Creative Resistance to Taxation on the Colonies

Day One: 

Engage 
As students enter the room, hand them at least two stickers. Each “paper” material they have (notebooks, textbooks, etc.) needs to be identified with a sticker. 

• Have students examine the materials they have in their possession and decide whether they need more stickers. Hand out more stickers as needed by students. 
• Now tell students because the school is in need of funds for materials, each sticker they have costs 5 cents, with all money collected going into a common fund.  Promote the idea that the school needs to raise funds for instructional materials and walk around the room as if you will be collecting the “sticker/tax” funds from each student.  
• Have students write their responses to being taxed without notice or permission as you “collect” the fees.  Then have students form quads to compare notes.  Have each group share a summary of their thoughts.  Scribe their responses or have a student volunteer do so.  
• Students will remain in groups of four through the rest of the lesson.

Setting the Stage for Resistance:   Create a timeline detailing the Stamp Act, the Townshend Acts, the Tea Act, and the Intolerable Acts
Note:  The finished timeline will include/display
1) the provisions of each Act;
2) colonial responses to each Act; and
3) the final outcome of each Act.

Students complete Part 1 in this lesson. Students will add Parts 2 & 3 during Day Two.

• Tell students that it was one of several Acts passed by the British Parliament that levied taxes on the American colonists.
• Reveal the headings on the timeline. Tell students they will research the four Acts to identify the provisions of each.  
• Moving forward from 1765 on the Road to Revolution use electronic copies, to gain further research. These articles will also be used during Day Two.

Stamp Act (1765)
Townshend Acts (1767)
Tea Act (1773)
Intolerable Acts (1774)

• Gallery Walk with graphic organizer to take notes about the PROVISIONS OF each of the Acts using the appropriate column.
• Closure:  Think-Ink-Pair-Share & Give Me Five
• Give students this prompt:  Describe what you are thinking right now about the four Acts you studied today.
• Students think about the prompt and ink (write) a response.
• Ask students to stand and find someone with whom they have not worked during this class period. 
• Then students pair and share their responses.
• When students return to their seats, use Give Me Five to solicit five responses from the class.

Day Two:  Complete Timeline

Colonial Responses

• In the last lesson students identified the provisions for the following Acts:  Stamp Act, the Townshend Acts, the Tea Act, and the Intolerable Acts.  They used a graphic organizer to collect information about each.  During this lesson they will describe the colonial responses to and identify the final outcome of each Act.
• Students work in same groups as on Day One.
• Each group will review the article they used during Day One. The goals for today are to create a Making Thinking Visible mini-poster on 8½ x 14 plain paper that describes colonial responses to and the final outcome of the Act in their article.  The mini-posters will be added to the timeline in the appropriate positions.
• Making Thinking Visible is a strategy that allows students to do just that – make their thinking visible – in the form of annotated drawings.  Students are presented with a prompt and must design a drawing that includes notes and labels that describe their thinking.
• Gallery Walk of completed timeline with graphic organizer to take notes about the Colonial Responses and Final Outcome of each of the Acts using the appropriate columns.  

Students return to their work groups and compare the provisions, colonial responses, and final outcomes of each of the Acts.

Closure:  Exit Ticket
Think-Ink-Pair-Share. Once again have students return to their Exit Slip from the previous class. Add a “Line of Learning” and write any new thinking from today’s lesson. Pair with another student and share.

Day Three

Engage  
As students enter the room have the British song “Heart of Oak” playing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaXDy-CSNI8 

• “Heart of Oak” is the official march of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. The oak in the song’s title refers to the wood from which British warships were traditionally made in the age of sail. The “Heart of Oak” is the strongest central wood of the tree. 
• Have copies or a projected view of the lyrics to “The Glorious Seventy Four” available. The words to “The Glorious Seventy Four” were published in The Williamsburg Gazette (Pinkney), October 6, 1774.

Creative Resistance through Music and Political Cartoons

Music

• Have students brainstorm what the term “creative resistance” might mean. How might “creative resistance” express thoughts or ideas differently than “active resistance” such as marches, protests, rallies, etc.
• Distribute copies of the lyrics to “Heart of Oak” and “The Glorious Seventy Four” Students will listen to the tune from “Hearts of Oak” and read “The Glorious Seventy Four” lyrics. Following the song, ask: 
• How are the lyrics alike? How are they different? 
• Why was the song “The Glorious Seventy Four” published?
• What specific evidence in the lyrics to “The Glorious Seventy Four” points to creative resistance?
• Transition to the analysis of political cartoons by explaining that students will now explore another type of creative resistance through the use of political cartoons.

Political Cartoons 

• There are 4 political cartoons from this era in the Handouts folder. Prior to giving students the cartoons to analyze, show this interactive cartoon from Annenburg Learner and discuss the symbolism used. Share the Library of Congress Political Cartoon Analysis tool to discover terms such as symbolism, irony, exaggeration, analogy, and labeling. 
• The Repeal or Funeral Procession of Miss Americ-Stamp  http://www.history.org/history/teaching/tchcrpc1.cfm
• Show students the cartoon. This site features an interactive display which explains the symbolism used. 
• In groups of 3-4, students will analyze several political cartoons from this time period utilizing the National Archives Political Cartoon Analysis tool. 
• Students in each group will share their observations with other members of the group

Closure:  Exit Slip
Describe how the music lyrics and cartoons they analyzed fit into the bigger picture of the Road to Revolution.

How will students share their work?

The Timeline.  Student Exit Slips can now be added to the Timeline. 

Evaluation/Assessments:  

• No formal summative assessment; formative assessment options described below.
• Formative Assessment: Class Timeline and individual journal entries based on the Learning Goal “In what ways did colonists respond to the British policies of taxation?”

Day Four and Five

Summative Assessment: Have the group complete a six panel comic strip that relates directly to the standard and addresses either the Stamp Act, the Tea Acts, or the actions of the Sons of Liberty. Although national events can be shown or referenced in the panels, there should be a strong emphasis of SC events and/or reactions to the acts.

NOTE: Creative resistance throughout history has involved music, drama, sculpture and art (including graffiti), political cartoons, and satirical video. Current searches and links to sites featuring “creative resistance” may not be suitable for middle school students. 

Cartoon Rubric:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RY1fRhi1GUftxMFNgjDEVIA6u_-pkgPRW9Nb...