Covers are great because they summarize the theme of the book. What was the theme of this story in your opinion?

One thing we all hate are spoilers! Spoilers give away exciting details in the story. There were many events that were fun to read about in this book! If someone told you what was going to happen before you read, you would not have enjoyed reading as much.

When you create your cover, avoid spoilers!

Challenge:

1. Write your theme on a piece of paper.
2. Write an event that you do not want to spoil for the reader.
3. Draw a cover that expresses that theme.

You can upload one picture with your writing and drawing here.

We will post feedback to your account soon afterwards!

If you want to see the rubric, click here.

Themes cover the entire book. It’s the message. Authors develop theme through their characters, the characters’ actions, what happens as a result, and even word choice and writing style help make a theme. What was the theme for this book? This rubric shows how you can evaluate your work on describing the theme.

Review your work and give yourself a score. Explain why you gave your work this score.

To go to the next rubric, click here.

Use your kit to make things fly! We give you a penny to launch, and you can find lots of other things to launch in your catapult.

Directions:

1. Create a strong base by tying together some sticks.

2. Add your launch stick.

3. Make the base longer.

4. Make the base stronger.

5. Launch your catapult and make things fly!!

We love TED-Ed and big questions. How can we not love Scott Gass’ “How big is the ocean?”

Power up your brain!

How much area does the ocean cover?

What is the area of the whole world?

How much of Mauna Kea is underwater?

Trying to understand the BIG scale:

• How many 0’s are in the area of the ocean (in km<sup>2</sup>)?
• How many meters are in 1 kilometer?
• How many 0’s are in the volume of the ocean (in km<sup>2</sup>)?
• What is the area of the United States (in km<sup>2</sup>)?

A quick note on materials before we get started. We can provide kits, or you can find these materials around your house or for a couple dollars at the grocery store. We recommend:

• Spaghetti and Marshmallows for our youngest builders. They are easy to work with (but a bit sticky).
• Straws and Tape for tower builders that want to reach the sky
• Toothpicks and gummy candy for tower builders that want to test the strength of these small materials.

We also utilize a few free bridge building apps to help you test these ideas out in virtual physics simulators:

• Build a Bridge! is a freemium game available on Android and iOS.
• Bridge Construction Free is a limited free game available for iOS.
• Physics Simulation Building Destruction is a free game available on Android and iOS.

Here are the STEM challenges that will help you build your brain power!

• Challenge 13: Build the first 5 bridges in the app. (Click here if you have trouble installing it!)
• Challenge 14: Build the tallest tower possible with 20 straws and tape.
• Challenge 15: Build a bridge tower IRL.
• Challenge 16: Building a toothpick tower that can support a brick.
• Challenge 17: Becoming an accomplished virtual bridge builder. (Challenges 6-10 in the app)
• Challenge 18: Building a tall bridge
• Challenge 19: Building a long bridge
• Challenge 20: Becoming an advanced virtual bridge builder. (Challenges 11-15 in the app)
• Challenge 21: Becoming an expert virtual bridge builder! (Challenges 16-20 in the app)

Explore Washington DC’s Lincoln Memorial in-person or through the Google Expeditions virtual reality app! Learn about Abraham Lincoln’s legacy, the architecture of this many-columned monument, and more.

Google Expeditions/Which Destinations to view:

• American Landmarks > The Lincoln Memorial

Instructions for downloading/using the Google Expeditions App:

1. Open the app store
2. Search for “Google Expeditions”
3. Select the app titled “Expeditions” with the orange icon
4. After the app finishes downloading, open the app and log into a google account
5. Go to the “Library” section at the bottom of the app
6. Search the name of the tour you want to download in the search bar
7. Tap the tour you want to see, then tap “Download to view or guide”
8. Press “View” to open the menu for the virtual tour
9. Scroll to the tour location you want to start at.
10.  Press the binoculars icon in the top right to start viewing in VR mode
11. To search for another tour, exit the tour and go back to the “Discover’’ tab at the bottom.

Explore George Mason’s home, Gunston Hall, in-person or through the Google Expeditions virtual reality app! Learn facts about the historic home and about the people who lived there.

Google Expeditions/Which Destinations to view:

• Alexander Hamilton and the Ratification of the Constitution > George Mason’s Gunston Hall in Virginia

Instructions for downloading/using the Google Expeditions App

1. Open the app store
2. Search for “Google Expeditions”
3. Select the app titled “Expeditions” with the orange icon
4. After the app finishes downloading, open the app and log into a google account
5. Go to the “Library” section at the bottom of the app
6. Search the name of the tour you want to download in the search bar
7. Tap the tour you want to see, then tap “Download to view or guide”
8. Press “View” to open the menu for the virtual tour
9. Scroll to the tour location you want to start at.
10.  Press the binoculars icon in the top right to start viewing in VR mode
11. To search for another tour, exit the tour and go back to the “Discover’’ tab at the bottom.

Explore DC’s Washington Monument in-person or through the Google Expeditions virtual reality app! Learn about the monument’s history through interactive questions.

Google Expeditions/Which Destinations to view:

• American Landmarks > Washington Monument

Instructions for downloading/using the Google Expeditions App

1. Open the app store
2. Search for “Google Expeditions”
3. Select the app titled “Expeditions” with the orange icon
4. After the app finishes downloading, open the app and log into a google account
5. Go to the “Library” section at the bottom of the app
6. Search the name of the tour you want to download in the search bar
7. Tap the tour you want to see, then tap “Download to view or guide”
8. Press “View” to open the menu for the virtual tour
9. Scroll to the tour location you want to start at.
10.  Press the binoculars icon in the top right to start viewing in VR mode
11. To search for another tour, exit the tour and go back to the “Discover’’ tab at the bottom. 

American Battlefield Trust has a great description of what happened at the Battle of Bunker Hill. You may be most interested to learn that the battle occurred mostly on Breed’s Hill. Bunker Hill was nearby but did not see nearly as much action.

In fact, you may have heard “Don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes!” This phrase comes from the colonists on Breed’s Hill that did not have much gunpowder and bullets. They had to use everything wisely.

Today, you will see that Boston is a huge city and much of the battlefield is covered with roads and buildings and houses.

Bunker Hill was an important battle because it showed that the colonists could fight with the British even when thousands landed in Boston. Although the Americans lost, many more British died. In fact, so many British died that British generals decided to avoid using this strategy again.

This video describes the activities before, during, and right after the Battle of Bunker Hill. If you want a cartoon instead, keep scrolling!

This Liberty Kids episode shows why people fought and how they fought in this battle.

Explore the site of the Revolutionary War battles of Lexington and Concord at Minute Man National Historical Park! Go in-person or through the Google Expeditions virtual reality app! Explore how, where, and why the Revolutionary War started back in 1775.

Click here to go to Minute Man National Historical Park’s website

You can download the free Google Expeditions app for Android or Apple devices ! Google Expeditions/Which Destinations to view:

• The American Revolution Begins > All Destinations

Instructions for downloading/using the Google Expeditions App

1. Open the app store
2. Search for “Google Expeditions”
3. Select the app titled “Expeditions” with the orange icon
4. After the app finishes downloading, open the app and log into a google account
5. Go to the “Library” section at the bottom of the app
6. Search the name of the tour you want to download in the search bar
7. Tap the tour you want to see, then tap “Download to view or guide”
8. Press “View” to open the menu for the virtual tour
9. Scroll to the tour location you want to start at.
10.  Press the binoculars icon in the top right to start viewing in VR mode
11. To search for another tour, exit the tour and go back to the “Discover’’ tab at the bottom. 

The British were walking from Boston to Lexington and then Concord. They moved a lot faster as they returned! As you can see on this map, that is a lot of ground to cover in one day.

Now you have seen the park, videos about these battles, the current map, and the historical map. Here are some things you to discuss?

1. Why was “Minute Man” a good description of these soldiers?
2. When these colonists were not shooting at the British, what jobs do you think they had?

This clip from the excellent John Adams miniseries shows the aftermath of these battles. We highly recommend the John Adams book and the HBO(TM) Miniseries. You can stream it on Amazon Prime, use HBO Go, or rent it on YouTube for $3.99.

This Liberty Kid’s video is a great explanation for younger viewers, and the next video is from the History Channel and appropriate for older students. This Liberty Kids episode is all about the beginning of the War. Watch to learn more about Lexington and Concord.

The History Channel produces great documentaries. This one is meant for an hour long viewing and details these important events in American history.