Although Loyalists were steadfast in their commitment to remain within the British Empire, it was a very hard decision to make and to stick to during the Revolution. Even before the war started, a group of Philadelphia Quakers were arrested and imprisoned in Virginia because of their perceived support of the British. The Patriots were not a tolerant group, and Loyalists suffered regular harassment, had their property seized, or were subject to personal attacks.

This kit provides teachers and other educators with the materials and guidance to help fourth grade students understand the reasons that the British colonists elected to declare their independence from King George III between the years 1763-1776. As a part of these lessons students will be encouraged to consider the intent and impact of media documents from a variety of points of view including those of the colonists, King George, patriots, loyalists, slaves and Native Americans.

The lesson begins with a rereading of "The Milliner" from Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak. This is meant to focus students on the Loyalist perspective to provide a purpose for reading more about Loyalists in the rest of the lesson.
In Work Time A, students read a new informational text, "Loyalists," for gist and unfamiliar Vocabulary in preparation for using it to research information in response to a question in Work Time B (RI.4.3, W.4.8). They also analyze the structure of the text (RI.4.5).
In Closing and Assessment A, students synthesize their reading about Loyalists in an informational paragraph (RI.4.1, W.4.9b). The elements of writing a paragraph are reviewed from Modules 1-2, specifically producing complete sentences (L.4.1f) and using commas and quotation marks to mark quotations from a text (L.4.2b).
In this lesson, students focus on working to become effective learners by collaborating in pairs.
For students who finish quickly and need an additional challenge, invite them to reread "Revolutionary War, Part I" and to add research notes from that resource.

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

Discuss the status of Great Britain’s North American colonies in the years directly following the French and Indian War
Describe the size and scope of the British debt at the end of the French and Indian War
Explain how the British Parliament responded to the debt crisis
Outline the purpose of the Proclamation Line, the Sugar Act, and the Currency Act

Confronting the National Debt: The Aftermath of the French and Indian War
The Stamp Act and the Sons and Daughters of Liberty
The Townshend Acts and Colonial Protest
The Destruction of the Tea and the Coercive Acts
Disaffection: The First Continental Congress and American Identity