Battles of Lexington and Concord Ms. Mazon 5 th Grade Blanche Charles Elementary

California Social Studies Standard 5.6 Students understand the course and consequences of the American Revolution

Lesson Objective Describe the first battle of the American Revolution

Activate Prior Knowledge Identify the Causes and Effects of the American Revolution Graphic Organizer

Vocabulary Patriot –colonists who opposed British rule called themselves Patriots Militia-is a group of ordinary people who train for battle

Vocabulary Minutemen-were militia with special training they had to be ready for battle at a minute’s notice. Commander – a person who exercises authority, chief officer, leader.

Vocabulary Petition- a formally drawn request often bearing the names of number of those making the request that is addressed to a person soliciting some favor, right, mercy, or benefit

Pair/Share Turn to your partner and in your own words describe one of the vocabulary words listed

War Begins In 1775 many colonists felt that the Intolerable Acts were too harsh. There were more than 3,000 British soldiers. The British navy blocked Boston Harbor to keep ships from entering leaving Boston.

Opposition Patriots spoke out against the British government they opposed all the taxes the British were imposing.

War Begins On the night of April 18, 1775 an army of 700 British soldiers set off for Concord. Paul Revere a silversmith and William Dawes galloped ahead, alerting sleeping minutemen along the way.

British soldiers captured Revere in Lexington, but Dawes escaped. The soldiers later released Revere.

The British soldiers reached Lexington and just before sunrise on April 19, 1775 A small group of minutemen were waiting there, a British officer told the minutemen to leave

As the minutemen turned to go, someone fired a shot. No one knows whether the shot came from a British soldier or a colonist.

Both sides began shooting When they stopped, eight colonists were dead and nine were wounded. Only one British soldier had been hurt. The British marched on to Concord.

As the British searched Concord for hidden weapons, more minutemen gathered nearby. The minutemen forced the British to turn back toward Boston.

“the shot heard ‘round the world” The British soldiers were in dangerous situation on the way back. Patriots from the town between Concord and Boston, as well as towns farther north and south were ready.

As the British marched back to Boston, colonists shot at them from behind trees and stone walls. More than 250 British soldiers were wounded or killed before the British reached Boston.

News of the Battles of Lexington and Concord spread quickly more and more militias arrived in Boston. Soon thousands of armed colonists surrounded the city. The British in Boston were trapped

Guided Practice Which side had more casualties at Lexington?

What was the “shot heard round the world”?

Pair/Share Critical Thinking How do you think colonists and militiamen felt when they heard the news of the events at the Lexington and Concord?

The Battle of Lexington and Concord which took place in Massachusetts was the start of many battles that led to the colonists’ independence from Britain.

Differentiated Instruction Universal Access Have the students draw a series of pictures to illustrate the battle of Lexington and Concord The pictures should show events before, during, and after the battle.

Independent Practice Divide the class into two groups half the class will pretend they are British soldiers and the other half will pretend they are Patriot Soldiers and they will write a letter home describing the after mass of the Battle of Lexington and Concord

Assessment The students will design a brochure for attracting tourists to the first battle ground of the American Revolution. Students will research major historical attractions in Boston and include them on their brochure along with pictures.

Grading Rubric

Bibliography Houghton Mifflin History Social Science United States History

EDI Lesson Plan Lexington and Concord