Teacher Notes
This page lists all teacher notes for this lesson. Individual notes can be accessed on the main Teacher Notes page.
Welcome to Colonial America (20 minutes)
This is an introductory page to the activity. Be sure that students read this page and ensure that they understand the goal of the activity before going to the next page.
Standards Addressed:
3.B.1.c,
D2.Geo.8.3-5,
D4.6.3-5,
RI.5.7,
SSOP4
The Engineering Design Process (15 minutes)
On this page, students learn about the engineering design process. As students watch the videos, discuss the steps that engineers go through while completing the engineering design process.
Standards Addressed:
RI.5.7
Explore the Colonies (90 minutes)
On this page, students will explore several different colonies and their successes and failures. Students will read the information for each colony and take notes on pages 2 – 3 in their Engineering Portfolios. You may wish to model note-taking for one of the settlements in front of the class, or do whole-class notes for one of the settlements. Students may work in groups while reading and taking notes.
Colonial Settlements (Answer Key)
Category |
Roanoke |
Jamestown |
Plymouth |
New Amsterdam |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Physical Geography |
Located on an island off the coast |
On the James River |
On a hill, near a good harbor, areas already cleared for fields |
Located at the mouth of the Hudson River |
Climate |
Warm and favorable |
Hot and muggy |
Cold and damp |
Warm Summer and Cold Winters |
Crops Planted |
Not Known |
Tobacco |
Indian corn |
Grains and crops |
Key Economic Activities |
Not Known |
Growing tobacco |
Trading in furs, growing crops |
Fur and fish trading |
Challenges Faced |
Hostility from Native Americans, possibly disease or starvation |
Hostility from Native Americans, little access to fresh water, sickness |
Harsh weather, poor shelter, illness, limited food |
Conflicts with Native Americans and English colonists over land |
Accomplishments |
Not Known |
Grew successful growing tobacco |
Learned to grow new crops, began to trade furs |
Grew wealthy from the fur trade |
Population Changes (Growth or Decline) and causes |
Entire settlement lost – causes unknown |
Initially lost 80% of the population to sickness and warfare. In later years, once tobacco was established as a cash crop, the colony grew. |
Lost half of their settlers in the first winter to illness and the weather. During the next six years, the settlement tripled in size as more colonists arrived. |
Mostly continued to grow as more settlers arrived to take part in the fur trade |
Follow this activity with a class discussion on what a settlement needs to be successful. Ask students to cite evidence from the case studies if possible.
Students may be unfamiliar with the word brackish, used in the Jamestown section. Explain that brackish water is a mix of salty water and fresh water and has too much salt for people to drink safely.
Differentiation
Another option is to ask students to jigsaw the reading. Divide students into four groups and assign each group a settlement to research. Once they have read about their settlement and completed the column on their settlement, form groups of four, with one student from each settlement research group. Have students share their findings with their group-mates.
Circulate to monitor student understanding and gauge whether students need clarification on certain understandings before continuing.
Standards Addressed:
3.A.1.d, 3.B.1.c, 3.C.1.a, 3.D.1.b, 3.D.1.c,
D2.Geo.4.3-5, D2.Geo.5.3-5, D2.Geo.7.3-5, D2.Geo8.3-5, D4.6.3-5,
RI.5.1, RI.5.7,
SL1,
SSOP4,
MTLSS 4.A.1, MTLSS 5.B.1,
5.ESS3-1
Describe a Settlement (30 minutes)
On this page, students will reflect on what they learned while reading the four case studies. To help students answer the questions, you may wish to facilitate a whole-class brainstorm on the topics. One way to do this is to write the question in the middle of an idea web and then write students’ ideas in circles surrounding the question. Students will complete their summaries on page 4 in their Engineering Portfolios. You may wish to provide students with lined paper to write their summaries. Have several students share their reflections before moving on to the next step in the activity.
Standards Addressed:
3.A.1.d, 3.B.1.c, 3.C.1.a, 3.D.1.b, 3.D.1.c,
D2.Geo.4.3-5, D2.Geo.5.3-5, D2.Geo.7.3-5, D2.Geo8.3-5, D4.6.3-5,
W.5.8, W.5.9,
SL1,
SSOP3,
5.ESS3-1
Envisioning a New World (15 minutes)
Students should read the information on the page. Point out to students the location of the new settlement, especially in relation to the four case study settlements.
Standards Addressed:
3.A.1.d
Research Features of Your Region (60 minutes)
Students will explore the slideshow to learn about various aspects of the geography of their settlement site. Next, lead a class discussion where students will be asked to predict the advantages and disadvantages of the settlement site and how the site’s geography will affect life in the settlement. As students discuss, they should fill out the decision trees on pages 5 – 6 in their Engineering Portfolios.
Decision Trees (possible answers)
Landforms and Bodies of Water
Advantages: Close to the bay and trading routes
Disadvantages: Being so close to the bay may make the water salty like it was in Jamestown.
Climate
Advantages: Climate is moderated by the bay. Only occasional snow. Winters are cold but not too harsh.
Disadvantages: Summer is hot and muggy. Cool, wet winters could reduce colonists’ resistance to disease.
Soil
Advantages: Soil is very fertile.
Disadvantages: Areas near and in the marshes are not good for farming.
Plants
Advantages: Good trees for wood, good plants for food and medicine.
Disadvantages: Some poisonous plants
Animals
Advantages: The land and water have many animals that can be sources of food, such as bears, bison, elk, fish, crabs and oysters.
Disadvantages: Some dangerous predators such as bears, mountain lions and wolves
Standards Addressed:
3.B.1.c, 3.C.1.a,
D2.Geo.7.3-5, D2.Geo.8.3-5,
W.5.8, W.5.9,
SL1,
SSOP4, SSOP5,
MTLSS 5.B.1
Criteria for a Successful Settlement (30 minutes)
Students will work to complete a mind map on pages 7 – 9 in the Engineering Portfolios. Possible responses include: friendly relations with the Native Americans, good land for growing food, resources for building shelters, settlers who are willing to work hard, etc. Two options are offered for students to complete the mind map. The table option on page 9 is accessible to students requiring screen readers or keyboard navigation.
Standards Addressed:
SL1,
SSOP5
Overview of Coordinate Grids (45 minutes)
On this page students will learn about coordinate grids. They will use their new knowledge during their simulation as they place pieces of their settlement on the map. You will want to check for understanding and reteach if necessary before moving to the next page. Students will practice using a coordinate grid by completing the activity on pages 10 – 11 in their Engineering Portfolios. Note that page 11 should be printed for students so that they can mark points on the grid.
On page 10 of the Engineering Portfolio, students are asked to plot points on a coordinate grid. An alternate to this activity is to set up your own online graph using the Create a Graph website.
Directions for the Create a Graph website: To set up a blank grid, select the XY graph. On the next page, use the side tabs and go to Data. At the bottom of the data page are fields for Minimum and Maximum values for x and y. Put 0 for the minimum and 10 for the maximum for both x and y. Use the Preview tab to see the blank graph. Working with students, help them use the Data page to plot points on the grid. Toggle between Data and Preview to see the grid.
On page 11 of the Engineering Portfolio, students are asked to identify coordinates of symbols on a map. For this activity, consider partnering students or work with students to provide verbal descriptions of the map.
You may also wish to link lessons in your math curriculum on coordinate grids to this activity for further reinforcement and practice.
Standards Addressed:
MP.4,
5.G.2
Build Your Settlement (90 minutes)
On this page, students will use the computer to simulate creating a settlement. They should record information on pages 12 – 22 in their Engineering Portfolios as they complete each step in the tool. Note that for pages 21 and 22, you may wish to provide students with lined paper to complete the activities by hand.
Students will choose the locations of various parts of the settlement and then test their settlement against natural disasters, such as floods and blizzards. They will then have an opportunity to revise their settlements to make them more resilient against a future disaster of the same kind.
As students complete the simulation, circulate between groups, offering guidance. If students are having difficulty deciding where to place certain pieces, suggest that they explore the pros and cons of different locations. If their settlement is destroyed significantly by a natural disaster, encourage students to consider how the placement of their pieces contributed to the destruction. Ask students how they might change their settlement to make it stronger.
Note that in most cases, students will not build a perfect settlement. The factors that determine success vary based on the type of disaster and the placement of structures. Like early settlements in the New World, there are always challenges to overcome.
Math Extension:- Have students gather data from each individual or group to identify whether their colonies were successful in the face of a particular natural disaster.
- Have students determine the success rate of colonies affected by a hurricane, drought, flood and blizzard by calculating the percentage of successful colonies for each type of disaster. Students may also calculate the success rate of the colonies for all disasters combined.
- Ask students to explain some of the factors that may have contributed to these success rates.
Standards Addressed:
3.B.1.c , 3.C.1.a, 3.D.1.b , 3.D.1.c,
D2.Geo.8.3-5, D4.6.3-5, D4.7.3-5,
MP.4,
5.G.2,
SSOP1, SSOP6,
MTLSS 3.A.1, MTLSS 6.3,
3-5-ETS1-1,
3-5-ETS1-2,
3-5-ETS1-3
If I knew then what I know now… (120 minutes)
On this page students will complete a writing project to summarize what they have learned. Students will write a “Savvy Colonists’ Guide to the New World,” with each group contributing a column. Consider having students use Word, PowerPoint or plain paper to create this column. You may wish to review the steps of the writing process and the rubric with students as they complete the project. Students should refer to pages 23 – 29 in their Engineering Portfolios to guide them through this activity.
Gather the finished columns into a book and hold a publishing party with the students.
Standards Addressed:
3.B.1.c, 3.C.1.a, 3.D.1.b, 3.D.1.c,
D2.Geo.8.3-5, D4.6.3-5, D4.7.3-5,
W.5.8, W.5.9,
SL1,
SSOP3,
MTLSS 3.C.1, MTLSS 6.5,
3-5-ETS1-2
