Women of the Revolution Reflective Paper

by Melissa Luffman

AHTC Summer 2008 Conference

      There are many books and primary documents discussing the contribution of the male “founding fathers” and members of the Constitutional Convention in many facets of today’s society and media. It is imperative that history explores these men and their essential role in the creation of the United States, as we now know it. Textbooks are a prime example of a teaching tool that mainly portrays and teaches about the male involvement in the Revolutionary time period. However, it is also imperative that the traditional and not-so-traditional roles of females during this era be discussed and appreciated. The American History Teacher’s Collaborative (AHTC) summer conference displayed the many uses of primary sources to supplement and inspire historical thinking and questioning while teaching students about the Constitutional Convention, and all the citizens that played a key role during that era.
      This conference presented many different sources that examined the lives of key females during the revolutionary times. Carol Inskeep, from the Urbana Free Library, highlighted a variety of literature that focused on women and their contribution to the cause. My favorite examples included The American Revolution for kids: A History with 21 Activities by Janis Herbert and Founding Mothers: The Woman Who Raised our Nation by Cokie Roberts. Both of these books are useful resources to supplement and enhance the main events of the history lesson and give an increased understanding of the material through its text and pictures. Many of these books listed an index in which readers could pick their specific female to learn about, rather than reading an entire selection. I also appreciated the variety of genres and reading levels she displayed that would meet the varied needs of all students learning about American history. Carol Berkin inspired me. I truly enjoyed her presentation, her story telling, and her book collection provided by the AHTC. One particular story she shared sparked my interest. Deborah Samson or Sampson, a former indentured servant, dressed like a man to join the army. Her petition to the state of Massachusetts for war pension is located in Carol Berkin’s Women’s Voices, Women’s Lives: Documents in Early American History. I learned more about her in several of the provided literature books, as well as on the internet. These two sites I found while researching more information provided a lesson plan example for teaching about Deborah Sampson and a short biography of her life: www.canton.org/samson/ and www.teacherlink.ed.usu.edu/TLRESOURCES/units/Byrnes-famous/sampson.htm
These websites, also found on the AHTC website, listed more information and actual photographs of Deborah Samson and her memorial statue: www.earlyamerica.com/earlyamerica/notable/ - Archiving Early America:  Notable Women of Early America and www.colonialancestors.com/revolutionary/women.htm - Colonial Ancestors.
The invaluable and much appreciated books that were generously provided for each teacher did not just focus on one area of the convention, but on the many characters at the convention and those involved “behind the scenes”. The resources truly gave the broad and changing perspective of how the Constitutional Convention came to be and the many factors that influenced its outcome. Outrageous Women of Colonial America by Mary Rodd Furbee is one of those books I plan to use in my classroom. Each chapter, averaging ten pages, provides a well-written biography of a female living in colonial America. Each chapter also displays pictures that persuade the reader to make a visual connection to the person, location, or event. Another book, Revolutionary Mothers, by Carol Berkin, also focuses on the roles of several influential females during this era. This book is also divided into chapters, each telling a different story involving several characters, not focusing on just one. This non-fictional storybook highlights the differences and similarities within several females’ lives and experiences during the same event or time period.

     Not being a traditional elementary classroom teacher, but an elementary special education teacher, I do not teach history in the classroom. My goal is to increase the background and prior knowledge of my students in areas that will be addressed in the general education classroom. I often use a variety of genres to teach reading and writing skills since I do not have regular curricular materials in my classroom. Using primary documents is such an easy, motivating, and highly engaging way for students to continue to work on their reading and writing skills and learning the new content area knowledge to be successful in the general education curriculum. All of these websites, books, and documents listed would be valuable to use with all students learning the new content, while continuing to foster skills in reading, writing, and critical or historical thinking. Connections to the similarities and differences of the role of females in the Revolutionary era compared to the roles of females in today’s society would be an interesting idea and topic for students to explore, research, and debate.