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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

PATHWAYS ADVENTURES:

Using Historical Documents to Develop Early Literacy

Ryan Ross, Kelsey Martin, Chelsea Westerman, Hope Banker, Brianne Hogenson

College of Education

University of Northern Iowa

Book Backdrop Title:

Boston Tea Party

Table of Contents

• Introduction…………………………………………………………………………2

• Lesson Module

o Lesson 1—Tea for You, and Tea for Me……………………………….…3

o Lesson 2—Taxing Tea; Who and Why?.....................................................6

o Lesson 3—Oh No! The Tax Must Go..........................................................9

o Lesson 4—The Party is Over; The British Learn of the Rebellion….…13

• Appendix I: Library of Congress Resources……………………………………..15

• Appendix II: Bibliography and Webliography…………………………………..26

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INTRODUCTION

Book Backdrop Title:

Not My Cup of Tea

Focus Book Citation:

Edwards, Pamela Duncan., and Henry Cole. (2001). Boston Tea Party. New York: Putnam, 2001. Print.

Focus Book Summary:

King George has placed a tax on tea and the Colonists are not happy. Though illustrations and conversing mice, the events that lead up to the Boston Tea Party are told in a way that younger children can relate.

Book Setting:

The story takes place in England and the Colonies around 1773.

NCSS Notable Tradebook Theme: History, Life and Culture in the Americas

Historical Period:

The American Revolution

Grade Range:

Primary

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LESSON MODULE

Five Lesson Primary Source-Based Book Backdrop Lesson Plans

Lesson 1 Title: Tea for you, and tea for me Learning Goals:

• Students will be able to find where tea comes from on a map. • Students will be able to use primary sources to see where tea grows and how people get the leaves

through looking at pictures. • Students will be able to write a story of people picking tea leaves

Knowledge

• Students will learn the story of the Boston Tea Party by Pamela Duncan Edwards. • Students will understand what tea is. • Students will learn where tea comes from. • Students will begin to understand why tea was important to the colonists by relating something

they love and enjoy.

Skills • Students will participate in a tea testing, if they would like to try some. • Students will use maps, to properly place photos of tea garden on maps of where tea came from. • Students will write a story with how they would feel if something they used everyday had a tax,

showing empathy of colonists being taxed on tea.

Dispositions • Students will develop understanding of what tea is and the attachment colonists had to drinking it. • Students will develop an empathetic understanding of what it took for the tea to reach the United

States. Links to National Standards: http://www.socialstudies.org/standards/strands Culture: Human beings create, learn, share, and adapt to culture. People, Places, and Environments: During their studies, learners develop an understanding of spatial perspectives, and examine changes in the relationship between peoples, places and environments. Individual Development and Identity: Personal identity is shaped by an individual’s culture, by groups, by institutional influences, and by lived experiences shared with people inside and outside the individual’s own culture throughout her or his development. General Instructional Materials:

• Copy of Boston Tea Party by Pamela Duncan Edwards • Tea (for students to try if they please

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• Hot water (for tea tasting) • Writing paper with picture box • Crayons • Markers • Access to maps (of places tea came from) • Tape • Pictures of tea bushes from two places students can find on the map

Lesson Procedures:

Introduction 1. Begin by telling the students we are going to travel back in time. (You can choose to in a fun and cheesy British accent if you wish.) Back in a time where tea was very important to people and they drank it every day. 2. Have any of you had tea before, hot tea that is? If you have and you like it you can have some. However if you have not, and would like to try some you are more than welcome to. (use the hot water dispenser you set up and pass out the tea to those who chose to have some. 3.Tea does not grow in our back yards. Do we know where tea comes from, does it grow on trees, is there a tea plant, or a flower? These are all questions we are going to answer in this lesson. Tea was very important to people who settled in this country a while ago. 4.I am going to read you a story about tea and how important it was to the colonists who settled in this country. Prior knowledge: Before today we learned how many people have had hot tea. Now can I get a show of hands of how many people liked it? Would you drink it again? We are going to read a book called The Boston Tea Party. 5. It was important for the colonists to have tea because it reminded them of being back home. and the importance of their “Tea Time” 6.Looking at the cover of the book discuss in your table groups what you would think this book is about and in a minute we will come together to see if we can come up with a good prediction. 7. Show students the cover and let them see the ship on the cover. Does the ship on the cover change your view of what you will think it will be about? 8. Let us read the read the book to see what it is about. Development 1. After reading the book it helped us when learning about the tea and where it comes from. We know it comes from a far away land can anyone guess where that far away land may be? 2. I have with me two pictures of tea gardens from Japan and India. Students will work within their pods, or table groups and complete this activity. 3. I am going to pass out a couple of pictures of tea bush gardens. They will be labeled with which country they come from and you as a group will be in charge of correctly identifying the pictures with their countries. We will be closely looking at the primary sources and using them to find out about tea and where it comes from and what it looks like. 4. Hand out pictures of both tea gardens, correctly labeled from the country they are from. 5. Questions to ask and promote discussion within group. 1. What do we see? 2. What are the people doing? 3. Working with your group members find the countries labeled on the pictures and

tape them to your maps.

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4. Hand out a couple map that is included into the appendix. 6. Show on overhead, smartboard, or whatever you have available to show students correct locations. Culmination 1. Pull up a world map with marked of the United States and the countries where the tea came from. 2. How far away is tea in comparison to where we live? (Not looking for exact miles, just to give students a visual of where tea comes from) 3. There was a ship on the cover of the book, look at all this water between where the tea comes from and the United States. 4. How do you think it got there?

Assessment Strategies Linked to Lesson Goals

1. Students will write a story as if they were the tea and what they felt like on their journey to America. 2. Possibilities to include: 1. What it felt like to be picked? 2. What was it like to be on a boat and going to America? 3. How was the process? 4. How long where you on a boat? 3. They will include a picture of the top of the page of part of the story.

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Lesson 2

Title: Taxing Tea? The Who and Why

Learning Goals:

Knowledge:

• Students will become more familiar with the idea of taxation • Students will understand why the tea that was destroyed in the Boston Tea Party was destroyed • Students will know the key people involved in the taxation on the tea • Students will understand why the taxation of the tea caused such an uproar and will understand

that events occurred because of this taxation

Skills:

• Students will participate in a role play activity that requires them to know and understand the key people involved in the taxation on tea

• Students will create their personal response to the taxation of the tea and will express why they feel this way with the class providing different actions they will take because of these feelings.

Dispositions:

• Students will develop an empathetic understanding for why this taxation caused such feelings to arise among the people.

• Students will be able to relate to the emotions that occurred during the Boston Tea Party event and be able to understand why some people were so upset.

• Students will evaluate multiple perspectives including that of those who decided to tax the tea and that of those who reaped the repercussions of the taxation.

Links to National Standards: http://www.socialstudies.org/standards/strands Time, Continuity, & Change: Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of the past and its legacy. Power, Authority, & Governance: Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of how people create, interact with, and change structures of power, authority, and governance. Civic Ideals & Practices: Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of the ideals, principles, and practices of citizenship in a democratic republic. Individuals, Groups, and Institutions: Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of interactions among individuals, groups, and institutions. Production, Distribution, and Consumption: Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of how people organize for the production, distribution, and consumption of goods

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and services. General Instruction Materials:

• Writing utensils • Coloring markers/crayons • Scratch paper for all students • Copy of the main focus book that will be read to students and available for them to revert back to

LOC Primary Source Materials:

• Images included on the following pages #3 and #4 • Images taken from www.libraryofcongress.gov

Lesson Procedures:

Introduction: 1.) Begin by doing a KWL with the students. Create an example of a KWL chart on the board and

have students create their own on a piece of paper. Start out by asking the students to create a “K” section of the chart by using what they already know about the Boston Tea Party and the people involved. Have the students complete the “W” section of the chart with what they want to learn more about the Boston Tea Party in this section of the lesson which will cover the who and the why of the taxation of tea. The students will wait to fill out the “L” category until after this lesson that we complete today.

2.) After the students have completed this task, ask some of the students to share their findings with the class.

3.) Explain to the students that in class today the topic of “taxation” for the Boston Tea Party will be discussed. Let them know that you will be covering the who that is involved in this event of taxation and also the why.

4.) Start by asking the students to define the word taxation. Write it on the board and after a few students have expressed their opinions, write the definition under the word.

5.) Introduce the British Parliament to the class, showing the image #4, tell the students about how the taxation on the tea was completely up to the British Parliament and was something they decided on as a group.

6.) Then show the image #3 to the students and explain to the students that this event of the taxation was frustrating to some individuals, such as the Sons of Liberty. This group was so enraged by this action that they decided to protest and destroy a shipment of tea in Boston.

7.) Make sure to introduce the book to the class and tell them that there are many resources that the students can use to find more information regarding this topic.

8.) At the end of the entire lesson, have the students record under the “L” column what they learned. Have the students share with a neighbor what they learned and what they wanted to learn and compare the two columns. Collect the columns and look them over to determine whether or not the goal of the lesson was achieved.

Development: 1.) The students will be asked to create an alternative response to the taxation of the tea. The students

will act as colonists as they describe their immediate reaction to the taxation. They will be given lined paper to write their response on and given time both in and out of class to complete this task.

2.) Ask students to volunteer to share their alternative response to the class and ask the students to respond to the student who shared, did they agree with this response, why or why not?

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Culmination: 1.) After the students have completed their KWL charts, the students will be asked to get into groups

of 3 or 4. The students will be asked to act out to the best of their ability the taxation of the tea by the British Parliament and the reaction of the Sons of Liberty. The students must create their own role play activity and be able to describe the events and the people in the play accurately.

2.) The students will reenact this event with the class and will be allowed to have time to work on this outside of class.

3.) Clear an empty space in the classroom for this event and make sure to allow for class time for each group to share.

4.) After all groups have shared, check for understanding by asking the students to share something that they learned by the reenactments, something that stood out to them, and something that they liked about this activity.

Assessment Strategy Linked to Lesson Goals

1. Students will be assessed on their KWL charts, how well they are completed and how well they can show what they learned in words. In this area of assessment, only check for understanding, it is hard to grade students on their opinions.

2. Students will be assessed on how well they can create an alternative response to the taxation of the tea. The students should show creativity within their response and be able to link it somehow in some way to the event itself. The response must be relevant and descriptive showing that the student put in evident effort.

3. Students will finally be assessed on how well they can create a reenactment based on their knowledge of the people involved as well as the why of the taxation. The student must have knowledge of these ideas to create an accurate and descriptive reenactment. The students must work in groups to show accurate emotions from each side of the event and the audience must be able to decipher what is happening.

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LESSON 3 Title: Oh No! The Tax Must Go! Learning Goals: Knowledge

• Students will learn the story of the Boston Tea Party. • Students will begin to better understand the taxation of the American colonists by the British led

to the revolution. • Students will identify and interpret the multiple causes and effects of an historical event.

Skills

• Students will review their understanding of the Boston Tea Party. • Students will sing the song “The Rich Lady Over the Sea.” • Students will begin exploring various types of primary sources such as history photos, books, and

a song. Dispositions

• Students will develop an understanding of why there was a tax on tea and how people felt about it.

• Students will begin to develop an ability to evaluate multiple perspectives, think critically about the past, and grapple with the complexity of historical issues.

Links to National Standards: http://www.socialstudies.org/standards/strands Time, Continuity, & Change: Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of the past and its legacy. People, Places, and Environments: Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of people, places, and environments. Individual Development and Identity: Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of individual development and identity. General Instruction Material

• Book, Boston Tea Party. • Library of Congress Photographs • Copies of the song “The Rich Lady Over the Sea.” • Music video: The Lionel Trains Show: Sing An American Song- The Rich Lady Over the Sea

LOC Primary Source Materials:

• Appendix #1: Library of Congress photographs, “The Rich Lady Over the Sea” lyrics and music video.

• Appendix #2: Edwards, Pamela Duncan., and Henry Cole. The Boston Tea Party. New York: Putnam, 2001. Print.

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Lesson Procedures:

Introduction 1. Hook student’s interest by asking what they have taken from the book Boston Tea Party. 2. Focus back to pages 11-26. Ask questions to clarify what the students understand: 3. Who taxed the tea? Why was the tea taxed? 4. Who was mad about the tax? Why were they upset? 5. What did they do to show they were against the tea tax? 6. What would you do if you were against the tea tax? Development 1. After reviewing the book and asking the questions to clarify the students thinking. Share the Library of Congress photographs to show what it may have looked like at the Boston Harbor when they “Indians” were dumping the tea over the ships. (Appendix #1, images #5-7) 2. Revisit the pages in the book if students still need clarification. 3. Explain to students that there have been many different interpretations of the Boston Tea Party. 4. Present the song “The Rich Lady Over the Sea.” Hand out copies to each student.

Culmination 1. Have students read the title and answer the question; “What does the title tell us?” and “How do you think relates to what we read in the book?” 2. Next as a group read the song, and then have the students explain what they took from the song and how it relates to the Boston Tea Party. 3. Once students have their understandings and opinions, have the students watch the YouTube music video. Play the video again and have the students follow along with their lyric pages and sing along. 4. Have the students compare what they took from the book, song, and music video. “How are they similar?” “What is different?” 5. Once students have an understanding of the Boston Tea Party, have the students sing the song one last time. 6. Finally, have students draw what their interpretation of the Boston Tea Party is and write a paragraph explaining what they drew.

Assessment Strategy Linked to Lesson Goals

1. Students will sing the song “The Rich Lady Over the Sea.” Then the students will be given a piece of paper where they will draw out their interpretation of the Boston Tea Party and will write a paragraph describing the picture. Students will be assessed based on their participation and understanding of the Boston Tea Party.

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“The Rich Lady Over the Sea” T here was a rich lady lived over the sea, And she was an island queen. Her daughter lived off in the new country, With an ocean of water between. With an ocean of water between, With an ocean of water between. T he old lady’s pockets were filled with gold, Yet never contented was she, So she ordered her daughter to pay her a tax Of thruppence a pound on the tea. Of thruppence a pound on the tea, Of thruppence a pound on the tea. O h mother, dear mother,” the daugh- ter replied, “I’ll not do the thing that you ask, I’m willing to pay a fair price on the tea, But never the thruppenney tax. But never the thruppenney tax., But never the thruppenney tax.” Y ou shall!” chides the mother, and reddened with rage, “For you’re my own daughter, you see, And it’s only proper that daughter should pay Her mother a tax on the tea. Her mother a tax on the tea, Her mother a tax on the tea.” S he ordered her servant to come up to her, And to wrap up a package of tea, And eager for thruppence a pound she put in Enough for a large family. Enough for a large family, Enough for a large family. T he tea was conveyed to her daughter’s own door, All down by the Oceanside, But the bouncing girl

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poured out every pound On the dark and boiling tide. On the dark and boiling tide, On the dark and boiling tide. A nd then she called out to the island queen, “Oh mother, dear mother,” called she, “Your tea you may have when ‘tis steeped enough, But never a tax from me! But never a tax from me, But never a tax from me!”

YouTube Video:

The Lionel Trains Show: Sing An American Song- The Rich Lady Over the Sea

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmswr-Hbauw&authuser=0

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LESSON 4 Title: The Party is Over: The British Learn of the Rebellion Learning Goals: Knowledge

• Students will learn what happened after the Boston Tea Party.

Skills • Students will role-play as the British to try to see Boston Tea Party in the point of view of the

British. • Students will explore different actions and consequence if different choices were made.

Dispositions • Students will begin to view things from multiple perspectives to analyze reasons for certain

behaviors. • Students will start to build an understanding that all actions have consequence.

Links to National Standards http://www.socialstudies.org/standards/strands

Time, Continuity, and Change - students will learn to analyze the consequences of historical events. They will also be able to look at them keeping in mind the different values and beliefs of people from that time period.

Power, Authority, and Governance - Students will explore ideas and develop a sense of fairness. They will explore different individuals and groups rights and responsibilities in different periods in time.

Civic Ideals and Practices - Students will learn how to use civic ideals as part of any action, and that you must combine those democratic freedoms when you wish to change something for the common good.

General Instruction Material • Edwards, Pamela Duncan., and Henry Cole. Boston Tea Party. New York: Putnam, 2001. Print. • Freedman, Russell, and Peter Malone.The Boston Tea Party. New York: Holiday House, 2012.

Print. •

LOC Primary Source Materials • Appendix

Lesson Procedures:

Introduction 1. We the last few days we have been talking about why tea was important, why the tea was taxed,

and the settlers reactions to the tax. Now we are going to discuss how the British reacted to the event.

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2. Ask the class how do they believe the British reacted to learning about the Boston Tea Party. 3. What would you do if you were a in the British Government after hearing about what the settlers

did.

Development 1. Read pages 21 through the end of the Book; Boston Tea Party by Pamela Duncan Edwards, and

Henry Cole. 2. Discuss that the book left out a few details and that the American Revolutionary War did not

occur directly after the Boston Tea Party. 3. Ask the students what they believed happened in between the Tea Party and the War that could

possibly lead to the war. 4. Take out the book, The Boston Tea Party. Freedman, Russell, and Peter Malone. and read page

33. 5. Ask the students about their reaction to the “Intolerable Acts.”

• Ask the students why they think the British would place these laws and expect the colonists to accept them even though the last time they made a law similar to this there was a rebellion.

• Ask “How would you feel if you were the a settler and you learned about these acts? • To help them gain a better understanding setup the following scenario: • The teacher is to act as the British and the students are the settlers. The Boston Tea

Party has just happened and now the British are giving the settlers new sets of rules. • During recess or anytime outside the classroom where a teacher is not right next to

you, you are not allowed to stand any closer that two yards from any other student. • You can be given a detention, or any other form of punishment of any reason, even if

you are just suspected of breaking a rule (no proof needed) • In order to eat your lunch you must give a teacher one thing on your plate, of their

choice. • You are not allowed to talk to any other student without a teacher supervising your

entire conversation. • Ask the students: “Now that all of those laws have just been placed on you, how do

you feel?” • Have a discussion on what they would do to not have to follow the laws. • All of this built up to the American Revolution. War broke out, but the Americans

finally won their independence.

Culmination 1. Ask students if they have ever done something to either help someone else or help themselves,

where someone did not react in the way they were expecting. 2. Help them realize that just because someone does something to help others, or the common

good, not everyone will react positively, especially if that change will require someone else to lose something in the process.

3. How do you think your life would be different now if we had lost the war?

Assessment Strategy Linked to Lesson Goals 1. Students will write down at least one thing they learned on a piece of paper and turn it in before

leaving the classroom.

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APPENDIX I:

Library of Congress Resources

1. Image

A tea garden in Japan.

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2. Image

A tea garden in India

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3. Image

Use this map to have students place the tea gardens (India and Japan) http://www.infoplease.com/atlas/asia.html  

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4. Image

The Sons of Liberty begin their protest against the taxation of tea in Boston, participating in the Boston Tea Party where all tea was destroyed and thrown overboard into the Boston Harbor.

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5. Image

The British Parliament placed the tax on the tea causing an uproar by a colonist group, the Sons of Liberty. In this picture we can see the two groups both at the Boston Harbor during the event, The Boston Tea Party.

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6. Image

“Boston Tea Party” Three cargoes of tea destroyed. Dec. 16, 1773.

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7. Image

The destruction of tea at the Boston Harbor

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8. Image

“Tea Destroyed By Indians”

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9. Image This is a dramatization of the Intolerable Acts placed on the settlers after the Boston Tea Party. This image is titled “The Bostonians in Distress. The people in the boat are the British and the people in the cage are the Bostonians.

 

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10. Image The settlers decided that they did not want to follow the laws of the British anymore. They felt they were not treated fairly and they did not want to follow their laws anymore. They believed they would be better off without the British. So they demanded their Independence, and the American Revolution started.

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11. Image After many battles the British finally surrendered and the settlers gained their independence. This image shows the surrender of the British army to the American forces.

 

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APPENDIX II:

Bibliography and Webliography

Bibliography of Related Children’s Literature:

Doeden, Matt, Charles Barnett, and Dave Hoover. The Boston Tea Party. Mankato, MN: Capstone, 2005. Print. Espinosa, Rod. American Revolution. Edina, MN: Magic Wagon, 2009. Print. Espinosa, Rod. The Boston Tea Party. Edina, MN: Magic Wagon, 2008. Print. Edwards, Pamela Duncan., and Henry Cole.The Boston Tea Party. New York: Putnam, 2001. Print. Freedman, Russell, and Peter Malone.The Boston Tea Party. New York: Holiday House, 2012. Print.