Clearly it's been entirely way too long since I have posted about our class happenings. Better late than never, right?! Here's what we've been up to!
Pocahontas and John Smith @ Jamestown
Students investigated some myths about Pocahontas back in September. How many of you have seen the Disney "Pocahontas" film? You may remember that Pocahontas and John Smith fall in love and she saves his life right before her father, Powhatan, was about to execute him. What a wonderful love story! But, where did Disney get this story from? We did some digging and looked at 2 of Smith's books. One from 1608 and one from 1624. The 1608 version does not mention Pocahontas at all and claims Powhatan was very friendly when he kept Smith as prisoner. So, did Disney make up the story? Well, the 1624 version describes how Smith was going to be killed by Powhatan until Pocahontas saved him. Hmmm, that must be where Disney got it from! But, wait! Why are the two stories different? Did Smith make up the story? Students overwhelmingly came to the conclusion that Pocahontas did not save John Smith. Students were skeptical of Smith's two different stories about his capture. They felt that it was much too convenient that Smith includes Pocahontas in his second story after she becomes a celebrity in England. Despite the evidence that suggests Smith was lying, some students did in fact conclude that Smith was being honest and that he was saved by Pocahontas. Students in support of Smith's book, General History, argued that Smith had no reason to lie and simply did not want to brag about his experiences in the new world until he was trying to get people interested in settling Virginia. Historians still debate whether or not Pocahontas saved Smith from her father, Powhatan. Unfortunately, both Pocahontas and Powhatan died before Smith's story was released...We will never know for sure what happened, but then again, history is an ARGUMENT about the past.
Salem Witch Trials 1692
One group that settled New England in the early 1600s was the Puritans. Puritans were a strict, but successful, group of people that had a very real fear of witchcraft. Anything they thought threatened their way of life, like witchcraft was punishable. In 1692 those fears became a reality. Three girls, Ann Putnam, Abigail Williams, and Betty Parris, began to act strangely; barking, rolling around on the floor, and flapping their wings like birds. The doctor determined they must be suffering from witchcraft. They were asked who was tormenting them. The girls blamed a slave woman, Tituba, a homeless beggar, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osburne, a woman criticized for marrying her servant. As you can see, all of the accused would have been considered social outcasts in Puritan society. Hmmm it's very interesting that the girls initially accused the social outcasts... That wasn't the case for too long, however. The behavior of the girls turned Salem upside down. Soon, other girls were acting bewitched. Upstanding citizens of Salem were being accused, like Rebecca Nurse, a devout Puritan committed to serving the church. Over 150 people in Salem - men and women - were accused of witchcraft. If a person denied it, they were typically seen as guilty. If a person admitted it, they were let go after they told the court who else was a witch, causing a domino effect in the community. Neighbors blaming neighbors. No one was safe. 24 innocent people were convicted and hanged for witchcraft in Salem. The governor of Massachusetts finally put an end to the madness in December or 1692. Several years later, Ann Putnam apologizes for her roll in the trials, admitting she accused innocent people. The task students had was to determine why the situation got so out of control in Salem. Students analyzed excerpts from books, testimonies, charts, and maps, to make a conclusion. Most students concluded that the Salem Witch Trials were the result of a rivalry in Salem between farmers in the village and merchants in the town. Salem was divided into Salem Village and Salem Town. The people in Salem Village were mostly farmers. They had to pay taxes to Salem Town for town for the church, local court, and other various costs the town had to pay. The people in Salem Village were not happy about this. They felt it would make more sense to build their own church and local courts because Salem Town was a 5 mile walk! Salem Town said "no" to this idea. Clearly, the people in Salem Village were angry at the people in Salem Town. Based on a map showing where the accusers and accused were located in Salem, students were able to see that most people accusing others were in Salem Village, while the accused witches were mostly in Salem Town. Students concluded that the people in Salem Village caused the hysteria because they wanted to get back at the people in Salem Town for making them pay taxes.
George Washington and the French and Indian War
We finally entered the 1700s discussing the early life of George Washington, one of America's most influential leaders. Many people do not know that he was part of American history before the American Revolution as a soldier during the French and Indian War. In fact, he may have accidentally caused the French and Indian War...more to come on that next week. One thing students learned about Washington is that he lacked a formal education, yet he desired to be a proper English gentleman. So, as a young boy, he copied several rules from a book called Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation with the hope that if he wasn't properly educated as a gentleman, he could certainly learn how to act like one. Check out the list of rules here. Students were surprised to find that some of those old "rules" are manners we practice even today! So, how did George Washington accidentally start the French and Indian War? Well, the inexperienced and young George Washington was sent on a mission into the Ohio River Valley to deliver a message to the French. The message was simple: the French must leave the Ohio River Valley or the British will attack. The French said they weren't leaving. Washington returned to Virginia. He was sent back into the Ohio River Valley in 1754 to build a British fort at the forks of the Allegheny and Monogahela Rivers. The British had already built Fort Duquesne in that very spot! Washington was determined to carry out his mission and decided to attack a small group of French soldiers. 10 French soldiers were killed including a commanding officer. The French counterattacked and Washington was forced to surrender. He signed a surrender document that stated he assassinated the French commanding officer. This was a big European style of warfare NO-NO. Europeans NEVER attacked commanding officers. The fact that Washington admitted to assassinating a French officer was seen as a sign of aggression and meant war. The problem, however, was that the surrender document was written in French. Washington did not speak french and his translator misunderstood the document. Washington would have never admitted to assassinating an officer - he clearly misunderstood! British officers claimed Washington "set the world in flames". Oops! I guess that just goes to show that even great world leaders make mistakes sometimes!
As you can see, these 8th grade historians have been verrrrrryyyy busy!
Pocahontas and John Smith @ Jamestown
Students investigated some myths about Pocahontas back in September. How many of you have seen the Disney "Pocahontas" film? You may remember that Pocahontas and John Smith fall in love and she saves his life right before her father, Powhatan, was about to execute him. What a wonderful love story! But, where did Disney get this story from? We did some digging and looked at 2 of Smith's books. One from 1608 and one from 1624. The 1608 version does not mention Pocahontas at all and claims Powhatan was very friendly when he kept Smith as prisoner. So, did Disney make up the story? Well, the 1624 version describes how Smith was going to be killed by Powhatan until Pocahontas saved him. Hmmm, that must be where Disney got it from! But, wait! Why are the two stories different? Did Smith make up the story? Students overwhelmingly came to the conclusion that Pocahontas did not save John Smith. Students were skeptical of Smith's two different stories about his capture. They felt that it was much too convenient that Smith includes Pocahontas in his second story after she becomes a celebrity in England. Despite the evidence that suggests Smith was lying, some students did in fact conclude that Smith was being honest and that he was saved by Pocahontas. Students in support of Smith's book, General History, argued that Smith had no reason to lie and simply did not want to brag about his experiences in the new world until he was trying to get people interested in settling Virginia. Historians still debate whether or not Pocahontas saved Smith from her father, Powhatan. Unfortunately, both Pocahontas and Powhatan died before Smith's story was released...We will never know for sure what happened, but then again, history is an ARGUMENT about the past.
Salem Witch Trials 1692
One group that settled New England in the early 1600s was the Puritans. Puritans were a strict, but successful, group of people that had a very real fear of witchcraft. Anything they thought threatened their way of life, like witchcraft was punishable. In 1692 those fears became a reality. Three girls, Ann Putnam, Abigail Williams, and Betty Parris, began to act strangely; barking, rolling around on the floor, and flapping their wings like birds. The doctor determined they must be suffering from witchcraft. They were asked who was tormenting them. The girls blamed a slave woman, Tituba, a homeless beggar, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osburne, a woman criticized for marrying her servant. As you can see, all of the accused would have been considered social outcasts in Puritan society. Hmmm it's very interesting that the girls initially accused the social outcasts... That wasn't the case for too long, however. The behavior of the girls turned Salem upside down. Soon, other girls were acting bewitched. Upstanding citizens of Salem were being accused, like Rebecca Nurse, a devout Puritan committed to serving the church. Over 150 people in Salem - men and women - were accused of witchcraft. If a person denied it, they were typically seen as guilty. If a person admitted it, they were let go after they told the court who else was a witch, causing a domino effect in the community. Neighbors blaming neighbors. No one was safe. 24 innocent people were convicted and hanged for witchcraft in Salem. The governor of Massachusetts finally put an end to the madness in December or 1692. Several years later, Ann Putnam apologizes for her roll in the trials, admitting she accused innocent people. The task students had was to determine why the situation got so out of control in Salem. Students analyzed excerpts from books, testimonies, charts, and maps, to make a conclusion. Most students concluded that the Salem Witch Trials were the result of a rivalry in Salem between farmers in the village and merchants in the town. Salem was divided into Salem Village and Salem Town. The people in Salem Village were mostly farmers. They had to pay taxes to Salem Town for town for the church, local court, and other various costs the town had to pay. The people in Salem Village were not happy about this. They felt it would make more sense to build their own church and local courts because Salem Town was a 5 mile walk! Salem Town said "no" to this idea. Clearly, the people in Salem Village were angry at the people in Salem Town. Based on a map showing where the accusers and accused were located in Salem, students were able to see that most people accusing others were in Salem Village, while the accused witches were mostly in Salem Town. Students concluded that the people in Salem Village caused the hysteria because they wanted to get back at the people in Salem Town for making them pay taxes.
George Washington and the French and Indian War
We finally entered the 1700s discussing the early life of George Washington, one of America's most influential leaders. Many people do not know that he was part of American history before the American Revolution as a soldier during the French and Indian War. In fact, he may have accidentally caused the French and Indian War...more to come on that next week. One thing students learned about Washington is that he lacked a formal education, yet he desired to be a proper English gentleman. So, as a young boy, he copied several rules from a book called Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation with the hope that if he wasn't properly educated as a gentleman, he could certainly learn how to act like one. Check out the list of rules here. Students were surprised to find that some of those old "rules" are manners we practice even today! So, how did George Washington accidentally start the French and Indian War? Well, the inexperienced and young George Washington was sent on a mission into the Ohio River Valley to deliver a message to the French. The message was simple: the French must leave the Ohio River Valley or the British will attack. The French said they weren't leaving. Washington returned to Virginia. He was sent back into the Ohio River Valley in 1754 to build a British fort at the forks of the Allegheny and Monogahela Rivers. The British had already built Fort Duquesne in that very spot! Washington was determined to carry out his mission and decided to attack a small group of French soldiers. 10 French soldiers were killed including a commanding officer. The French counterattacked and Washington was forced to surrender. He signed a surrender document that stated he assassinated the French commanding officer. This was a big European style of warfare NO-NO. Europeans NEVER attacked commanding officers. The fact that Washington admitted to assassinating a French officer was seen as a sign of aggression and meant war. The problem, however, was that the surrender document was written in French. Washington did not speak french and his translator misunderstood the document. Washington would have never admitted to assassinating an officer - he clearly misunderstood! British officers claimed Washington "set the world in flames". Oops! I guess that just goes to show that even great world leaders make mistakes sometimes!
As you can see, these 8th grade historians have been verrrrrryyyy busy!