Unit Plan 12 (Grade 5 Social Studies): Protests and Boycotts
Colonial protests and boycotts—shaped by taxes, trade laws, and competing perspectives—show how everyday choices and persuasive arguments helped colonists challenge British policies and push tensions toward revolution.
Focus: Study colonial protests, boycotts, and persuasive arguments, using sources to trace how everyday choices challenged British policies.
Grade Level: 5
Subject Area: Social Studies (History • Civics • Inquiry/Skills)
Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 50–60 minutes per session
I. Introduction
Students examine how colonists responded to British laws through protests, petitions, and boycotts. They read short primary and secondary sources (broadside excerpts, diary snippets, engravings) to build cause–effect chains from taxes to actions, and they compare perspectives of patriots, loyalists, women, merchants, and enslaved people. The week culminates in a short source-based explanation or “mini-broadside” about whether a specific boycott was justified and effective.
Essential Questions
- How did trade laws and taxes create conflict between colonists and Britain?
- In what ways did colonists use protests and boycotts to show disagreement and push for change?
- How did different groups (patriots, loyalists, women, enslaved people, merchants) view the same events differently?
- How can we tell whether a historical source is fact, opinion, or persuasive claim?
II. Objectives and Standards
Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:
- Describe key British laws and colonial responses, explaining cause and effect from taxes to protests and boycotts.
- Use primary and secondary sources to compare perspectives on the same protest or boycott.
- Distinguish fact, opinion, and claim, and identify signs of bias and persuasion in historical sources.
- Build a short written explanation or “mini-broadside” that states a clear claim about a protest/boycott and supports it with evidence.
- Participate in respectful discussion about whether different forms of protest were justified and effective.
Standards Alignment — 5th Grade (C3-based custom)
- 5.C3.Hist.2 — Use primary/secondary sources to explain causes and effects in major events.
- Example: Identify cause/effect chains from taxes to protests to the Declaration.
- 5.C3.Hist.3 — Describe diverse perspectives/experiences (Indigenous peoples, enslaved people, women, patriots/loyalists, immigrants).
- Example: Compare two short accounts of the same protest.
- 5.C3.Inq.3 — Evaluate sources for relevance, credibility, bias, and perspective; distinguish fact, opinion, and claim.
- Example: Identify a pamphlet’s point of view and evidence used.
Success Criteria — Student Language
- I can explain how a specific law or tax led to colonial protests or boycotts.
- I can describe how at least two groups (for example, a patriot and a loyalist) viewed the same event differently.
- I can point to words or phrases that show fact, opinion, and persuasive claim in a source.
- I can write a short explanation or mini-broadside that states a clear opinion about a protest and backs it up with evidence from sources.
- I can discuss protests and boycotts respectfully, even if I disagree with others.