Sam the Man!

          Sam the Minuteman

             by Nathaniel Benchley

             Pictures by Arnold Lobel

 

             An I Can Read Book – Level 3 (Grades 2-4)

Click here to hear me read the book to you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhNeFHL441I&feature=youtu.be

Long ago, over two hundred years ago, there were only colonies in America which were ruled by England. The English King made a rule that the colonists must pay tax on ordinary things like tea, sugar and paper. This made the colonists very mad, so no one drank tea. They decided that they would drink coffee, they would drink water but they would not drink tea!  They were not allowed to vote, but they were forced to pay taxes. One day, in 1773, many boats bringing tea came to Boston.  The Patriots sneaked up on the ships and threw all the tea into the water. This was called the Boston Tea Party. This made the King angry. From that day onwards the English army was against the colonists.

One of the colonist families was the Browns. One day, they heard that the English soldiers were coming to Lexington, the place they lived. Sam Brown‘s Dad was a Minuteman. They were ordinary people who had to be ready to fight on a minute’s notice. The American Revolution was about to begin in 1773. Sam was also asked to become a young Minuteman. He had to stop being afraid so that he could help the other Minutemen fight for their freedom. Paul Revere was a brave man who went on a horse all over to tell people that the British soldiers were coming. He was a silversmith and a patriot.

The British soldiers were called Redcoats or Lobster Backs because of their red coats. There were thousands of Redcoats and very few minutemen. They soldiers came and fight all night. Eight Minutemen died. Then, suddenly, the Redcoats left. While they were fighting, Sam Brown’s friend John got hurt when a bullet hit his leg. Sam’s fear changed to anger. His Dad helped John home. When Sam got home he told his Dad that he would shoot each soldier! His father told him that he might have the chance to do just that if the war began. But his mother said that he is not going out there again. When the British soldiers returned, Sam’s mother wanted him to stay in the house. But it was too late, Sam had already got his gun and run out after his Dad. The Revolutionary War had begun. It lasted 8 years! The colonists did not know that this war was the start of their fight for independence of a new country – the United States of America.

Since 1777 Americans have celebrated their independence day on the 4th of July. Some people like to bring history back, so they dress in costumes and act like important people. Others have barbecues and have fun watching fireworks. It is a fun national holiday in the USA!

                                                             A True Book

The Declaration of Independence

                                     By Patricia Ryon Quiri

 

Click on this link to hear Sarah read the book to you: (TBD)

I like Sam the Minuteman because it was interesting to read about how a boy felt in the war. This is fiction but it also had some history facts in it. I learned a lot from The Declaration of Independence book as it gave me a lot of information about how our country got its independence.

Additional Links:

Liberty Kids Videos:

The Boston Tea Party:

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJ-FWHN3ljI&feature=relmfu

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkNObgK43Z4&feature=relmfu

Midnight Ride:

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Na3pq9wqJlA

Part 2:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5GkpQArxRg&feature=relmfu

The ShotHeard Around the World:

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLLg7l_rSuY&feature=relmfu

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfxrNXOZsYk&feature=relmfu

The First Fourth of July:

Part 1:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoFnFwQVRTU&feature=related

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1SJcu2G6J0&feature=relmfu

Peanut George

Book Review of:

A Weed is a Flower – The Life of George Washington Carver

Written and Illustrated by: ALIKI

Story read by Sarah: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chrd7dzrxbc&feature=youtu.be

When George Washington Carver was born he had many things against him. He was kidnapped as a baby but was found soon after by his owner. He was a very unusual child.  He loved  plants. If he ever had a dying plant he would find out why and keep it from dying.  He had a garden and was called “The Plant Doctor”.  He left his slave owner’s house at 10 to discover all his questions. He would go to any school he found along the way and he would listen from the outside as slaves could not study inside schools.

He didn’t have a home which means he stayed in different houses. He tried to save money for college. By the time he went to college he was 30 years old! Most kids with parents go to college way earlier. But another problem he had was that most colleges didn’t allow blacks to study. So he went to Iowa and found a college that was glad to have a black student. He was good at piano and was a good artist. But he was best at agriculture.

He then went to Alabama to teach at the Tuskegee. He wanted to help poor people.  He set up a place where he taught farmers how to take care of their crops. He taught them to cultivate peanuts and sweet potatoes instead of just cotton. George Washington Carver was very smart. He learned to make over 100 products from sweet potatoes and over 300 products from peanuts. He used all his talents to help others and was never interested in making money.  He was honored with many awards.This baby that had no hope became one of the best scientists of his country!

George Washington Carver did his best because of his faith in Jesus. He believed that his life honored God when he worked hard and helped others. He was a good example to me of how to live for Jesus.

This is a good book because it taught me about the life of a great inventor and scientist.  George Washington Carver was a very good example for me.

Videos on George Washington Carver:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=jxRKfgp9uyE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wv4qYIyJoM