A Gravestone for Crispus Attucks – A Meaningful Bulletin Board

Instructions for Creating the Gravestone Project

Bulletin boards can be quite a learning experience for students. For this board, students wrote the account of Crispus Attucks. You might remember him from your lessons on the American Revolution.

In 1770, the first real battle between the colonists and the British took place. The British soldiers got angry at a crowd of colonists who were throwing snowballs at them. The soldiers fired, killing five colonists and wounding many more.

The first to be killed was Crispus Attucks, a sailor and rope-maker. Attucks’s father was an enslaved African and his mother was a member of the Wampanoag tribe. Despite the risk of being arrested and returned to slavery, he was angered by the British troops. He feared that the growing number of British troops would further reduce the already low wages of seamen. Later, this event was called the Boston Massacre.

One feature that makes this story memorable for students is that they described the events of the Boston Massacre on 3D tombstones, which were then turned into this interesting bulletin board.

To create this project, students could follow these steps:

• 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, incorporating their written accounts.

• Decorate the tombstones with relevant images or symbols that represent his life and contributions.