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Here are the teacher pack items for Women during the Revolution:
Overview In this experience, students investigate the contributions women made during the Revolutionary War and the fight for independence. First, they consider the meaning of a quote from Abigail Adams to John Adams, asking him to remember the ladies when making laws. Next, students analyze the various roles women played in the Revolution and consider their contributions to the war effort. Then, students explain the different contributions of significant women of the war, identifying the roles they played in the fight for independence. Finally, the Elaborate Scene invites students to explore the writing of Phillis Wheatley and discuss how it aided in the war. Estimated Duration: 45–60 minutes Vocabulary Words and Definitions: Objectives:
When we think about the Revolutionary War, we often hear about battles, soldiers, and leaders. But behind the scenes, women were also making history. They ran farms and businesses, cared for wounded soldiers, wrote poetry, and spoke out for justice.
In this lesson, you will learn how women helped shape the fight for independence through their words, actions, and courage in a time of great change.
Objectives:
Patriot Catherine Van Rensselaer Schuyler burning her wheat fields at the approach of the British
Read the quote from Abigail Adams carefully. Think about what it reveals about women’s hopes and demands during the Revolutionary War. Then, respond to the discussion questions to share your thoughts. Then, read your peers' responses and add a thoughtful idea or question to at least one answer.
Abigail Adams, wife of President John Adams and an early advocate for women’s rights.
“I long to hear that you have declared an independancy—and by the way in the new Code of Laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make I desire you would Remember the Ladies, and be more generous and favourable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the Husbands…If perticuliar care and attention is not paid to the Laidies we are determined to foment a Rebelion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any Laws in which we have no voice, or Representation.”
- Abigail Adams in a letter to her husband John Adams (1776)
What warning was Abigail Adams giving her husband? What was her reasoning?
What does this suggest about women’s lives in colonial society at the time of the American Revolution?
This discussion introduces students to the voices of women during the Revolutionary War, focusing on Abigail Adams’s famous appeal to “remember the ladies.” Use the questions to help students consider how women expressed political ideas and advocated for greater rights, even while excluded from formal power. Encourage students to think beyond the quote itself and reflect on what it suggests about women’s expectations and frustrations at the time.
