Unit 3: A Time of Change

Big Idea Activity: Why do people take risks?
Tell stories of experience

Tell a story about one risk faced by people in early New York. Use your textbook to research some dangers of life in New York during the American Revolution. You might use the links in the Case Study to add to your research.

Topic Finder

Need help finding a topic? Explore these ideas for research.... American Revolution

Activity Suggestion

British colonists living in America did not have the right to vote for members of the British Parliament. Some colonists were so upset by this that they refused to pay taxes. These colonists were called Patriots while colonists who remained loyal to Britain were called Loyalists. What dangers did the Patriots face for taking such great risks?

More to Explore

The American Revolution

Trouble in the Colonies
Learn more about the Declaration of Independence.

Fighting in New York
Read a story about New Yorkers fighting in the American Revolution.

The American Revolution Ends
Visit an American camp to see what life was like for soldiers during the Battle of Saratoga.

A New State

Forming a Government
View the Bill of Rights and see how these amendments are still useful today.

The Economy of the New State
Read about the Buttonwood Agreement and how it started the first stock exchange in the United States.

New Yorkers Move West

The Life of Settlers
Read about the Big Tree Treaty and how it was used to buy land from the Seneca Native Americans.

New Ways to Travel
Read about the first successful steamboat trip up the Hudson River.

New York Grows and Changes
View paintings from the Hudson River School, one of the first truly American styles of landscape paintings.