Daily Lesson Plan

8
th
Grade American History

Day 1: Women and the Declaration of Independence

Objectives:
Analyze the efforts made by women of America to have their male counterparts acknowledge
gftheir rights as women in the 18
th
century.

Materials:
Letters from Abigail Adams to John Adams (primary source document)
Pencil/pen, markers and crayons
White construction paper
Declaration of Independence (primary source document/segment)
Handout for timeline and key terms
A Society of Patriotic Ladies (primary source document)
Rubric

Opening (Set): (3 minutes)
Ask students if they would like to make decisions for themselves or have someone make
decisions for them. Women in the 18
th
century were expected to only worry with matters that
pertained to being a wife and a mother. Men did not see women as a creative voice within
politics. Today we will analyze primary source documents from the late 18
th
century about
womens involvement in politics and how that could create debates among women and men for
decades.

Learning Tasks (Procedures):
One student will pass out the timeline and key terms.

A. Timeline and Key Terms (5-10 minutes)
1.) Go over the Timeline and Key terms and a quick review of events from the revolution
in America and how they sought independence from Great Britain. Discuss the events
that led up to the construction of the Declaration of Independence.
a.) After the Seven Years War, Great Britain was in debt. The King decided to
raise tax prices. He believed that the American colonists were to share the burden
of reducing the debt for Britain. The Sugar Act was approved by Parliament in
1764 and put a new tax on molasses. This was to be sure that taxes were actually
paid because of the previous tax was so high that many colonists and businessmen
refused to pay it. This new tax gave them the ability to trial those who did not
follow the law. The tax caused much protest within the colonies. The colonists
believed in paying taxes but they only agreed to pay taxes by those who were
appointed by them to Parliament.
b.) The Stamp Act was passed by Parliament in 1765 after the Sugar Act. The
Stamp Act was to prove that you had paid your taxes on certain items named by
the law.


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c.) The Townshend Acts were passed to tax colonists. Debates were reopened in
1767 by Parliament over taxing the colonies. Charles Townshend, in charge of the
British treasury, taxes were to be paid on items such as tea, paint, glass, and lead.
The colonists still refused to pay taxes.
d.) Boston Massacre took place on March 5, 1770 in Massachusetts. Colonists
attacked British soldiers. Frantic, the soldiers fired out into the crowd and 5
people were killed.
e.) Boston Tea Act/Boston Tea Party- the British expected Americans to be
grateful for the changes in taxation on tea. However, colonists felt as if they were
being told that they could not conduct free enterprise and buy tea from wherever
they liked. They were forced to buy from the British East India Company. Many
colonists went out to the boats filled with tea and dumped them into the harbor.
f.) The King wanted to punish the Massachusetts colonists by passing four laws
called the Intolerable Acts because they were so harsh.
2.) The American Revolution began
a.) Numerous battles were fought between Patriots and Loyalists. Next, America
decided to declare independence from Great Britain. A document was written on
July 4, 1776 called the Declaration of Independence.

B. Handout primary sources and rubric: Letters written between Abigail and John Adams, the
Declaration of Independence, and A Society of Patriotic Ladies.
1.) Break students into groups of four and discuss as a class, the letters from Abigail and
John, the Declaration of Independence (segment used), and A Society of Patriotic
Ladies.
a.) Have the students make a poster (expressing their ideals and opinions) on what
may attract the men of America to give them a place/say in the Declaration of
Independence. (Allow 20 minutes)
b.) Each group stand and present their poster (3 minutes each)

C. While students are in groups, write these 4 questions on the board:
1. What was Abigail asking from husband? How did her arguments reflect the ideals
behind the American Revolution? What reasons did John Adams give to explain why
women, children, and the poor should be denied the right to vote? What did Adams fear
would happen if women obtained the right to vote?
a.) Explain writing assignment; 2 pages, double-spaced, 12-point font. They are to
write a reflection on the events we learned for the day and how it connects to the
questions they are to answer above.

Closure:
Today we learned that men were to be only seen as political leaders and have a voice in politics.
Women were expected to involve themselves in affairs of motherhood, being a wife, and taking
care of the household. Women went to great strengths to fight for their rights and have a voice
beyond the house. A little over ten years after the Declaration was written, the Constitution was
written and still did not give women (poor white men, African Americans, and Indians) the right
to vote or the ability to have a place in political affairs.



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Differentiated Instruction:
Enrichment: For the writing assignment, have students find more primary sources on
women who acted out during the events that led to the Revolution and before the signing
of the Declaration of Independence. Explain how these women acted and how these
events led to the beginning of the womens suffrage movement after the signing of the
constitution (assuming they have prior knowledge).
Intervention: Students are organized based on the Kagan style. They are receiving
intervention in groups by working together and helping one another. A timeline has been
given. For the writing assignment, give them page numbers from the textbook in regard
to the events that led to the Revolution. This gives them a more thorough review.
Accommodation: Audio support via class microphone.





































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REFERENCES:
Questions for writing assignment:
http://www.historytools.org/sources/Abigail-John-Letters.pdf

[Declaration of Independence]. (1776, July 4).










































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