Virginia SOL VS.5.a
The Standard
explaining the principles and events that convinced the colonists to declare independence and go to war with Great Britain, as expressed in the Declaration of Independence
Virginia Standards of Learning for History and Social Science
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students connect British actions, such as taxation without representation and the Intolerable Acts, to growing colonial resistance. They explain natural rights, consent of the governed, and why colonists used these ideas to justify independence.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students can sequence key events and connect each event to a colonial grievance. They can use a Declaration excerpt to explain why colonists believed separation and war were justified.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think the Declaration began the fighting, but battles had already occurred at Lexington and Concord. They may confuse the Declaration with the Constitution or assume every colonist supported independence.
How to Assess It
- Use this exit ticket: “Colonists objected to ___ because it violated ___; therefore, independence seemed justified because ___.” Require one British action and one principle.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give pairs event, grievance, and principle cards to match, then arrange the matched sets in chronological order.
Ask students to write: “When may people replace their government?” Require evidence from one Declaration excerpt.
Play a cause-and-effect relay where teams match British actions with colonial reactions and explain each connection for a point.
Present a fictional unfair school rule, then have students write a petition using natural rights and consent as reasons for change.
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Printable VS.5.a Worksheet
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Related Standards
- 2.8.c
identifying key components of the Declaration of Independence
- VS.6.c
describing how principles of these founding Virginia documents inspired the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of Virginia, the Constitution of the U...
- USI.6.b
identifying the issues of dissatisfaction that led to the American Revolution, including, but not limited to the “injuries and usurpations” outlined in the Decl...
- USI.5.e
explaining the changing political and economic relationships between the colonies and Great Britain, including, but not limited to representative government and...
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