The Great Debate: Grade 4 Students Dive Deep into the American Revolution

Feb 9, 2017 | Have Fun, Impact, Innovation, Lower School News

IMG_0572Students in fourth grade took aย deep dive into the American Revolution,ย culminating their unit with a debate: Patriots vs. Loyalists.
To prepare, teachers invited Expert in Residence Colin Kelly, an attorney with Atlanta’s Alston & Bird, to speak to the students about the debate process, before they were asked to take a stand onย civil disobedience โ€” and debate whether or not the colonists were justified in their actions.
IMG_0565Studentsย were teamed up and placedย on opposing sides. They discussed what ideas caused conflict between Great Britain and the colonies which led to the Declaration of Independenceย and the American Revolution. They prepared thesis statements to support their viewpoints withย documentedย evidence and collaborated with their debate teams to prepare a compelling argument.
On the day of the debate, Patriots wore red. Loyalists wore blue. Parents and staff were invited to the debates to offer feedback in the form of: I like, I wish, What if.
Debatersย tossed positions, evidence, statements and facts to the opposing side, demonstrating strong communication and collaboration skills as they worked to defend their positions: Who were the people who made all the difference?ย How did the development of the colonies lead to rebellion?ย When do people have the right to revolt against their government?
Once the debate was over, students were thrown a curveball. They were asked to further demonstrate theirย persuasive writing skills by crafting an essay taking the opposingย side of theย Patriots vs. Loyalists debate.ย Patriots would craft a persuasive essay defending the Loyalists, while Loyalistsย would write a persuasive essay defending the Patriots.

Fourth grade teacher Emily Trenney shares, “We were blown away by the deep understanding the students displayed as they spun historical events to fit their respectiveย perspectives.”

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