Hi all,
I had the immense pleasure of attending an Appleseed event earlier this year in Bowie and I had a fantastic time.
As the father of 2 young girls, I was hoping that somebody could possibly provide me with a copy of the awesome history lesson that was gone over throughout the day. Unfortunately, schools these days gloss over the inception of the American Revolutionary War, and I would like to give them a nice lesson about why we have the freedoms that we do today.
Thanks for your help.
I look forward to seeing you guys at another event very soon.
Here you go: http://store.rwvaappleseed.com/page18.html
"Paul Revere's Ride" is the complete history of, and what lead up to, April 19th.
"The Lexington-Concord Battle Road" is the condensed version that is about 40 pages.
I created a history handout which I use in VA shoots. It doesn't try to be a printout of the story - that would be awfully long - but it is a good note-taking summary of important elements to remember about the day. It also has a bibliography and a note from de Tocqueville's Democracy in America which was meant as a warning but may have become prophecy.
I have attached a copy of my handout here. It's a pdf so should be readable by all.
Good stuff! Thanks FiremanBob!
FiremanBob knows his history. After working a Virginia shoot with him (and receiving some chiding), I stepped up my history game immensely. Thanks for the kick in the pants Bob.
When we go on road trips, we're usually listening to the "Paul Revere's Ride" Audio book.
If you are a new instructor, don't be intimidated. Telling strikes is the most important part of the weekend - If you have to read strikes at first, it's OK, do it. FiremanBob might give you a hard time about it, but you're doing it! If you read Fred's comments from almost ten years ago; if you tell all three strikes (and don't get a shot downrange), you've had a successful event (I'm paraphrasing).
Learning the history is fun. You will look at Gen Gage in a different way. Major Pitcairn was a Major Ass. You will be even more amazed at the amount of militia that showed up on short notice! Find out who Mother Moulton was (In Concord). Who were the three extra militiamen at Lexington Green that weren't from Parker's company? You won't learn it over night, but leaning it will make you a better story teller, and captivate your students. Don't be afraid to get animated and passionate! It is truly a story that will STILL bring tears to your eyes. I still after dozens and dozens of telling, have a hard time getting through Hanna Davis's diary quote.
And for goodness sake, fit-in Samuel Whittemore from Dangerous Old Men (DOM) even if time is challenged!
And I recommend you incorporate the maps, it really helps.
(Attached for reference)
We may have a history boot camp soon, based on feed-back. Comments?
:F
Sub_MOA,
If u PM me with your email addy, I would be happy to send you my version of the Three Strikes in WORD format.
In Liberty,
PHenry
PHenry was kind enough to send me the documents; thank you. I asked him if it'd be okay for me to convert them to PDF so we can get them available here as an attachment and he said sure thing.
Thanks to you ColdWarrior. Those attachments will help on my re-reads of Paul Revere's Ride. Flipping back and forth kinda sucked.
A word of counsel occurred to me on telling the story and printed versions. Understand words on a page, no matter how zippy, are not what it takes to inspire. It is the teller of the story, perhaps even more than the story itself that results in inspiration to action. A lot of what I offer when I tell these above strikes is not on the page. Anyone who has seen me do a strike knows that I tell it a little differently every time. My written strikes are merely a navigation tool designed specifically to keep my dyslexia in check and get it straight, which reduces my OCD anxieties. ^-^
Several 'tricks":
Raise and lower the volume of your voice to add impact
Pause to add drama
Look one shooter hard in the eye, then scan around
Move, but not too much
Use accents if you can on the quoted lines
Dont be skeered to allow yerself emotion during your delivery
Don't git lost in too much detail
Find the elements that speak to you and focus on them - if it inspires you, your telling will be inspired
Read your strike over and over silently. Then read it aloud in private. Then read it to your cat - any biological life from that will sit still will do.
It's OK to use notes to stay on track, but don't read from them - keep yer eyes on the shooters
Keep each strike to 20 minutes - Americans are notorious for short attention spans
If you work the same venues over and over, expound differently, on different areas of the story to shake it up a bit for "repeat offenders"
In Liberty,
PHenry
A quick follow-up, we are going to do a History Boot Camp here, probably in the late fall when the weather goes crappy again.
We will put out the dates when set, target for the Mid-Atlantic region, but of course all are welcome.
PM me to get put on the list, and watch the Maryland or Mid-Atlantic threads.
See pic... I like to use "Training Aids".
Curious about scheduling of the proposed History Boot Camp and location.
Thank you.