the time better.
These are great sites for primary source letters. I appreciate how they have transcripts as well!
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