Team 8-1 Students have just finished participating in one of my favorite activities of the school year: The Boston Massacre Mock Trial! In this simulation, students assume the roles of lawyers, witnesses, and jury members to reenact the trial associated with the Boston Massacre. The preparation for the trial is quite extensive. A couple of years ago, I created an iBook on the Boston Massacre. Every year I have updated and added to the iBook, and students use this as a resource to become familiar with the events leading up to and during the Boston Massacre. Once students explore the iBook, which includes interactive images, several videos, and self-assessments for the students, students then sign up for a role in the mock trial. Students assume the roles of:
The Lawyers and Witnesses worked for several class periods creating their opening and closing statements and witnesses testimonies. These students were provided primary source material from Gilder Lehman & the Smithsonian Learning Lab to gain more information on the case and the individuals that they were portraying. For example, students were provided the sworn statement of Captain Preston and the propaganda engraving produced by Paul Revere. The members of the Jury used their time by analyzing primary sources related to the Boston Massacre from the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. Students also spent time rehearsing and fine-tuning their arguments for the actual trial. On the day of the trial, many of the students decided to dress the part:
Acting as the judge, I helped facilitate the trial, but the students stole the show! I was so impressed by the arguments that students presented to the members of the jury! The evidence that students also presented was awesome. One student brought in rock-filled snowballs and demonstrated how these could cause serious harm to the British soldiers. Other students created presentations on Key Note to add a visual aspect to their arguments. As the judge, I normally can predict who will win the case, but this year I had difficulty with my predictions. When it came for members of the Jury to deliberate, I walked these students out of the courtroom and we discussed the points of the case. The jury members reviewed the testimony, arguments, and evidence presented by both sides and then debated on who they thought should "win" the mock trial. In 3 of my 4 class periods, the British soldiers (Preston, Montgomery, and Kilroy) were found innocent of their accused crimes. As I mentioned before, I was so impressed by all of my students, not only for the hard work they put in during the preparation for the trial, but also by the enthusiasm they showed on the day of the trial! Following the Mock Trial, Team 8-1 students took a Virtual Field Trip to Lexington & Concord via Google Expeditions and our Virtual Reality Head Sets. As an educator, I really enjoy this technology, because it allows students to see a glimpse of these important locations of American History! Students also were able to view minutemen in action during this Google Expedition. Following the Virtual Field Trip, students were given two primary sources related to the Battle of Lexington. Using these primary sources, students gave their opinions on who they believed fired the first shot, better known as "The shot 'heard round the world". Upcoming: Over the next couple of days, students will be investigating the different sections of the Declaration of Independence. Then we will move to our unit on the American Revolution! I am currently working on some activities that incorporate Hamilton the Musical, along with possible ways to use 3D Printing in our American History Class... stay tuned!
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Mr. Steve Hartnett
Mr. Hartnett will update the Room 212 Blog with classroom updates on a regular basis. Be sure to follow me on Twitter @ MrHartnett212 Archives
July 2019
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