Fall • History Writing Project

A Gravestone for Crispus Attucks

Fifth graders combined history research and creative writing to create this memorable 3D bulletin board display about the first person killed in the Boston Massacre.

A Gravestone for Crispus Attucks full bulletin board display

A Gravestone for Crispus Attucks — Full Display

Fifth graders showed off their writing skills in this striking hallway display.

Close-up of gravestone writing project

Close-Up View

This up-close photo shows what the 3D writing project included inside each tombstone.

Another look inside the tombstones

Inside the Tombstones

Another look at the student writing inside the 3D tombstone flaps.

About This Project

Who was Crispus Attucks?

In 1770, the first real conflict between colonists and British soldiers took place on a Boston street. Soldiers fired into a crowd, killing five colonists — in what became known as the Boston Massacre. The first to fall was Crispus Attucks, a sailor and rope-maker whose father was an enslaved African and whose mother was a member of the Wampanoag tribe. Despite the risk of arrest and return to slavery, Attucks stood his ground against British troops he believed threatened the livelihoods of working seamen.

One feature that makes this project memorable is that students described the events of the Boston Massacre on 3D tombstones, which were then displayed as a bulletin board. The physical construction of the tombstones gives the writing project an added dimension. Students are literally building a memorial.

Steps to Create the Project

  • Research the life and significance of Crispus Attucks in the American Revolution.
  • Write a brief account of his role in the Boston Massacre, highlighting key events.
  • Create 3D tombstones using cardstock or construction paper that open to reveal the student writing inside.
  • Decorate the tombstones with relevant images or symbols representing his life and contributions.
  • Display completed tombstones on a bulletin board or in the hallway.
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