December 16, 1773 - The Boston Tea Party

On December 16, 1773 colonial activists boarded British ships anchored in Boston Harbor and dumped 342 containers of expensive tea into the water. Help your students place the BOSTON TEA PARTY in its historic context with these engaging SAFARI Montage resources!

Liberty’s Kids: Boston Tea Party (PBS) - This program is a selection from the PBS animated series focusing on the American Revolutionary War, Liberty's Kids. Help your students understand the causes of rebellion and the early events that led to the creation of a new nation. Relive the colonists' revolt against England's ''taxation without representation'' and the British response, such as the occupation and ''quartering'' of Boston. In this episode, Benjamin Franklin directs Moses, James and Henri to travel to Boston in search of Sarah , who has arrived from England on a tea-laden ship. When they get to the Harbor, they happen upon the disguised colonists and discover they are raiding the very ship Sarah is on. Grades 1-6.

Pups of Liberty: The Boston Tea-Bone Party (Izzit.org) - Are you ready for an adventure? Travel back in time to witness the beginning of the Ameri-canine Revolution! Watch as Spaniel Adams and Paul Ruffere help organize the Pups of Liberty to protest the new taxes imposed on them by the Royal Tomcat, insist on ''No Laws Without Paws'' and stage the Boston Tea-Bone Party. In the animated ''Pups of Liberty'' series, the real people of the American Revolution are portrayed by cats and dogs to introduce young students to the ideas and events that led to the founding of the United States of America. Grades K-5.

Causes of the Revolution (1765-1774) (Schlessinger Media) - Causes of the Revolution provides students with a detailed look at the events that precipitated America's fight for independence, from the cries of 'no taxation without representation' to the radical actions of patriots like Patrick Henry and Sam Adams. Students will learn about the impact of British laws from the Stamp Act to the Coercive Acts, and discover how, despite the majority's desire for compromise, the foundation for the revolution was laid. Part of the multivolume American Revolution For Students Video Series. Available in English/Spanish. Grades 5-9.

18th Century Turning Points in U.S. History: Program 5: 1767-1776 (Ambrose Video) - The 18th century was the period in which America transitioned from a series of individual colonies to the United States of America. This program chronicles decisive events that occurred from 1767 to 1776, including the colonization of Kentucky, Tennessee and Southern California, and events leading up to the start of the Revolutionary War such as the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, the First Continental Congress, The Battle of Lexington and Concord, appointing George Washington as commander-in-chief of the Revolutionary Army, the publication of ''Common Sense,'' and the issuing of the Declaration of Independence. Grades 7-Adult.

Johnny Tremain (Disney Educational) - Hal Stalmaster and Sebastian Cabot star in this adaptation of the Newbery Award-winning book by Esther Forbes, which chronicles the beginnings of the American Revolution from the perspective of a 14-year-old silversmith apprentice. When a tragic accident destroys Johnny Tremain's future as a silversmith, the heartbroken teen decides to join the emerging Sons of Liberty. Johnny soon finds himself involved with key figures and events leading up to America's War for Independence. Grades 4-8.

Six Revolutionary War Figures (Weston Woods) - What did Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Paul Revere, Patrick Henry and King George III have in common? Travel back to 1776 and find out! In this program, children will witness the events that led up to the Revolutionary War and the role each of these men played in it. This animated history lesson about the birth of our nation engages children's hearts as it challenges their minds. Illustrated by Margot Tomes. Grades 1-6.

The Boston Tea Party: Costume Optional? - This web link from the National Endowment for the Humanities contains a lesson plan about using primary sources to determine what really happened at the Boston Tea Party. The lesson plan includes guiding questions, learning objectives, preparation instructions, lesson activities and resources for extending the lesson. Grades 6-8.

Revolutionary Tea Parties and the Reasons for Revolutions - This web link from the National Endowment for the Humanities contains a lesson plan about the purpose of the Boston Tea Party and other ''tea parties'' that occurred in the American colonies before the American Revolution. The lesson plan includes guiding questions, learning objectives, preparation instructions, lesson activities and resources for extending the lesson. Grades 6-8.

AP US History Unit 3, Topic 3 (3.3) Period 3: 1754-1800: Taxation Without Representation - This video from Heimler's History provides a review of AP U.S. History Unit 3, Topic 3 (3.3): Period 3: 1754-1800: Taxation Without Representation. Topics covered include the French and Indian War, salutary neglect, trade, Parliament, Navigation Acts, smuggling, George Grenville, Quartering Act of 1765, Sugar Act, Stamp Act, Currency Act, social contract, natural rights, virtual representation, Sons of Liberty, Daughters of Liberty, Vox Populi, Stamp Act Congress, resistance, Declaratory Act, Townshend Acts, boycott, Boston Massacre, John Adams, Tea Act, the Boston Tea Party and the Intolerable Acts (Coercive Acts and Quartering Act). Hosted on YouTube. Grades 9-Adult.

The Story Behind the Boston Tea Party - This TED-Ed lesson by Ben Labaree tells the story of the Boston Tea Party. Taxed heavily for importing tea from Britain, the American colonists - who were not fans of "taxation without representation" - reacted by throwing tea into Boston Harbor in 1773. Hosted on YouTube. Grades 7-Adult.

The Boston Tea Party - This video from Simple History discusses the Boston Tea Party, wherein Samuel Adams and the Sons of Liberty protested British taxes by throwing tea into the waters of Boston Harbor on December 16, 1773. Hosted on YouTube. Grades 7-12.

Crash Course World History: Tea, Taxes and the American Revolution - This irreverent, fast-paced and humorous video from John and Hank Green's Crash Course series discusses the American Revolution. Topics covered include Seven Years' War, Stamp Act, Townshend Acts, Boston Massacre, Boston Tea Party, Committees of Correspondence, First Continental Congress, Declaration of Independence, Treaty of Paris, Articles of Confederation, the Enlightenment, Immanuel Kant and John Locke. Hosted on YouTube. Grades 9-Adult.

Writing Prompts: Unfair Punishments: The Boston Tea Party - This PDF document includes a writing prompt which asks students to relate to the unfair punishments issued to the American colonists after the Boston Tea Party by detailing the most unfair punishment they have ever experienced and the reasons why they were punished. Courtesy of Mr. Nussbaum. Grades 3-8.?