As part of our third grade social studies curriculum, students are studying United States History from the Colonial times to the present. At All School Meeting on June 16, third graders shared their knowledge of three important documents in United States History: the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Gettysburg Address. Do you recall what each of these three documents explains, and can you recite key parts of them, word for word? The third graders can!

Here's some of what the students wrote and shared at All School Meeting today:

Bridgette:

"All three third grades have been learning about three important documents in United States History, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Gettysburg Address. We will recite parts of each of these three documents. Each class will explain one document."

Talia:

"We will tell about the Declaration of Independence. We rewrote part of this document so we could understand it better. The Declaration of Independence was written by Thomas Jefferson in 1776. THe document explained to King George III of England why we wanted to be free and why everybody has a right to be free."

Evan:

"Before the Declaration of Independence was written, England was not treating the colonies fairly. They were taxing the colonists without giving the colonist a say in how the government was run. That made the colonists very upset. This led to the writing of the Declaration of Independence."

Raviv:

"This declaration includes three very important rights. They are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It also says that the people should decide the rules of the government. The Revolutionary War started when King George refused to accept this document."

Erika:

"Without this document we might still be a colony of Great Britain. The colonist fought in the Revolutionary War to secure this document. They won the war and much of our government was set up with this document in mind. We will now recite part of the Declaration of Independence."

Ned:

"The next document we're going to explain and recite is the preamble to the United States Constitution. The preamble is the beginning section of the Constitution. It explains why the document is important."

Julia:

"The Constitution was written in 1787. It explains the rights of people and the rules for the country. People used these rules to create the laws for the United States when it first became a country."

Ryan:

"We need the Constitution to keep the country organized and peaceful. If there are questions about laws, the courts and the government always go back to the Constitution to make their decisions about what to do."

Caroline:

"Here are some words you might want to know before we recite the preamble to the Constitution: 'posterity' means the generations that come after you, 'tranquility' means peace, and 'ordain' means to put in place."

Ariel:

"The final document we will recite today is the Gettysburg Address. The Gettysburg Address is a speech that President Abraham Lincoln gave at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on November 19, 1863. He gave the speech to honor the soldiers who died in the battle of Gettysburg and to dedicate a section of the battlefield as a cemetery in their honor."

Willie:

"In 1861, the Civil War had begun over slavery. the Northern states and the Southern states were fighting. The Southern states wanted to break free. During the Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln reminded the American people that our founding fathers started our country in freedom and wanted to keep our country together. It was as if President Lincoln was saying, 'If we are the United States, why are we fighting?'"

Ashley:

"The Gettysburg Address is the two hundred seventy one words and ten sentences long. One of the reasons the Gettysburg Address is so famous is because it is very short. Abraham Lincoln said it in less than two minutes. Edward Everett, a famous speaker, who also spoke at Gettysburg, spoke for over two hours. He later told Lincoln, 'You said more in two minutes than I said in two hours'. The version you will hear today is one hundred thirty four words and five sentences. We had a lot to memorize so we shortened in a little."

Brian:

"Now for some math. In the first sentence of the speech, the word 'score' means twenty. So, four score and seven means eighty-seven. Abraham Lincoln was referring back to 1776 when the Declaration of Independence was written. The Declaraton of Independence was the first document you heard today."

Ms. McGaffigan's second grade class performed "Mighty Mikko", a Finnish version of "Puss 'N' Boots"

"Mary Had a Little Lambchop" (a jazzed up version)

"Au Claire de Lune"

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Last update: 06-16-00/mgl