McGuffey's Fifth Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition · Lesson LXXV · Part 7: Courage, temper and work
81. The Boston Massacre (George Bancroft)
Goal: Your child tells what happened in Boston on the night of March 5, 1770, as Bancroft describes it, and explains why it mattered.
You'll need
- The book, open to this lesson
- A notebook or lined paper and a pencil
What's in the book
A history passage by George Bancroft describing the evening of March 5, 1770: soldiers in the streets, a sentry attacked, Captain Preston's party, the firing on the crowd, and the arrest that followed. Definitions and long notes come after.
The lesson, step by step
About the author
The book says George Bancroft (b. 1800) was born at Worcester, Massachusetts, studied at Harvard and in Germany, was Secretary of the Navy in 1845 and later Minister to Great Britain and to Prussia. His best-known work is his "History of the United States."
Words and meanings
The words and meanings are printed at the end of the lesson. Read a few together before the reading, so they don't trip your child up:
Indiscriminately, without distinction.
Ensued, followed, resulted from.
Firelock, an old style musket, with a flint lock.
Warrant, a writ authorizing an officer to seize an offender.
The notes say the massacre took place Monday, March 5, 1770, and that "lobster" was a name Americans gave British soldiers because of their red coats.
Read aloud
Your child reads the lesson aloud, a few paragraphs at a time. It begins:
The young moon was shining brightly in a cloudless winter sky,
Later, Knox warns Captain Preston:
"For God's sake," said Knox, holding Preston by the coat, "take your men back again;
Talk about it
SayHow did the trouble begin that night? Who was at fault, in your opinion?
SayWhen Preston was asked why he fired, he answered, "to save my men." What do you think of that answer?
SayBancroft starts with a quiet picture of the moon and snow. Why might a historian start a violent story that way?
Tell it back
Close the book.
SayTell me the events of that night in order, as a historian would.
Older children can write the narration as a paragraph.
Map and dates
Find Boston on a map. Write "March 5, 1770" at the top of the narration page. If you keep a timeline, add the Boston Massacre to it.
Tip
This is a serious history passage with shooting and deaths. Read it with your child and talk it through rather than assigning it alone.