I would use this book as a independent read for third grader but would definetly attach some sort of assignment or worksheet to the reading to help the pull out and be able to cite the different scenes in the book.

This informational book tells the story of some of the most famous events of the American Revolution leading up to the Congressional Congress and the Declaration of Independence. This book is informational but it is told in an entertaining and easy to follow narrative style that would keep students entertained and wondering what will happen next

Media: photographs

Uses: -good informational text for US history, could even be used as a read aloud
-good introduction to research and using informational texts for information in projects or papers

“Give Me Liberty” is Russ Freedman’s story of the Declaration of Independence for younger readers. His story is brief and conveniently concise. He tracks the events leading up to the Declaration, starting with the Boston Tea Party. Freedman does not continue with the story of the revolution past the Declaration of Independence. Instead, the book includes the text of the Declaration and the story of its display.

The language Freeman uses in this book is both accessible and engaging. This book seems appropriate for age groups through middle school. Freeman sticks to the most important events. This book is not very deep, and at a mere 80 pages with plenty of illustrations and large print, it is not intended to be. This book does well to serve its intended purpose and audience. A seventh grade American History class would find this useful and could get through it in a class one or two class periods. However, if you are looking for a deep examination of influences and impacts of the Declaration of Independence, I would look elsewhere. ( )

Chapter 8, titled “Declaring Independence: July 4, 1776,” provides excellent detail on the writing and signing of this historic document. The original document is reproduced followed by the full text, including the names of the signers. Reproductions of paintings, sketches and documents are scattered throughout the book. Additional resources include table of contents, chronology of events, selected bibliography, illustration credits and index. ( )

Give me Liberty! is the story of the American Revolution and the writing of the Declaration of Independence. It is organized into short stories that tell about a stage in the process of achieving independence, and ripe with beautiful color pictures and side notes, but not so distracting as to pull attention away from the main story. The end material includes the text of the Declaration of Independence and information on further study of the topic. Highly recommended for intermediate collections in school and public libraries. ( )