Essential Question

I decided to focus on my history class for this assignment, and create a project for the study of the causes of the American Revolution. In the past, my students read about - did worksheets on - watched videos of - blah,blah,blah - about the Revolution. My gut feeling was, though, that while they might have memorized the causes, they didn't quite understand them. I wanted to create a lesson that would actually garner some empathy rather than sympathy. I wanted them to FEEL what he colonists felt: This is OUR country, d*mnit!!
That being said, I'm thinking about ways for them to answer the question: "What was life like for a teenager growing up in Boston in the year 1776?"
I know 1776 was essentially the climactic year of the war, but I think that the causes as well as the war itself will come through in the preparation and presentation. (I hope)