Capstone Publishers, 2012. 30p $19.99 ISBN 978-1-42966-139-3 elm/ms VG-BNes
This book is an
introduction to the government and politics of colonial America that explains
how laws were created and enforced, who ran the government, what Native
American laws were like, and more. Upper
elementary students will gain a better understanding of how government and
politics were handled by the thirteen colonies from 1607 to 1776.
During this time,
the colonies based their governments on the system in Great Britain. Before the colonists arrived in America,
American Indian tribes ruled the land and established their own forms of
government. The Iroquois Confederacy and
the Powhatan Confederacy are described in detail. When more colonists arrived, the American
Indians were pushed out of their lands and moved westward.
The colonies were
created by men seeking charters from Great Britain’s king, and each colony set
up its formal system of government while Parliament gave them permission to
create laws and taxes. Each colony was
appointed a governor and then selected twelve men to serve on the governor's
council. Citizens were elected to the
colony's assembly. The governor
appointed the sheriff, coroner, judges, and constables. In the section on crime and punishment, students
learn that criminals were branded on their right hands. Serious crimes were punished by hanging, and
the famous Salem witch trials are described.
Four wars were
fought in America between 1689 and 1763, and their cost forced Great Britain to
tax the colonies. As a result of these
taxes, Parliament passed the Stamp Act, but it was later revoked by the
Townsend Act. The colonists did not like
being taxed, and in Boston forty-five tons of tea were destroyed in the Boston
Tea Party.
The book includes reprints of color portraits, “Fast Fact” boxes, glossary terms interspersed through the chapters, an additional glossary at the back, recommended books and Internet sites, and an index. Students are also given a code to use on FactHound to gain additional information. Each title in the Life in American Colonies series includes primary sources, maps, and fun-to-read, fact-filled texts that provide the answers to what life was really like in the American colonies. At the time of this review six titles have been published.
Subject: United States -- Politics and government.
Charleen Forba-Mayer
The book includes reprints of color portraits, “Fast Fact” boxes, glossary terms interspersed through the chapters, an additional glossary at the back, recommended books and Internet sites, and an index. Students are also given a code to use on FactHound to gain additional information. Each title in the Life in American Colonies series includes primary sources, maps, and fun-to-read, fact-filled texts that provide the answers to what life was really like in the American colonies. At the time of this review six titles have been published.
Subject: United States -- Politics and government.
Charleen Forba-Mayer
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