A Hands-on-History Look at George Washington Crossing River, a Pivotal Event in the American Revolution Written by Mary Tucker Illustrated by Judy Hierstein Teaching & Learning Company 1204 Buchanan St., P.O. Box 10 Carthage, IL 62321-0010
This book belongs to Cover art by Judy Hierstein Copyright 2002, Teaching & Learning Company ISBN No. 1-57310-352-7 Printing No. 987654321 Teaching & Learning Company 1204 Buchanan St., P.O. Box 10 Carthage, IL 62321-0010 The purchase of this book entitles teachers to make copies for use in their individual classrooms only. This book, or any part of it, may not be reproduced in any form for any other purposes without prior written permission from the Teaching & Learning Company. It is strictly prohibited to reproduce any part of this book for an entire school or school district, or for commercial resale. The above permission is exclusive of the cover art, which may not be reproduced. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. ii TLC10352 Copyright Teaching & Learning Company, Carthage, IL 62321-0010
Table of Contents Resources................................... 5 Taxation Without Representation/The First Continental Congress........................ 6 The Shot Heard Round the World................ 7 The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere............. 9 The Minutemen............................. 10 Minuteman Paper Doll........................ 11 Weapons of War............................. 12 Name the Weapons........................... 13 The Battle of Breed s Hill..................... 14 Medical Treatment (Mistreatment).............. 15 A New Leader.............................. 16 Common Sense............................ 17 An Army in Trouble.......................... 18 We Want Freedom! We Don t.................. 19 Keeping the Peace........................... 20 Hardship................................... 21 Retreat.................................... 22 Christmas on the River........................ 23 Washington Crossing the River................. 25 Surprise!................................... 26 A Secret Message............................ 27 Staying to Fight/Another Surprise!.............. 28 The Beginning of the End..................... 29 Viewpoints of the War........................ 30 Honoring George Washington.................. 31 Did You Know?............................. 32 TLC10352 Copyright Teaching & Learning Company, Carthage, IL 62321-0010 iii
The Minutemen Who were the Minutemen? British King George had allowed each American colony to form a militia long before the colonies began pressing for independence. The militia was a military organization with regiments, companies and officers. Originally, the militia s main duty was to assist the British army. The militia was not a professional army but a group of volunteers. They didn t have uniforms. The average militia man wore a three-cornered hat, a homemade hunting shirt and gray or brown trousers called breeches. They received very little training and even when an officer tried to train his men, it wasn t taken very seriously. Officers and their men were friends, so discipline was not demanded. Their weapons were muskets, which each militia man had to provide for himself. Many of their guns were made for duck shooting, not for war. When the desire for independence began to grow among the colonies and it looked like war was certain, militia men who were able volunteered to be Minutemen, ready for battle at a minute s notice. They were not as well trained as the British soldiers, but no one doubted their bravery. British Lord Percy said of the Minutemen at the battle of Concord: Nor are... their men void of spirit... for many of them concealed themselves in houses, and advanced within 10 yards to fire at me and other officers, though they were morally certain of being put to death themselves in an instant. Every year on April 19 in Concord and Lexington, Massachusetts, a Patriots Day parade is held. Men dressed as Minutemen march down the streets accompanied by musicians playing fifes and drums as people line the streets to watch and to remember the men who gave their lives more than Washington Crossing two centuries ago so they could be free. Discussion For many years a bronze statue of a Minuteman has stood near that first battle site of the Revolutionary War. The statue is of a man with a gun in one hand and a plow in the other. Ask students to explain why they think the Minuteman is shown in this way. Ask them to consider which would be more difficult to be a professional British soldier fighting to obey King George, or to be a volunteer American soldier fighting for freedom. Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each. Minutemen Paper Doll Give each student a copy of page 11. Have students color the Minuteman and the clothing he should wear. Then have them cut out the Minuteman and the correct clothes and put them on him. Minutemen March Teach students this march cadence. Then line them up in the playground and have them pretend to be Minutemen marching to the cadence. You can be the leader at first; then choose students to lead the cadence and the march. The Minutemen are we! We re ready to fight to be free! The British should know We re ready to go Wherever they happen to be. 1-2-3-4, We ll chase the British and fight some more. 5-6-7-8, A good Minuteman will never be late! 10 TLC10352 Copyright Teaching & Learning Company, Carthage, IL 62321-0010
Name Minuteman Paper Doll Color the Minuteman and the clothes he should be wearing. Then cut him and the clothes out and dress him. TLC10352 Copyright Teaching & Learning Company, Carthage, IL 62321-0010 11
Weapons of War The American Revolution was, like all early wars up close and personal. Aside from cannons, most of the weapons used by both sides required the combatants to be fairly close together when fighting. Muzzle loading rifles were the most common weapon for both the Americans and the British. The first U.S. military muskets were called the Committee of Safety arms. In the spring of 1775 the American colonies through committees provided muskets to arm patriots. Only about half of these guns were equipped with bayonets (a long knife attached to the gun near the end of the barrel). The guns were patterned after the British Brown Bess musket. Many Americans already had Brown Bess muskets issued to the militia by the thousands before the colonies rebelled against England. Soldiers from the southern colonies brought their guns with them. These were later called Kentucky rifles. They had longer gun barrels and greater accuracy. British Redcoats used the Brown Bess flintlock musket. Both the British and American guns were only able to get off one shot at a time. A cartridge (a piece of paper or cloth wrapped around the gunpowder and the ball) had to be put down the gun s muzzle. Then when the trigger was pulled the flintlock created a spark which ignited the powder and forced the ball through the gun barrel. The Kentucky rifle had a grooved barrel which made the ball spin as it left the gun. Apparently this made it travel farther. Soldiers had to be careful during rainy weather to keep their powder dry. Damp powder in a gun would not ignite, so the gun could not be shot. Various containers were used to carry the gunpowder. One of the most common kind was the powder horn. It was actually a cow s horn with a top on the small end. The narrow end made it easy to pour the gunpowder down the rifle barrel without spilling it. Soldiers attached a strip of leather or string to the powder horn so it could be slung over the shoulder and easily carried. Soldiers had a lot to carry when they went into battle. The gun itself weighed from 10 to 13 pounds and was about the length of a broom handle. One with a bayonet on the end was even longer. The soldier also had to carry his powder horn and a good supply of lead shot and paper or cloth to wrap it in. Most British soldiers and some Americans used cartridges, prewrapped powder and shot. When they changed camps, soldiers also had to carry necessary supplies food, blankets, cooking pots, etc. Small cannons were taken into battle also, but they were often hard to move in bad weather and could not be moved quickly. Some American soldiers, especially those used to fighting in the frontier, carried tomahawks while officers carried cutlasses (swords). The British army had more of almost everything more muskets, more gunpowder, more shot, more bayonets. Washington had to spend half of his time and energy as commander in chief trying to get congress to send him more supplies, equipment and ammunition to carry on the war. His soldiers lost many battles because they ran out of ammunition. Name the Weapons Give each student a copy of page 13. Challenge children to try to match each item with its name. 12 TLC10352 Copyright Teaching & Learning Company, Carthage, IL 62321-0010
Name Name the Weapons Draw a line from each American weapon or piece of equipment used in the Revolutionary War to its correct name. committee of safety musket powder horn cutlass tomahawk cannon bayonet TLC10352 Copyright Teaching & Learning Company, Carthage, IL 62321-0010 13