Colonial Newswriting

This worksheet helps students in Grades 4 and 5 develop informational writing, historical reasoning, perspective-taking, and creative expression by reporting on the Boston Tea Party as if they were newspaper writers in 1773. Students write a headline and a 5-7 sentence news article from either a British or Colonial point of view, demonstrating factual understanding while intentionally shaping tone, language, and interpretation.

Learning Goals

• Informational Writing (Grades 4-5) – Students organize facts into a clear, structured news-style article.
• Writing from Point of View – Learners intentionally adjust tone and word choice to reflect British or Colonial perspectives.
• Understanding Historical Perspectives – The activity highlights how the same event can be interpreted differently.
• Causes of Colonial Rebellion – Students reinforce knowledge of why the Boston Tea Party occurred and why it mattered.

Instructional Benefits

• Teacher-Created Resource – Designed by educators to align with elementary ELA and social studies standards.
• Encourages Historical Empathy – Writing from a chosen viewpoint helps students understand bias and motivation.
• Balances Creativity and Accuracy – Students must be imaginative while remaining historically accurate.
• Flexible Classroom Use – Works well as a writing assignment, assessment, enrichment task, or discussion follow-up.
• Low-Prep Printable – Ready to use in classroom or homeschool settings.

This Colonial Newswriting worksheet helps students blend factual understanding with creative expression as they explore the Boston Tea Party through different lenses. By writing from a historical point of view, learners strengthen writing skills, deepen comprehension, and gain insight into how perspective shapes historical narratives. It’s an engaging, meaningful resource for classroom and homeschool instruction.

This worksheet is part of our The Boston Tea Party Worksheets collection.