Charlotte Museum of History

Charlotte Museum of History

The Charlotte Museum of History, a 501(c)(3) organization, educates a broad public audience about the founding story of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, in the context of national history. Our mission is to provide quality educational programming at the Hezekiah Alexander Home Site and to preserve the site for the education of present and future generations. The museum building is the location of three continuing exhibitions: Rock House Mysteries, Keeping Watch on Water, and Charlotte Neighborhoods. Hezekiah Alexander played a leadership role in Charlotte and Mecklenburg County during the years North Carolina was a British colony. He was elected by his peers to lead during the critical years of 1774 to 1776 when Committees of Safety served as the de facto government following the end of royal government. He was then elected to serve as a member of the North Carolina Fifth Provincial Congress that wrote North Carolina’s first constitution and bill of rights. Hezekiah Alexander is remembered as a signer of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence and the Mecklenburg Resolves. Our student orientation and tours of the historic home site discuss the three cultures that were present in colonial Charlotte/Mecklenburg County: the Catawba Indian Nation, European Immigrants, and African Americans. We discuss how these groups would have lived and interacted.

EDUCATOR CONTACT INFO

info@charlottemuseum.org

http://charlottemuseum.org/

 https://www.facebook.com/charlottemuseumofhistory/

https://twitter.com/CLThistory

  3500 Shamrock Drive

Mecklenburg

704-568-1774

Revolutionary Charlotte

Program description

Enter the hornets’ nest and join the rebellion in Mecklenburg County! In this two and a half hour program, students act as reporters for one of North Carolina’s first newspapers, The Cape Fear Mercury. They will travel back in time to Charlotte on the eve of the American Revolution to gather information from residents and learn how the coming conflict has impacted their everyday lives. During the program students will: learn about spies and create their own secret messages; learn about local militias and try their hand at militia drills; read the incendiary documents created by local men and put quill to paper to sign their own names for the cause; and finally discover how creating fabric could be an important political and practical act at Mrs. Alexander’s sewing party. This program is designed to bring the larger history of the American Revolution down to a local level so that students can better understand the experiences of individual people across all walks of life during a time of conflict.

Revolutionary Charlotte is designed to fit the needs of a fifth grade audience, but may be adjusted to meet the needs of other elementary and sixth grade participants upon request.

Booking / scheduling contact

Lauren Wallace; Education Specialist

   704-568-1774

 lauren@charlottemuseum.org

Program detail
Artistic discipline:
Cultural Origin: American
Program type: Day Trip, Workshop
Population served: Grade 4, Grade 5
Subject: Social Studies / History
Bilingual: No
Available dates:

Tuesday – Saturday

Available times:

9:00am – 3:00pm

Location(s):

Charlotte Museum of History; at your school

Fees / Ticketing:

$10 per student; $5 per adult

EDUCATION STANDARDS

NC Standard Course of Study:

 CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.2: Determine two or more main ideas of a text and explain how they are supported by key details; summarize the text.

In the course of the program, students have an opportunity to get an in depth look at one of the most incendiary documents of eighteenth-century Charlotte: the Mecklenburg Resolves. With targeted guidance using the balanced literacy method, students are encouraged to think critically about the meaning of the text and identify important pieces of evidentiary support given by the colonists to justify their actions.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.3: Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text.

Throughout Revolutionary Charlotte, students are confronted with multiple perspectives and experiences as they learn about the role of women, children, militia members, magistrates, and more during the American Revolution. Many of these experiences are documented in letters, political cartoons, newspaper articles, and official documents where students must evaluate the information to better understand the social, temporal, and thematic relationships.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.5.1.D: Review the key ideas expressed and draw conclusions in light of information and knowledge gained from the discussions.

Revolutionary Charlotte employs the balanced literacy method in order to give students the opportunity to practice textural analysis in a safe, no-pressure environment. Students are encouraged to ask questions, pose their own hypotheses, and draw on the knowledge of their peers to better understand not only the primary sources they are confronted with, but also the overall themes of the program including human agency and ability for all people to alter the course of history.

NC Essential Standards:

 SS5.H.1: Analyze the chronology of key events in the United States.

Students will explore the events of the American Revolution through the lens of one city’s experience. They will explore the upheavals to daily life, the changes experienced between 1775 and the war’s conclusion, and key battles in the Southern Campaign. They will begin to think like a historian and understand the importance of chronology to see that events constantly build on each other.

SS5.H.2: Understand the role of prominent figures in shaping the United States.

Revolutionary Charlotte encourages students to think critically about the role of individuals in shaping the course of history. Students will analyze the actions of local leaders including Hezekiah Alexander, Captain James Jack, and the Polk Family in light of their contributions to the patriot cause in Mecklenburg County and ultimate roles in creating a new government for North Carolina.

SS5.C&G.1: Understand the development, structure and function of government in the United States.

In the course of Revolutionary Charlotte, students will gain a deeper understanding as to the importance of the concept of representative and self-government in the development of a distinctly American political identity. They will understand the challenges to British rule in light of these important ideas and see how the Charlotte, North Carolina, and United States governments developed as a direct result of the colonial experience.

Qualifications

Conducts educational programming for 2 or more years: Yes
Performs criminal background checks on staff with youth contact: Yes
Maintains general liability insurance (Individuals and organizations listed in this Directory can provide proof of insurance upon request. ASC does not hold copies of current documentation for providers): Yes
Three letters of recommendation / references available: Yes
Provides study guides for teachers and or students: Yes
Connects to State and or Common Core Curriculum Standards: Yes
Provides tools to assess student learning (workshops and residencies): Yes
Provides scholarship and reduced fees: Yes
Conducts ongoing assessments of program quality: Yes
Cancellation Policy

$100 cancelation fee.

72 hours in advance.