Presidents and American Symbols: Supplemental Guide 5A | Thomas Jefferson 83 Show image 5A-7: Jefferson writing in the inn
Jefferson wanted the Declaration of Independence to be the very
best thing he had ever written. He thought about every word before
he wrote it down.He mumbled to himself, “Life, liberty—and freedom. What should
come next?”“Yes!” he exclaimed as he picked up his quill. “And the pursuit of
happiness.”[Show students the close-up of lines 3 and 4 of the Declaration of
Independence. Read the lines: “We hold these truths to be self-evident [very
clear], that all men are created equal, that they are endowed [given] by their
Creator with certain unalienable Rights [rights that cannot be taken away], that
among these are Life, Liberty [freedom] and the pursuit [trying to gain or follow]
of Happiness.”] Show image 5A-8: Jefferson, Adams, and the Declaration of
Independence
On the second day of July, Jefferson finished his declaration.
He showed it to the others working with him. They helped a little
by making a few small changes to the declaration. Jefferson’s
declaration said that every person should feel safe to live, to be
free, and to decide what to do in order to be happy. He wrote that
everyone, not only kings or queens, had the right to these things.
Jefferson’s declaration said that this was the reason to start a new
nation—the United States of America. One of his friends, named John
Adams, smiled and said, “I told you, Thomas; you were the man to
write it.”
Show image 5A-9: Signing of the Declaration of Independence
Two days after Jefferson finished writing the Declaration of
Independence—on the fourth of July—the leaders voted to begin a
new country that was free from the British king. This is why we call
the Fourth of July “Independence Day.” Show image 5A-10: The first three presidents
[Point to each president as they are referred to in the read-aloud.]
Thirteen years after Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of
Independence, the United States elected its first president.