What Are the Articles of Confederation?

Gr 4–7—When people consider the founding of the United States, many students start with the Declaration of Independence in 1776, then move to the ratification of the Constitution in 1789, without full comprehension of the enormous achievements of the intervening years, including the Articles of Confederation. Explaining the many discussions and compromises involved in setting up a government can be complicated for a young audience, but this book does a good job of breaking down the events into digestible pieces of information. In an effort to make the text accessible, however, a conversational tone and sentence fragments are employed. The "six questions" approach (who, what, where, when, why, how) provides a useful framework, taking readers through events in an easy-to-understand progression. Each chapter addresses a big question with more detailed questions highlighted on a notepad graphic within the text. Unfamiliar words are highlighted and defined in the side margins. To set off reproductions of primary sources, an eReader graphic is used, possibly to demonstrate that students can find digitized documents online. Period paintings, prints, and maps provide visual interest. Teachers will appreciate the list of additional resources at the end.—Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond, VA