About This Lesson
This lesson on the Historiography of the American Revolution and Founding engages students in historical thinking by exploring how different historians interpret the causes and meaning of the American Revolution. Beginning with a warm-up discussion distinguishing “the past” from “history,” students then participate in a historiography puzzle where they analyze excerpts from six historians and match them to major schools of thought using a provided handout. In the second phase, students examine primary sources and determine which ones support each historian’s interpretation. The lesson emphasizes sourcing, contextualization, and argumentation, helping students understand that history is not just a record of events, but a dynamic field shaped by interpretation and evidence.
