The three activities presented here help strengthen the visualization component of the unit and help students make better sense of the information that they are being presented. All three lessons can be adopted and modified to fit the needs of your students if necessary.
The first activity helps the students to see how the city that they live in and go to school in was a place in which some of the events of the Revolutionary War happened. This will make the past seem a bit more relevant to their everyday lives because the students would have seen or walked down these streets, if they are from New Haven or if they have visited New Haven. The students will be able to connect an event to a street that is familiar to them, such as Whalley Avenue, Goffe Street, and Dixwell Avenue. Some students may even live on the streets that the teacher will point out while looking at the maps.
