Benjamin Franklin, American Genius

His Life and Ideas with 21 Activities

Brandon Marie Miller

• Publisher: Chicago Review Press
• Year: 2009
• eBook ISBN:
  9781613741306
• Edition: 1

Benjamin Franklin was a 17-year-old runaway when he arrived in Philadelphia in 1723. Yet within days he'd found a job at a local print shop, met the woman he would eventually marry, and even attracted the attention of Pennsylvania's governor. A decade later, he became a colonial celebrity with the publication of Poor Richard: An Almanack and would go on to become one of America's most distinguished Founding Fathers. Franklin established the colonies' first lending library, volunteer fire company, and postal service, and was a leading expert in the study of electricity. He represented the Pennsylvania colony in London but returned to help draft the Declaration of Independence. The new nation then named him Minister to France, where he helped secure financial and military aide for the breakaway republic.

Author Brandon Marie Miller captures the essence of this exceptional individual through both his original writings and hands-on activities from the era. Readers will design and print an almanac cover, play a simple glass armonica (a Franklin invention), experiment with static electricity, build a barometer, and more. The text also includes a time line, glossary, Web and travel resources, and reading list for further study.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Time LINE
• Note to Readers
• Preface: The Runaway
• 1 “AS A YOUNG GENIUS”
• 2 “A YOUNG MAN OF PROMISING PARTS”
• 3 “ANY OPPORTUNITY TO SERVE”
• 4 “A FIRM LOYALTY TO THE CROWN”
• 5 SNATCHING THE SCEPTER FROM TYRANTS
• 6 “SOMETHING FIT TO END WITH”
• Glossary
• Places to Visit and Web Resources
• Further Reading for Kids
• Selected Resources
• Index