CONSTITUTION
“By 1787, many leaders feared that the new country would fall apart without a stronger Central government. They called for a meeting of delegates from all of the states. The goal was to make changes in the Articles of Confederation. But once the delegates had gathered, they realized that a bigger change was needed. They wrote a brand-new document. It is called the Constitution.”

JEFFERSON
"Thomas Jefferson was a man of countless talents and interests. Best known for the many ways he served his country, Jefferson was one of the founders of the United States. He wrote our nation's first and perhaps most famous document - the Declaration of Independence. He served as governor of his home state of Virginia. He traveled to France to represent the new U.S. government, and in 1800, he . . . "

WASHINGTON
"When George Washington died in 1799, General Henry Lee summed up his many achievements in just a few words. Washington, he said, was "first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen." Most people remember Washington as the nation's first president, but he was also an outstanding military leader. He led the nation to victory in the American Revolution, an . . . "

AMERICAN REVOLUTION
"If you sometimes don't want to do what your parents tell you to do, you have an idea of how Great Britain's 13 American colonies felt in the 1770s. Since 1607, people had been leaving the motherland to come to America for a variety of reasons: religious freedom, economic gain, and a new life, among others. While many of these colonists had their differences with Britain, most still considered them. . . "

COLONIAL AMERICA
"Picture yourself on the dock of Plymouth, England, a green and pretty port town. It's the year 1620. You are waving good-bye to your friends and relatives. Most likely, you'll never see them again. Like many Europeans of your day, you are boarding a ship for the New World. Your ship is called the Mayflower, and you will travel on it for two long months.Instead of sleeping on your soft bed, you sleep. . . "

REVOLUTIONARY WOMEN
"In 1775, Britain ruled 13 colonies, which stretched along the East Coast of North America from Massachusetts to Georgia. Many colonists were tired of British rule. They had quarreled with Britain for years about taxes and laws they considered unfair. Finally, in April 1775, fighting broke out between the colonists and the British army. The American Revolution had begun.”

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
“It’s hard to believe that just over a thousand words could change world history, but one document—only 1,337 words long—holds ideas more powerful than dynamite. This document’s ideas shook up the mighty British Empire. It launched a new nation. And it is still greatly admired today. What is this document? The Declaration of Independence, of course.”

CHILDREN'S BOOKS

• Crossing The Delaware : A History In Many Voices. By Louise Peacock, Atheneum, 1998.
• Revolutionary War On Wednesday. By Mary Pope Osborne, Random House Books for Young Readers, 2000.
• American Revolution : A Companion to the Revolutionary War on Wednesday (Magic Tree House Research Guide). By Mary Pope Osborne and Natalie Pope Boyce, Random House Books for Young Readers, 2004.
• Fight for Freedom : The American Revolutionary War. By Benson Bobrick, Atheneum, 2004.

ADULT BOOKS

• 1776. By David McCullough, Simon & Schuster, 2005.
• Liberty and Freedom: A Visual History of America's Founding Ideas. By David Hackett Fischer, Oxford University Press, 2004.
• The War for American Independence: From 1760 to the Surrender at Yorktown in 1781. By Samuel B., II Griffith, University of Illinois Press, 2002.
• John Adams. By David McCullough, Simon & Schuster, 2002.

WEBSITES

• The Declaration of Independence website: www.ushistory.org/declaration

COMMUNITY RESOURCES

• Monticello (Charlottesville, VA): www.monticello.org
• Independence National Historical Park and The Liberty Bell Philadephia, PA):
  http://www.nps.gov/inde/visit.html and www.nps.gov/inde/liberty-bell.html
• Smithsonian National Museum of American History (DC):
  www.americanhistory.si.edu