Causes of the Revolution Lesson

Every history course has so much content to get through each year. While teachers may be able to plan chronologically, it is stressful to focus on the exact topics. For instance, if teaching about the American Revolution, students do not just learn what it is. They have to learn about multiple different causes and the British and Colonial reactions. Thus, one focus standard actually includes many subtopics. Additionally, teachers have the difficult challenge of creating lessons that engage students. Thankfully, the Causes of the American Revolution Jigsaw has a complete introduction to the topic. Students will love the format of the lesson while not feeling overwhelmed with how much they are learning. 

Causes of the American Revolution Jigsaw 

There is so much to learn about the American Revolution! For instance, students have to understand what it is. However, this also means they must learn about what led to it. Honestly, there is so much to cover from the Proclamation of 1763 to the First Continental Congress. Thus, students can often get overwhelmed and not be able to understand the content. Thankfully, this product ensures this does not happen by utilizing the jigsaw format. The resource even includes directions, note-taking sheets, and short readings.

The specific causes addressed include:

1. Proclamation of 1763
2. Quartering Act
3. Stamp Act
4. Townshend Acts (duties) 
5. Boston Massacre
6. Tea Act and Boston Tea Party 
7. Intolerable (Coercive) Acts
8. First Continental Congress (Philadelphia 1774) 

In addition to learning about each cause, students will focus on the reasons for British action. Furthermore, they will focus on the reasons behind the Colonial reaction. 

How Does a Jigsaw Work?

For the causes of the revolution lesson, place students into eight heterogeneous groups. However, this may be difficult depending on the class size or desired group size. Therefore, this product can even create two lessons with four groups per day. After making the groups, assign each one a topic from the provided resource. Then, provide the group with the included short reading. Students will then complete the section of the chart that contains their assigned topic. Students may also create a poster or a Google document outlining their information to respect creative freedom. It is essential to organize it because they will share it with the class. When planning, this part of the lesson typically takes 20 minutes. 

After each group finishes, it is time to present. One at a time, groups will come to the front of the class to share information about their assigned topic. While presenting, the rest of the class will take notes on the material. Thus, it is imperative to remind each group of their responsibility to handle the activity seriously. 

Benefits of Jigsaw Approach 

Using the jigsaw approach has benefits for teachers and students. For teachers, it creates an engaging way to teach a large amount of content. Instead of lecturing about each topic or creating a whole lesson, students are actually guiding their learning. While the teacher provides the materials, the students become teachers to the other groups. For students, the jigsaw method builds comprehension. Instead of summarizing eight different causes, students will focus on one. Thus, they will be able to develop a strong understanding before teaching the class. Since a jigsaw format occurs in groups, students will focus on cooperative learning. Additionally, students focus on accountability as they are responsible for teaching their classmates. While listening to the presentations, students also focus on listening skills. Since they have to take notes, they know they need to focus. Ultimately, jigsaw allows students to learn a lot of information in an engaging format. 

There is so much information to cover in the causes of the Revolution lesson. Due to this, it can be stressful to figure out how much time to spend on the unit. Additionally, it can be hard to pick which aspects to focus on. Thankfully, the  Causes of the American Revolution Jigsaw allows teachers to focus on everything! This introduction lesson is an incredible way to focus on so much information in a student-friendly format. 

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