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In this History Lab investigation, students act as history detectives as they examine the revolutionary ideas of equality and liberty and compare them to the reality of life and real changes in the new United States.
Students analyze primary (and 1 secondary) sources to investigate how the Revolution expanded ideas of equality while also considering the limits that remained for women, Black Americans, Native Americans, and Americans without property.
75-90 Minute Activity
Students examine evidence including:
As they work through the sources, students analyze each document, practice sourcing, identify evidence of expanding and limited equality, and consider how the Revolution affected different groups of Americans.
After analyzing the documents, students evaluate how much the Revolution expanded equality for white men, women, Black Americans, and Native Americans.
Students then place the Revolution on an equality continuum and write a short 2–3 paragraph mini-essay answering the inquiry question. They use evidence from multiple documents to support their argument while also addressing evidence that challenges their claim.
This lesson helps students understand one of the central contradictions of the American Revolution: it introduced powerful ideas about liberty and equality while many Americans remained excluded from those promises.
It’s a powerful, engaging way to build skills with primary sources, sourcing, corroboration, historical interpretation, counterclaims, evidence-based argument, and historical writing.
A self-paced course to help you build a positive learning community & end power struggles for good!
A self-paced course to get even your most reluctant learners interested and engaged by making rigorous learning fun!
