The Early Republic of the United States is a treasure trove of historical significance! This period includes the birth of a new nation, a new type of government, and iconic figures like George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson. But while you may be excited to introduce your Early Republic unit, your students may be less thrilled.
If you’re an educator searching for fresh ideas to captivate your students, you’re in the right place.
In this blog post, I’ll explore four exciting methods to introduce your Early Republic Unit. Any of these ideas is sure to “hook” your students! You can make the birth of our nation come alive for them and keep them talking about your lessons for weeks to come!
Introduce the Unit with a Popular Song
“Bad Blood” by Taylor Swift
Introduction:
Using a song to introduce your Early Republic Unit is a surefire way to get your students excited about learning! You can set the tone of what the new government was like during the Early Republic by playing Taylor Swift’s “Bad Blood.”
How it Works:
- First, ask the students if they’ve ever heard the song “Bad Blood” by Taylor Swift or if they are familiar with the song’s theme. Introduce the concept of political parties during the Early Republic, including the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans. Explain that these parties had significant disagreements, much like the conflicts described in the song.
- Next, provide students with printed lyrics of “Bad Blood” and play the full song. In pairs or small groups, have students analyze the lyrics.
- What feelings and emotions are conveyed in the song?
- What is the conflict?
- Who are the parties involved?
- Bring the class back together for a discussion. Connect the song’s themes to the political divisions in the Early US Republic. Discuss how these divisions led to the emergence of political parties and deep-rooted disagreements. For more help with teaching about the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans, check out lesson ___ of my Early Republic Unit.
Introduce the Unit with a Primary Source
Introduction:
While primary sources can seem daunting in the classroom, they allow students to encounter history differently. Primary sources bring the past to life and encourage questions to improve learning.
This letter from Washington, known as his Farewell Address, emphasized the importance of unity among the American people. Washington reminded Americans that they enjoyed liberty because of the “common dangers, sufferings, and successes” they experienced together in the nation’s early years.
This primary source will set the tone of the time for your students and is an exciting way to introduce your Early Republic unit.
How it Works:
- Students study the Farewell Address. Depending on the age of your students, you may want to read an abridged version like this or this. To make it even more accessible to younger students, check out this abridged version in modern English.
- To make reading ‘exciting,’ you could try several of these activities with your students!
- Spin a reading wheel. These are pretty simple to generate online. Options could be: the teacher reads, read to a partner (trade paragraphs), listen to an audiobook, do a pushup or jumping jack when you hear the word _______, read in an accent, or anything else you come up with!
- Have students roll a 6-sided dice to read that number of sentences aloud, either in small groups or to the whole class.
- White out random words before you make copies of the Farewell Address. If reading digitally, you can blur or cover a few words from the text using annotation tools. See if students can guess the missing words! You could have a word bank on the board to assist if needed.
- To make reading ‘exciting,’ you could try several of these activities with your students!
- Next, ask students the following questions. Students may share their answers verbally or write their answers down.
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- What was the purpose of this address?
- Who was Washington addressing (talking to)?
- Why did Washington choose to step down after serving two terms as president?
- What precedents did Washington set for future U.S. presidents?
- What reasons did Washington give for staying neutral in foreign affairs?
- Why did Washington warn the people against political parties?
3. Then, students reflect on what this address tells them about the start of the Early Republic.
This is such an easy, low-prep way to introduce your Early Republic unit. Check out other powerful Early Republic primary sources here.
Introduce the Unit with a Video
History vs. Andrew Jackson – James Fester
Introduction:
Videos are an interesting and engaging way to introduce a new concept to your class. This Early Republic video shows multiple ways to examine Andrew Jackson’s time as president.
How it Works:
- First, ask students to share what they know about Andrew Jackson’s time as president during the Early Republic. If they don’t know a lot, that’s okay!
- Next, before watching the video, ask students to look for ways Andrew Jackson was influential during the Early Republic. How do you think his actions should be viewed? Positively, negatively, or both?
- After watching, discuss the key ideas students found. Ask some follow-up questions like: What did the video teach you about Andrew Jackson? Did you learn anything that surprised you?
Looking for more Early Republic videos? Check out my list of Early Republic videos for kids.
Introduce the Unit with a Children’s Book
Worst of Friends: Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and the True Story of an American Feud by Suzanne Tripp Jurmain
Disclosure: The book link is an Amazon affiliate link. This means that I may earn commissions for purchases made by clicking the link.
Do you use picture books when introducing your Early Republic unit? Picture books are a great way to engage students in new concepts.
This book tells the story of the best friends John and Tom. But when it came to ideas about running the government of the United States, they were as different as “pickles and ice cream.” The story compares and contrasts the beliefs, character traits, and experiences of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams
How it Works:
- First, ask students what they know about the relationship between Thomas Jefferson and John Adams. Ask them to think of a time they disagreed with a friend.
- Next, explain that this book is written about the friendship between two of the most important people who started our country and the disagreements between them.
- Read the book together as a class, pausing to discuss the main characters’ feelings throughout the book. How does their relationship change?
- After reading, review what happened to the main characters and how their friendship changed or stayed the same throughout the story.
- Explain to students that the Early Republic was filled with people who had different opinions about how to start a country. They had to learn how to disagree while still getting along for the good of the country!
Click here to check out more of my Early Republic picture books for kids!
More Resources for Teaching about the Early Republic.
I hope these ideas will help you introduce your Early Republic unit in an engaging way!
If you enjoyed this post, you may be interested in my 3-week unit about the Early Republic. You will find 15 engaging lessons with activities you can use in your classroom today. The lessons cover the first seven U.S. presidents and economic and societal shifts during the Early Republic era (1780s – 1830). These shifts include the Industrial Revolution, the Market Revolution, immigration, and reform movements.
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