235th Anniversary of Washington's Crossing the Delaware

The holiday season includes anniversaries of important dates in American history. One of them is George Washington's bold crossing of the Delaware River during the Revolutionary War. His strong leadership and skillful tactics helped wavering colonial forces rally during a key period of the conflict.

For teachers and media specialists planning to include Washington's crossing in December's American history lessons, an excellent resource to use is Enslow Publisher's George Washington Crosses the Delaware: Would You Risk the Revolution?  Elaine Landau's 48-page book, part of the six-book "What Would You Do?" American history series, offers a unique, speculative approach to the Christmas Day battle. Each chapter concludes with the award-winning author asking readers to place themselves in the shoes of historical figures and articulating how they would have decided various courses of action. The structure thereby encourages the development of critical thinking skills in the context of an American history narrative.

Full-color photographs and illustrations, as well as historical works, add visual support to the Guided Reading Level "O" text. The book also includes a useful timeline, a "words to know" section, and sources for further reading. A free, downloadable teacher's guide is also available on the Enslow Classroom paperback website -- http://www.enslowclassroom.com -- or at www.enslow.com. The paperback edition is available for $7.95; the library-bound version is available to qualifying schools and libraries for $17.95.