Jacqueline Jules's Blog - Posts Tagged "american"
Celebrating America’s Birthday
On July 4th, we celebrate America’s birthday with picnics and fireworks. What a great time to talk to children about American government and how it came to be. Or does the topic seem too dry amid summer fun and freedom? It shouldn’t! During the hot Philadelphia summer of 1787, fifty-five delegates met behind locked doors to confront a startling problem. The thirteen colonies that had fought so hard for independence from Britain during the Revolutionary War did not have a functioning national government. The thirteen states were like squabbling siblings. They fought over river rights and land boundaries. They didn’t honor each other’s money. Most people considered themselves citizens of a particular state, not the United States of America.
In the July heat of 1787, the founding fathers were at an impasse over the issue of representation in Congress. Benjamin Franklin called for prayer, and George Washington looked haggard, as if he were reliving the terrible days at Valley Forge. Some delegates feared the Constitutional Convention would disband and the fledging country would not survive.
In my book UNITE OR DIE: HOW THIRTEEN STATES BECAME A NATION, I focus on the drama of the Constitutional Convention—the problems between the states and the Connecticut Compromise, which convinced the delegates they could agree on a national government after all. Illustrated by Nickelodeon Magazine comic strip artist, Jef Czekaj, UNITE OR DIE presents history in the form of a school play performed by exuberant young actors dressed as the thirteen original colonies.
For a taste of the show, visit youtube.com at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5oQ6N...
Celebrate July 4th with family, friends, good food, and fireworks. But don’t forget the history. It’s exciting, too.
Jacqueline Jules
www.jacquelinejules.com
Unite or Die How Thirteen States Became a Nation
In the July heat of 1787, the founding fathers were at an impasse over the issue of representation in Congress. Benjamin Franklin called for prayer, and George Washington looked haggard, as if he were reliving the terrible days at Valley Forge. Some delegates feared the Constitutional Convention would disband and the fledging country would not survive.
In my book UNITE OR DIE: HOW THIRTEEN STATES BECAME A NATION, I focus on the drama of the Constitutional Convention—the problems between the states and the Connecticut Compromise, which convinced the delegates they could agree on a national government after all. Illustrated by Nickelodeon Magazine comic strip artist, Jef Czekaj, UNITE OR DIE presents history in the form of a school play performed by exuberant young actors dressed as the thirteen original colonies.
For a taste of the show, visit youtube.com at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5oQ6N...
Celebrate July 4th with family, friends, good food, and fireworks. But don’t forget the history. It’s exciting, too.
Jacqueline Jules
www.jacquelinejules.com
Unite or Die How Thirteen States Became a Nation
