ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
The Jamestown Settlement
A Teaching Unit for 4th Grade Students
Prepared By: Kaitlin Van Buren
Url: http://kvanburen.wmwikis.net/
Submitted as Partial Requirement for ED 405
Elementary and Middle Social Studies Curriculum and Instruction
Professor Gail McEachron
The College of William and Mary
Fall 2010
Contents
Historical Narrative
Map/Globe Skills: Identifying the significance of Jamestown’s location
Critical Thinking and the Arts: Identifying the significance of Powhatan
wampum belts
Civic Engagement: Biography of John Rolfe
Global Inquiry: Exploring archeological findings at Jamestown
Assessments: Objective and Essay
Bibliography
Appendix A: National and State Standards
Expenses
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Historical Narrative
Introduction and Alignment with Standards
The commonwealth of Virginia has been a birthplace for many of the United
States’ founding fathers and has played a major role in the history of our nation; however,
before Virginia became a part of the United States, it was a colony inhabited by English
colonists, the Powhatan Indians, and African slaves. In fact, the colony of Virginia
possessed the first permanent settlement of the English colonies after a group of one
hundred and four men and young boys sailed from London and landed on the shores of
Jamestown, Virginia in 1607. They hoped to profit from the opportunities in the New
World. The Jamestown settlement was named after England’s King James I and the fort
that the European settlers built was called James Fort, both to honor the English crown.
The Jamestown settlement is important for Virginia fourth grade students to learn
because it marks the beginning of Virginia history and gives students insight about
interactions among the European settlers, Powhatan Indians, and Africans during the
early years of United States’ history. When learning about Jamestown, the students are
exposed to the physical geography of Virginia, the reasons behind English colonization,
the role of women, Powhatan Indians, and Africans in colonization, what daily life was
like in the colonies, and the hardships the European settlers, Powhatan Indians, and
Africans had to face to make Jamestown a lasting settlement (See Virginia Standards of
Learning in Appendix A). Studying Jamestown engages Virginia students, for the
reason that their nation’s history originated in their home state. It is important to present
the students with many different perspectives of life in Jamestown and emphasize the
multi-gender and multicultural dimension of Jamestown’s history, so that the students
may understand that men and women from the Powhatan Indians, Africans, and
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Europeans are all equally significant. This will offer the students a diverse social studies
curriculum.
Key Ideas and Events
The main goal of settling in Jamestown, Virginia, was to create a colony from which
England could financially profit. Businessmen, who wanted to make obtain wealth from
Jamestown’s resources bought shares of the Virginia Company, often called the London
Company. The London Company gave command to Christopher Newport, captain of the
Susan Constant, John Ratcliff, captain of the Discovery, and Bartholomew Gosnold,
captain of the Godspeed. The three ships carried various supplies needed for settlement
including building materials, weaponry, barges for water transportation, gardening tools,
hatchets, and mirrors to trade with the natives (Cooper, 2006).
While Newport and Ratcliff were brave leaders, Bartholomew Gosnold was perhaps
the most influential European man in the history of Jamestown because he initiated the
movement in England that led to the King granting a charter to Jamestown in 1606
(Gookin, 1950). Gosnold recruited his assistant John Smith and others to travel with him
to the New World. The London Council of the Virginia Company asked him to search
for wealth in the form of minerals and natural resources (Gookin, 1950). Gosnold
married into the family of the first Treasurer of the Virginia Company, which created a
liaison between powerful leadership in Jamestown and the English money necessary to
sustain the Jamestown settlement. Unfortunately, Gosnold died of disease just four
months after arriving at Jamestown.
After Gosnold’s death, John Smith and Matthew Scrivener took on the roles of
leaders, yet the two men held opposing views on relations with the native Powhatan
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Indians. The London Council was dissatisfied with the way in which John Smith
commanded Jamestown, especially with his maltreatment of the Powhatan Indians
(Gookin, 1950). John Smith, who is often known as an explorer, a mapmaker, a
geographer, an ethnographer, a soldier, a governor, a trader, a sailor, and an author
bullied the Powhatan chiefs by threatening them with weapons in exchange for food
(Montgomery, 1994). His recklessness led the Council to support Scrivener’s more
passive leadership style.
With the death of Jamestown’s leaders like Gosnold and Scrivener within the first
year of settlement, power was left in the hands of John Smith who often offended other
colonists with his arrogant demeanor. Smith John Smith returned to England in 1609
when he heard that Sir George Somers and Sir Thomas Gates were slated to take control
of the Jamestown government until the appointment Governor General of the Colony
Lord de la Ware arrived (Gookin, 1950). This negative account of John Smith is rare
because many historians and students study John Smith’s biased recording of history
found in his diaries. In his diaries, Smith portrays himself as a brave hero who protected
the European settlers and eventually befriended the Powhatan Indians. In fact, John
Smith’s Eurocentric version of history is the most well known account of early life in the
Jamestown settlement. Unfortunately, it is a struggle to discern which aspects of John
Smith’s diaries are fact or fiction, and written documents from the Powhatan perspective
are rare because most of their accounts were passed down as oral history.
Life in Jamestown was difficult from the start for both the European settlers and the
Powhatan Indians with plaguing disease, inhospitable relationships, and famine.
However, opportunity arose for the European settlers with John Rolfe, an entrepreneur
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who arrived to Jamestown in 1609, experimented with tobacco and created the first
profitable export for the colony (Preservation Virginia, 2007). Rolfe obtained his
tobacco seeds from the Caribbean and planted them in Virginia soil. Through his
experimentation, he established the first American enterprise of tobacco trade that
exported over 20,000 pounds of tobacco to England in 1617 (Preservation Virginia,
2007). With the growing economy in the tobacco industry in Jamestown and the desire to
gain the most revenue possible from these “cash crops”, the need to acquire more slaves
through the trans-Atlantic slave trade increased greatly. Although Africans did not arrive
in Jamestown until 1619, it is important to notice their presence. The first known
Africans in Virginia were from the kingdom of Ndongo in Angola and were forcefully
brought to Jamestown for labor in the tobacco fields (Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation,
2010). At the time that the Africans were arriving in Virginia, it was unclear whether or
not they would be considered slaves or indentured servants who would be set free after
completing their work. However, the Europeans soon concluded that they would benefit
more from slavery, and began to treat the Africans as personal property.
While the British colonies struggled to create structure in Jamestown, the Powhatan
Indians, who occupied coastal Virginia long before the settlers arrived, lived in villages
and had an organized tribal society. The larger group, known as the Powhatan Indians,
was comprised of over 14,000 people that were separated into 30 separate tribes based on
village location (Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, 2010). A Wahunsonacock, also
known as a ‘Powhatan’ had control over all 30 tribes. Although the settlers viewed the
Powhatans as uncivilized savages, the natives operated in a hierarchical society
determined by one’s success and achievement, a governmental structure not appreciated
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by the settlers. The social rankings included simple commoners, great warriors, priests,
and rulers. When a native excelled in warfare or obtained luxury items like fur, copper,
and beads from trade, he moved up the social ladder and was given a larger home, more
wives, and ornate clothing (Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, 2010). While the English
settlers were Protestant Christians, the Powhatan religion was comprised of a multitude
of gods and natural spirits like Oke and Ahone, the gods of protection and good things
(Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, 2010). The Powhatans presented these spirits with
gifts and looked to them for guidance.
Men, Women, Youth, and Children
In the early years of the Jamestown settlement, over half of the founding colonists of
Jamestown were upper-class English gentlemen (Cooper, 2006). However, many men
like John Smith were artisans, craftsmen, and laborers who wanted to make a name for
themselves in the New World.
While influential men appear heroic in textbooks and John Smith’s diary entries, the
presence of European women and children has been ignored in recollections of
Jamestown’s history. In reality, women and children were living in the settlement by
1610 after the first single, white woman arrived in Jamestown in 1608 (Bernhard, 1992).
In 1609, the number of colonists was somewhere around two hundred people including
men, women, and children. The men planted forty acres of land that only provided
enough food for fifty people for the following year and most of the crops died out due to
weather issues and rat infestation (Bernhard, 1992). The problems with lack of provisions
drove the male settlers to venture outside of James Fort to find other sources of food.
European men left women and children at the Jamestown settlement while they went to
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explore other regions of Virginia. After years of losing Jamestown’s colonists to
starvation, “one must remember that of the colony’s able-bodied men, at least 150 had
already been killed by the Indians; 36 had sailed for England; and 25 or 30 had been sent
to Point Comfort” where provisions were plentiful (Bernhard, p. 613). This left the
“weak, the sick, the ones too old or too young for heavy labor and Indian fighting—and
the women” (Bernhard, p. 613). At least six out of sixty surviving people at Jamestown
were women including four women, a little girl, and an infant (Bernhard, 1992). One
such woman was a white maid named Anne Burras who was the first unmarried woman
to arrive, the first woman to marry, and the first to give birth to a child in the English
colonies.
Many more women and children were believed to be a part of the surviving
population at Jamestown; however, seventeenth century culture prohibited European
women from taking an active role in society. For example, “the Bible, the clergy, and
popular literature all described women as the ‘weaker vessel’ and gender roles in the
seventeenth century England were sharply differentiated on that basis” (Bernhard, p.
614). Because European society viewed women in this light, all European women, no
matter the social class, were left without the necessary skills they could use to fight off
native attacks or to gather provisions. Unlike the men, they did not learn to fight, hunt,
fish, or farm.
As the number of unfriendly interactions among the European settlers and the
Powhatan Indians increased, the male settlers did not venture outside of the fort as often.
The decline in outer wall exploration was not only due to the men’s fear of natives, but
also because they did not want to leave the growing number of women and children
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unprotected in the fortress. The presence of European women and children explains why
many colonists did not desert Jamestown for Point Comfort even though they were
starving, and may even be the reason Jamestown did not become an abandoned
settlement (Bernhard, 1992).
Powhatan women’s daily lives were quite different from the accounts that John Smith
wrote about in his journals. Unlike the English women who were prohibited from
learning survival skills, Powhatan woman worked in same-sex groups, had to be
physically strong and able to work like the men of their culture, and they had to be skilled
in a variety of different tasks (Rountree, 1998). These women not only had to complete
manual jobs to contribute to their tribe, but they also had to carry and care for their
infants simultaneously.
Pocahontas, daughter of Chief Powhatan, was an important Powhantan princess who
had the opportunity to experience both Powhatan and English culture. Her friendship
with a small group of English settlers matured into a larger relationship with English
rulers that brought about a peaceful partnership between the Powhatans and the colonists.
Pocahontas united the two cultures through her marriage to John Rolfe and her
conversion to Christianity. She used her new status to represent both the natives and the
English in the court of King James I (Woodward, 1980). The success of Jamestown owes
much to Pocohantas’ role as an educator that helped the British relate to daily lives of the
Powhatans and colonists in Jamestown even though the colony was far across the ocean.
Legacy
On the orders of the Virginia Company, the first representative assembly in the New
World known as the General Assembly met in the Jamestown church on July 30, 1619
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(Hatch, 1942). The assembly’s purpose was to "establish one equal and uniform
government over all Virginia" to afford just laws (Hatch, 1942). This meeting marked
the early signs of democracy in the New World.
At the end of the seventeenth century, the colonial capital relocated from Jamestown
to Williamsburg. However, Jamestown remained an integral part of Virginia, especially
during the Revolutionary War. Jamestown harbored boats and acted as an artillery post
for both the colonists and the British at various points throughout the war (Hatch, 1942).
The legacy of the Powhatan Indians is not as promising as that of the Europeans. By
the late 1640s, the Powhatan Confederacy, which was comprised of all Virginia
Powhatan tribes, collapsed. With the expansion of the colonists from Jamestown to other
coastal parts of Virginia continuing to spread into the 1700s, the colonists forced the
Powhatans out of their native homeland. The Powhatans had to leave behind their fertile
river valleys that caused their lifestyle to change drastically—many died from disease,
lack of food, and battles with colonists. Even still, the Powhatans learned to adapt to
their new surroundings without abandoning their cultural identity. Interestingly,
Europeans and Africans lived among the Powhatan tribes and often intermarried
(Rountree, 1998). African slaves who escaped from their European masters and
Europeans indentured servants who wanted to be free of servitude peacefully integrated
into the Powhatan culture by adopting their traditions and working as equals on daily
tasks. In 1676, Europeans began enslaving Powhatan Indians until the 18th century
despite a 1691 ruling by the House of Burgesses that Indian slavery be abolished
(Rountree, 1998). European settlers continued to murder and relocate Powhatan Indians
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and other American Indian tribes well into the 19th century, as Europeans desired more
land and expanded westward.
The Powhatan Indians endured a similar misfortune as the Africans who were bought
to Jamestown as slaves. The African slave trade developed in Virginia in 1619 marked
the beginning of mistreatment of African people by Europeans. As the tobacco industry
increased in Virginia, more and more African slaves were imported for free labor.
Southern European colonists enslaved Africans for over 200 years until the northern
victory over the Confederacy in the Civil War outlawed the institution of slavery.
However, the racist attitudes that developed from slavery did not dissolve, and white
European descendants continued to view African Americans as less equal until the Civil
Rights Movement in the 1960s. Students who study human rights issues today can trace
the roots of discrimination back to the colonial period of Virginia’s history.
Narrative Resources
Bernhard, V. (1992). “Men, Women and Children" at Jamestown: Population and Gender
in Early Virginia, 1607-1610. The Journal of Southern History, Vol. 58, No. 4,
pp. 599-618.
Browne, C.A. (1939). Reverend Dr. John Clayton and His Early Map of Jamestown,
Virginia. The William and Mary Quarterly, Second Series, Vol. 19, No. 1, pp. 2-7
Cooper, M. (2006). Jamestown, 1607. New York: Holiday House
Gookin, W.F. (1950). The First Leaders at Jamestown. The Virginia Magazine of History
and Biography, Vol. 58, No. 2, pp. 181-193.
Hatch, C.E. (1942). Jamestown and the Revolution. The William and Mary Quarterly,
Second Series, Vol. 22, No. 1, pp. 30-38
Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. (2010). Jamestown Settlement. Retrieved on February
20, 2010 from
http://www.historyisfun.org/Jamestown-Settlement.htm
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Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. (2010). Pocahontas and the Powhatans of Virginia.
Retrieved on February 20, 2010 from
http://www.historyisfun.org/pocahontas-and-the-powhatans-of-virginia.htm
Kellogg, L.P. (1941). Pocahontas and Jamestown. The Wisconsin Magazine of History,
Vol. 25, No. 1, pp. 38-42
Montgomery, D. (1994). Captain John Smith. Colonial Williamsburg Journal, Vol. 16,
No. 3, p. 14.
National Park Service. (2007). History & Culture of Historic Jamestowne. Retrieved
February 20, 2010 from
http://www.nps.gov/jame/historyculture/index.htm
Preservation Virginia. (2007). History of Jamestown. Retrieved February 20, 2010, from
http://www.preservationvirginia.org/rediscovery/page.php?page_id=6
Preservation Virginia. (2007). Jamestown Rediscovery. Retrieved on April 6, 2010 from
http://www.preservationvirginia.org/rediscovery/page.php?page_id=393
Rountree, H.C. (1998). Powhatan Indian Women: The People Captain John Smith Barely
Saw. Ethnohistory, Vol. 45, No. 1, pp. 1-29
Woodward, G. S. (1980). Pocahontas. Norman, OK: The University of Oklahoma Press.
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Lesson #1— Map/Globe Skills
Audience: Upper Elementary; Grade 4
Standards: Introduction to History and Social Science
VS.1 The student will demonstrate skills for historical and geographical analysis, including the
ability to i) analyze and interpret maps to explain relationships among landforms, water features,
climatic characteristics, and historical events.
VS.3 The student will demonstrate knowledge of the first permanent English settlement in
America by a) explaining the reasons for English colonization;
b)
describing how geography influenced the decision to settle at Jamestown;
Materials/Space/Time: John Smith’s 1608 Map of Jamestown and southeastern Virginia,
Compare/Contrast Worksheet, color print outs of current map of southeastern Virginia,
whiteboard and markers, document camera; average classroom space and whole group (21
students); one hour
Lesson Description:
Anticipatory Set: Pass out copies of John Smith’s 1608 map and copies of the current map
of southern Virginia to each student. Ask the class, “What looks different about the two maps
you have in front you of?” After the students observe several differences, explain what each
map represents. Begin discussing why the European settlers came to North America and why
they chose to settle this particular area on the James River (see Background Information).
Objective and Its Purpose:
Given a map of 1608 Jamestown and current map of southeastern Virginia, students will
identify the significance of the European settlers choosing Jamestown for the location of the
first permanent settlement as geographically beneficial for protection.
Input/Modeling: Explain that there were several other places on the Virginia coast that the
English could have settled besides Jamestown. Tell the class they will do a worksheet to help
us understand why Jamestown was the best choice for establishing the first permanent
settlement in the new world using 4 of the 5 themes of geography. Explain what the 5 themes
of geography are (see Background Information Part II). Write the 4 themes of geography that
the students will use for the lesson on the whiteboard with guiding questions as follows: 1.
Location: The students will be able to locate Jamestown and other potential sites on a map of
the past and present. 2. Movement: How would the location of Jamestown and other
potential settlements help with movement of goods, people, and information? 3. Place: What
were the physical characteristics of Jamestown and the other potential settlements? 4.
Relationships With-in Places: How did the environment of Jamestown and potential
settlement sites impact the settlers? What good and bad experiences would they have?
Explain that the students will look at both the 1608 map and the current map to determine the
advantages and disadvantages of each potential settlement location. The teacher will show
students how to compare the 1608 map of Jamestown to a current map of southeast Virginia
that is rotated 90 degrees to help fill out the worksheet. Tell students that the current map is
rotated so that it shows the landforms in the same way as John Smith’s 1608 map. Tell
students to first look at the 1608 map to find the correct color star. Then, look at the current
map to find the name of the stared location. Both maps will be used to determine the
movement and place for each potential settlement. The students will use the 1608 map to fill
in the relationships within places theme to see what native tribes occupied each potential
settlement. The teacher will go to document camera and fill out first column on the
compare/contrast worksheet as follows: Under Location, write Jamestown. For movement,
write on river system—good for trading goods with Europe. For place write safety on James
River—protected peninsula. For relationships with-in places, write no native tribes appear to
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be settled at Jamestown on John’s Smith’s 1608 map—wrong assumption. Ask class how
they know John Smith’s assumption about the Powhatans was wrong.
Check for Understanding: Students must locate James Fort on Jamestown settlement on
both 1608 Map and current map of Virginia. Teacher will move finger around the 1608 map
first then the current map. When students believe the finger is on the correct location, they
will give a thumbs-up signal. Teacher waits for all thumbs to be up to show understanding.
If a student does not raise his/her thumb, call on that student to try to discern where he/she is
having difficulty.
Guided Practice: Have students complete the next two columns of the compare/contrast
table by using 4 of the 5 themes of Geography as a guide. This is done as a class. Teacher
will instruct students to start with the location at the red star and will ask the students to raise
their hands to help fill in the chart. Should read as follows Location: Cape Charles;
Movement: on water—good for trade; Place: open to the sea—no protection; Relationships:
inhabited by Accowamack Indian settlement—threat. Next complete the same routine for the
blue star. The teacher will circulate the classroom as students fill in charts according to
instructions given by teacher. The teacher should have her copy of the worksheet on
document camera for the students to refer to.
Independent Practice: Have students finish the compare/contrast worksheet by filling in the
information for the last two locations (the yellow star and the orange star). They must use
both the 1608 map and the current map of southeastern Virginia for reference. When
finished, the students will share their results with a partner.
Closure: Collect the 1608 Map and Current Virginia Map Compare/Contrast worksheet.
Pass out multiple-choice question that the students must complete independently as an exit
slip before they can leave for recess.
Evaluation:
Formative: The teacher will observe participation during ‘Check for Understanding’
and while the students are working on their worksheets. The teacher should correct
any student who seems to be confused about instructions.
Summative: The teacher will evaluate the diagrams completed by the students and
the multiple-choice question.
Background Information/Content:
Part I: The British decided to travel to North America for several different reasons. These
reasons included the hope of finding a Northwest Passage, the desire to obtain a piece of the new
world and create a future economic market for English goods, and to spread Christianity to the
new world. They decided to settle 12 miles from the opening of the Atlantic on a swampy area
along the James River in Virginia. This location seemed ideal because they were far enough
inland to hide from Spanish pirates, yet assessable for the British ships to trade goods. The
settlers also believed that the land was good for growing crops and was uninhabited by natives.
Motivated by all of these reasons, they constructed a triangular fortress named James Fort as their
permanent settlement. The settlement earned the name Jamestown after England’s King James I.
However, Jamestown’s conditions soon revealed to be unpleasant with unfriendly relationships
with the Powhatans, disease carrying mosquitoes, bad drinking water, and extreme seasonal
temperatures. The harsh conditions made the struggle for survival that the settlers endured from
1607-1619 much worse until they moved the settlement to Williamsburg, Va.
Part II: Five themes of Geography: Location: The exact location of a place on the earth’s
surface. Place: The physical and human characteristics of a place that set the place a part form
other places. Relationship within Places: How humans interact with the environments of a place,
with both the good and bad results. Movement: The movement of people, products, information,
and ideas within a place and between places. Regions: How a region is formed and changes.
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Resources
Jamestown Geography. (2010). How Did Geography Affect the Site for First Settlement? Retrieved on
March 1, 2010 from
http://www.pkwy.k12.mo.us/CandD/CurriculumAreas/SocStudies/documents/Jamestown_Geography
_lesson_.pdf
Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. (2010). Jamestown Settlement. Retrieved on February 20, 2010
from
http://www.historyisfun.org/Jamestown-Settlement.htm
Virtual Jamestown. (1998). John Smith’s Map of Virginia, 1608. Retrieved on March 1, 2010 from
http://www.virtualjamestown.org/maps1.html
Assessment
What was the most important reason that influenced the British to settle at
Jamestown? (2 pts)
A. The location on the James River provided protection.
B. The crop-friendly soil would help the economy.
C. They could spread their religion there.
D. They had a good relationship with natives.
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Materials
John Smith’s 1608 Map and Current Southeastern Virginia Map Compare/Contrast
Worksheet
Themes
James Fort
Red Star
Blue Star
Location
Jamestown
Cape Charles
Hampton
Movement
On a river
system so ships
can trade with
settlement
On water—
good for trade
On water—
good for trade
Place
Safety on James
River—
protected
peninsula
Open to sea
without land
protection
Open to big
body of water—
no protection
Relationship
Within places
No native tribe
appears on 1608
map—wrong
assumption
Accowmack
Indian
settlement—
threat
Inhabited by
Kecoughtan
tribe—threat
Yellow Star
Orange Star
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Current Map of Southeastern Virginia (rotated 90 degrees)
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John Smith’s 1608 Map of Southeastern Virginia
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Lesson #2— Critical Thinking and the Arts
Audience: Upper Elementary, Grade 4
Standards: Virginia Studies
VS.1
The student will demonstrate skills for historical and geographical analysis and
responsible citizenship, including the ability to a) identify and interpret artifacts and
primary and secondary source documents to understand events in history
VS.3
The student will demonstrate knowledge of the first permanent English settlement
in America by g) describing the interactions between the English settlers and the
native peoples, including the contributions of Powhatan to the survival of the
settlers.
VS.2
The student will demonstrate knowledge of the physical geography and native
peoples, past and present, of Virginia
National Standards for Art Education (Visual Arts)
4.1 Students use different media, techniques, and processes to communicate ideas,
experiences, and stories
4.3 Students select and use subject matter, symbols, and ideas to communicate meaning
4.4 Students identify specific works of art as belonging to particular cultures, times, and
places
Objective:
1. After a class discussion of a Powhatan wampum belts, students will identify the
significance of the wampum belt as “peaceful”.
2. Given construction paper, glue, and beads, students will create their own wampum
belt, which must tell a story or express a familial relationship.
Materials/Space/Time: overhead of wampum belt given to William Penn, document camera,
power point of other images of wampum belts, white construction paper, glue, plastic beads
(white and purple); whole class of 20 students with the room divided into 5 tables 4 students
at each table; one hour
Lesson Description:
Introduction: The class has been learning about the interactions of the English settlers and
the Powhatan tribe in the Jamestown Settlement in Virginia. Explain how the Powhatan
culture was a very important aspect of the relationship between the English settlers and the
Powhatans and the relationship between the Powhatans and other neighboring tribes. Tell the
students about how all cultures create art forms that have various meanings. Place an
overhead image of a Powhatan wampum belt up on the document camera. Do not tell the
students what the object is or what is was used for. Give them a few minutes to examine the
picture then tell them that this object is very similar to a book because it tells a story.
Content Focus: Key Questions: Objective: What do you see? What are some characteristics
of this art form? Reflective: If you were the artist, what objects or patterns would you use?
Why are those patterns or objects important to you? Will all people who look at your art form
understand the patterns that tell your story, or will the meaning be unclear to them?
Interpretive: Who do you think created this art form? What do you think the purpose of this
object is? What do you think this art form is made of? What would you call this art form?
Why do you think the artist chose to use these materials? What kind of story do you think the
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artist is trying to tell with this pattern? Why did the artist include four crossing shapes? Is this
for religion or ceremony? Why did the artist only use two colors? Decisional: Do you think
the artist chose to depict the cross-like geometric pattern for a specific reason? Why is this art
form is so important to Powhatan culture and relationships with neighboring peoples?
Discuss the cultural history of the Powhatan wampum belt (see Background
Information/Content). Explain that this wampum belt was given to an English settler in
Pennsylvania named William Penn in 1682 by a Powhatan tribe. Today, it is located in the
National Museum of the American Indian in New York City. Tell the students that they will
have a chance to create their own versions of wampum belts using construction paper, beads,
and glue. Tell them that they must chose a story or special family relationship that the must
represent on their wampum belts. They cannot use words, only patterns and designs to tell
their stories. Show the students your model of the wampum belt you made and explain the
story it tells.
Pass out construction paper, glue, and beads to the students. Have each student create
his/her own wampum belt to represent a story in his/her life. Remind the students that
authentic Powhatan wampum belts are made of wampum beads and string woven from deer
hide thongs, sinew, milkweed bast, or basswood fibers. Tell them that both the beads and the
string were both natural resources. The materials that they are using will be synthetic.
Closure: After the students finish their wampum belts, tell them to share the stories they tell
in small groups. As a whole group, ask students what they thought about creating their own
wampum belts. What story did they tell? Why did they think it was important to represent
that story? Was it difficult to use patterns to tell a story instead of words? If the students
finish their belts early, tell them to write out the story that they depicted on their belts in their
social studies journals. Before students leave the class, they must complete the multiplechoice question that the teacher will pass out.
Assessment:
Formative: Observation of students’ responses during discussion of the Key
Questions and discussion on Powhatan art forms.
Summative: Each student will create an original wampum belt out of construction
paper and beads that tells a story or represents a family connection. Exceeds
Expectations= the student creates a detailed and creative pattern that tells a familial
story. Meets Expectations= the student completes the belt using the blue and white
beads to create patterns that tells a story. Below Expectations= the student does not
create patterns using the beds and/or does not represent a familial story. Students will
also complete the multiple-choice question attached below.
Background Information/Content:
The Powhatans of Virginia are known for their skilled beadwork and basketry. They used
Quahog clamshells to make small beads that they called wampum. These beads could be
white or purple, but the purple beads were more valuable. Unlike today where you can easily
buy beads from the craft store, the Powhatans had to drill the holes in the shells and weave
string through them to make wampum beads to decorate objects like belts and bracelets. The
designs on wampum belts told a story or represented family relationship. Although this craft
required many hours of labor, Wampum belts were a major part of Powhatan culture. In fact,
the Powhatans traded Wampum beads and belts with other tribes as a symbol for peace and a
way to obtain goods. The Powhatans did not trade wampum belts with the English settlers in
Jamestown because they mainly exchanged clothing. This changed years later when
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
Powhatan tribes in New England began trading wampum belts with English settlers causing
similar exchanges to occur in Jamestown as a sign for peacekeeping.
Resources
Britannica Encyclopedia (2010). William Penn Wampum Belt. Retrieved on March 16,
2010 from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic-art/635213/7967/Beadedwampum-belt-given-to-William-Penn-1682-in-the
Garrett, N. (2004). Algonquian Language Group Powhatan Tribe: Culture. Retrieved on
March 16, 2010 from
http://mal.sbo.hampton.k12.va.us/fourth/socstudies/indianwebquest/algon.htm
King, D. (2008). First Americans: The Powhatans. Tarrytown, NY Marshall Cavendish.
2008.
Roundtree, H. (1989). The Powhatans Indians of Virginia: Their Traditional Culture.
Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press.
Assessment
What was the primary reason that the Powhatans traded wampum belts? (2 pts)
A. They were a form of money.
B. They acted as a message of peace.
C. They bought good spirits to the tribe.
D. They represented a marriage proposal.
Materials
Example of Student Work:
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
Photo: Wampum given to William Penn
Additional examples of Powhatan Wampum belts for PowerPoint
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
Lesson #3— Civic Engagement
Audience: Upper Elementary, Grade 4
Standards:
VS.4
The student will demonstrate knowledge of life in the Virginia colony by
a) explaining the importance of agriculture and its influence on the institution of
slavery;
National Social Studies Standards (Middle Grades)
Standard 3B: The People, Events, Problems, and Ideas that Created the History of Their
State—Analyze some of the interactions that occurred between the Native Americans or
Hawaiians and the first European, African, and Asian-Pacific explorers and settlers in the
students' state or region.
NSS-C.K-4.5 Roles of the Citizen: What is the importance of political leadership and public
service?
Objective and Its Purpose:
1. After a class discussion about John Rolfe’s influence on Jamestown’s tobacco industry
and Powhatan-English relations, the students will identify John Rolfe’s leadership roles.
2.Given construction paper, Popsicle sticks, glue, and crayons, the students will create
paper puppets of John Rolfe, Pocahontas, and others and act out an important interaction
between John Rolfe and the settlers or John Rolfe and Powhatans between 1609 and 1617.
Materials/Space/Time: popsicles sticks, cutouts of people, construction paper, scissors,
glue, crayons, skit worksheet; extension timeline worksheet; 20 students; working in small
groups of 2, 1 hour
Lesson Description:
Introduction: As motivation, tell students that you are going to read a paragraph of a
letter from an important leader of the Jamestown settlement. Explain that it is a letter by
John Rolfe to Governor Dale of Virginia where he asks the governor for permission to
marry Pocahontas in 1614. Read the paragraph (See excerpt below). Next, read the
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
translated version of the letter (see excerpt below). Ask the students if they understand
why it would be controversial for John Rolfe to marry Pocahontas. Tell students that even
though John Rolfe’s marriage to Pocahontas was controversial, it brought peace between
the Powhatans and the English settlers. Explain to students that John Rolfe influenced life
in the Jamestown settlement in more ways than just forming a peaceful inter-racial
marriage between the English settlers and the Powhatans. Tell the students that he was a
civic leader who many other English settlers and Powhatans respected and looked up to.
Explain to students that they will learn more about John Rolfe’s role in Jamestown’s
history as a civic leader in today’s lesson.
Content Focus: Students will have previously learned about Pocahontas and the
Powhatan Indians. They learned about how the English settlers and the Powhatans did not
get along. Share information on John Rolfe’s life with the whole class (see Background
Information). Tell students that they will have the chance to re-enact an interaction
between John Rolfe and Powhatans or John Rolfe and other English settlers that occurred
from the time Rolfe arrived in Jamestown in 1609 to the year 1617 when he exported a
20,000-pound shipment of tobacco to England. Explain to the students that each group
will receive an event to describe. Then they will work with the person seated next to them
to make paper puppets of John Rolfe and other Powhatans and/or English settlers
(depending on their event) using construction paper, glue, crayons, and Popsicle sticks.
The students must make at least 2 puppets. Tell students that after they finish making
their puppets, they will write and act out a skit using their puppets with their partner that
describes an interaction between John Rolfe and the English settlers or the Powhatans.
Tell them to use the information they just learned and their creativity when writing the
skit. Tell students that this skit does not need to be long. No more than 2-3 minutes. Pass
out materials to students and give them 35 minutes to work in their pairs. Explain that
each topic sheet has a topic on the front and a hint on the back. The students only have to
look at the hint if they cannot come up with an idea for a skit. After students act out the
vents for each pair, they would have reenacted the period from 1609 to 1617.
Closure: After students finish their puppets and skits, call on groups to share a summary
of their skit with the class. Not every group must share if they are not willing. Collect
puppets and skit scripts to place them on the class Jamestown bulletin board. Pass out
multiple-choice question for students to complete for they leave class.
Evaluation
Formative: Observation of student participation in their small groups while making the
puppets and skits.
Summative: Each student will create a paper puppet of John Rolfe and a Powhatan
Indian/English settler and must act out a skit according to their assigned event. Above
Expectations: students make puppets with clothing that looks time appropriate, and their
skits strongly align with background information. Meets Expectations: students make
puppets and a skit that that aligns with background information. Below Expectations:
students do not make one or more puppets or do not make their puppets resemble correct
characters. Their skit does not align with background information.
Background Information/Content: John Rolfe arrived in Jamestown in 1609, just two
years after the founding of the settlement. From the time Rolfe arrived in Jamestown, he
portrayed civic leadership in many ways. For example, Rolfe was experimental with
agriculture and was not afraid to try something new to improve Jamestown’s economy.
Rolfe’s enthusiasm for new ideas is responsible for the economic success of Jamestown
when he planted the first Caribbean tobacco seeds at the Jamestown settlement in 1612.
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
These tobacco seeds produced more desirable tobacco because its smoke had a sweet and
strong taste and it compared to the “Spanish” tobacco leaf. The tobacco crop was shipped
to England where it became extremely popular. His fearlessness and originality set an
example for later farmers who came to Jamestown.
In 1614, John Rolfe met Pocahontas, daughter of the Powhatan Chief, after she
was kidnapped by English settlers and bought to Jamestown to be traded for English
prisoners and weapons held by Powhatan. Pocahontas was never traded back to the
Powhatans, and she lived with the Europeans where she learned English, was baptized,
and married John Rolfe. The wedding between John Rolfe and Pocahontas resulted in
peace with the Powhatans. This peaceful relationship between the Powhatans and the
English allowed the settlers to expand their colony and establish other larger, permanent
settlements in the region. Even though Rolfe knew that marrying Pocahontas was not
culturally acceptable, he followed his heart anyway. This proves that Rolfe was a leader
for stepping out of social norms and doing what he believed was right. John Rolfe and
Pocahontas had a son named Thomas. The Rolfe family moved to England in 1616 where
Rolfe promoted and campaigned for the Virginia Company, but John returned to
Jamestown seven months later after Pocahontas died. Back in Jamestown, Rolfe became
a member of the House of Burgesses and continued to grow tobacco. This membership
gave him an influential political voice in the colony. By 1617, tobacco exports to England
totaled 20,000 pounds, and tobacco became Virginia’s “cash crop”. Not only did John
Rolfe bring peace among the Powhatans and the English, but he also gave Jamestown the
economic base it needed to survive settlement.
Resources:
Preservation Virginia. (2007). John Rolfe. Retrieved March 23, 2010, from
http://www.preservationvirginia.org/rediscovery/page.php?page_id=6
Wisconsin Historical Society. (2003). Letter of John Rolfe, 1614. Retrieved March 23, 2010
from
http://content.wisconsinhistory.org/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/aj&CISOPTR=4897
Assessment
How did John Rolfe portray civic leadership in Jamestown between 1609-1617? (2
pts)
A. He served as captain of the Godspeed that sailed to Jamestown from England.
B. He traded wampum belts with the Powhatans.
C. He built houses for the Jamestown Settlement.
D. He served as a member of the House of Burgesses.
Materials
Example of Student Work:
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
Letter of John Rolfe to Governor Dale of Virginia, 1614
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
Translation of Letter:
Let this be my well advised declaration, which I make between God and my own
conscience, be a sufficient witness, at the dreadful day of judgment (when the secret of
all men’s hearts shall be opened) to condemn me to argue with my power of body and
mind, and in the responsibility of such a great matter, not be led by a desire of physical
affection: but for the good of this plantation, for the honor of our country, for the glory of
God, for my own salvation, and for the wonderful creature named Pocahontas. To whom
m hart and best thought are, and have been for a long time so entangles, and enthralled in
an intricate labyrinth, that I was mental exhausted.
Topics Slips to pass out to each group:
(Front)
Group 1: In 1609, John Rolfe arrived in Jamestown just two years after the founding of
the settlement.
____________________________________________________________________
(Back)
Hints: Create a puppet of Rolfe and a famous English settler (like John Smith) and
imagine a conversation they could have together about improving life in the Jamestown
Settlement.
(Front)
Group 2: In 1612, Rolfe had success with the Caribbean tobacco seed and made the plant
popular.
____________________________________________________________________
(Back)
Hint: Create a puppet of Rolfe and another English settler who is a farmer. Describe
how Rolfe inspired other farmers to experiment with agriculture.
(Front)
Group 3: In 1612, Rolfe established Varina Farms, a plantation on the James River about
30 miles upstream from the Jamestown Settlement.
____________________________________________________________________
(Back)
Hint: Create a puppet of Rolfe and other English farmers who could have worked on
Varina Farms. Describe how Rolfe’s portrayed leadership during this time throughout
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
managing the farm and overseeing workers.
(Front)
Group 4: In 1614, Rolfe had his first sale of Virginia tobacco to England.
____________________________________________________________________
(Back)
Hint: Create a puppet of Rolfe and another English settler who worked on the boat that
shipped the first shipment of tobacco to England. Describe how you think Rolfe inspired
other workers in the colony to make/grow exports for England.
(Front)
Group 5: In 1614, Rolfe writes letter to Virginia Governor Dale asking for permission to
marry Pocahontas.
__________________________________________________________________
(Back)
Hint: Create a puppet of Rolfe and Governor Dale. Describe how Rolfe had to be firm
and convincing when speaking with the governor.
(Front)
Group 6: In 1614, Rolfe married Pocahontas.
____________________________________________________________________
(Back)
Hint: Create a puppet of Rolfe and Pocahontas and/or Chief Powhatan. Describe a
peaceful interaction among them.
(Front)
Group 7: From 1614 to 1617, Rolfe severed as a secretary and recorder of the colony.
____________________________________________________________________
(Back)
Hint: Create a puppet of Rolfe and an English settler and/or a Powhatan Indian.
Describe an interaction between them that Rolfe would write about.
(Front)
Group 8: In 1616, Rolfe and Pocahontas traveled to England to promote the Virginia
Company.
____________________________________________________________________
(Back)
Hint: Create a puppet of Rolfe and Pocahontas dressed in English clothes. Describe how
they both must have spoken to the English people about the Virginia Company to
promote it.
(Front)
Group 9: In 1617, Rolfe became an original member of the Virginia House of Burgesses
even before their first official meeting in 1619.
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
____________________________________________________________________
(Back)
Hint: Create a puppet of Rolfe and another Englishman in the House of Burgesses (like
James Powell). Describe how Rolfe established a minimum price for tobacco using his
experience as a farmer and his new political voice.
(Front)
Group 10: In 1617, Rolfe and his tobacco industry exported over 20, 000 pounds of
tobacco to England.
____________________________________________________________________
(Back)
Hint: Create a puppet of Rolfe and an English farmer/ship worker who worked with
Rolfe to ship the tobacco to England. Describe how Rolfe could have led and directed
the English worker to load the shipment.
Names:
Date:
John Rolfe Civic Leadership Skit Worksheet
Create a skit with your Popsicle stick puppets that describes the your event
between 1609-1617. This skit does not need to be long. No more than 2-3
minutes. Use the information we talked about in today’s lesson and your
CREATIVITY!
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
Lesson #4—Global Inquiry
Issue: The archeological findings of new material evidence at the Jamestown settlement
Audience: Heterogeneous fourth grade classroom. Students will have previous
knowledge of political, economic, and social features of the Jamestown settlement, but
have limited knowledge of archeological materials found on the settlement.
Standards: History and Social Science Standards of Learning for Virginia Public
Schools
VS.2 f) describing how archaeologists have recovered new material evidence at sites
including Werowocomoco and Jamestown
Essential Question: What does the new material evidence found in James Fort at
Jamestown tell us about life of the English settlers between 1607-1619?
Behavioral Objectives:
1. Given the opportunity to do research, students will demonstrate through
documented responses that the information gained from sources is directly
related to the questions posed, with 100% participation.
2. Given the opportunity to do research, students will synthesize information
learned about the archeological excavation of James Fort in Jamestown and
apply it to how the English settlers lived in Jamestown in the early 17th
century, with 100% participation.
3. Given information about signet rings from Jamestown, clay, and wooden
dowels, students will create their own signet ring, with 100% participation.
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
Materials/Space/Time: Computer access for a class of 20 students, copies of attached
research worksheet for each student; classroom space for whole group discussion, small
group discussion, and individual student research; 2 class periods, clay, wooden dowels,
artifact images.
The Lesson Proper
Introduction: Watch a video from Historic Jamestown website that shows an update
from March 2010 about a new pistol found in James Fort. This video will provide a
visual representation of the Jamestown Rediscovery excavation.
After watching the video, begin the lesson by asking students to brainstorm what they
know about archaeology. Write their ideas on the chalkboard. Then tell them that
archaeology is the study of the remains of another culture—often one that existed a long
time ago—in order to learn about life during another time. Archaeologists study artifacts,
objects that are found by digging in areas where archaeologists think other societies once
flourished. To look for artifacts in a specific place, archaeologists dig large holes called
excavation sites.
Content Focus:
Day 1
Tell students that they are going to have an opportunity to be amateur archaeologists.
They are going to look at artifacts from Jamestown, Virginia. Archaeologists found the
artifacts at the Jamestown excavation site in the mid-1990s. Students will look at 4
artifacts uncovered in James Fort during the Jamestown Rediscovery excavation. Give
each student a copy of the images of the artifacts and a small description of each artifact.
Give students a worksheet to help encourage inquiry. Guide the students by asking
questions such as, what do you see? What questions does this artifact make you think of?
Tell the students to visit the Preservation Virginia website to explore their questions
(http://www.preservationvirginia.org/rediscovery/page.php?page_id=393).
Predicted Outcomes:
The students will likely be interested in one artifact more than another. Some students
will focus on the coin and will want to know more about other coins found in James Fort.
Those students may wonder if archeologists have found coins from other European
countries. Other students will focus on the broad ax and what to explore more about
other tools used by the settlers. The students who are interested in jewelry and wearable
artifacts will focus on the signet ring and copper pendant. These students may want to
investigate questions about other personal items and metal armor.
Day 2: Have students share a quick review of information they found in yesterday’s
research. Tell the students that today they will complete research on the Strachey Ring
from Jamestown that the saw in class yesterday. Provide them with the following
website address to direct them to an article written by Dr. William Kelso, head
archeologist of Jamestown Rediscovery
(http://historicjamestowne.org/featured_find/featured_find.php?id=6). After they read
about the ring, provide a situation and ask them questions to provoke inquiry. These
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
questions should get the students thinking about what their signet ring would look like.
For example, tell the students to imagine they were an English settler living in James Fort
in 1610. Tell them that they wore a signet ring everyday. In 2010, an archeologist was
excavating James Fort and found your ring. What questions do you think the archeologist
would ask after finding your ring? What would the ring reveal about your life? Tell the
students that now they will design their own signet ring. Give students clay and wooden
dowels to carve out their design. Explain that signet rings were typically made of a metal
like gold, brass, and silver and the designs were engraved in the metal using a small
chisel and hammer; however, we will use clay and wooden sticks to make our rings.
Predicted Outcomes:
The students find that signet rings from James Fort were pressed into wax to seal letters.
They will also discover that signet rings often had the family’s crest or symbol engraved
on it. The students will likely create designs on their rings that either have an animal
motif, like the bird on the Strachey ring, or a monogram letter to represent their name.
Closure: Have students form into 5 small groups of 4 students each to share the
information that they found. Encourage the students to make inferences and synthesize
any information they found to make conclusions using direct citations from their
research. Make sure that the classroom is an environment where students can openly
share different opinions. Encourage students to challenge each other in a respectful
manner, supporting their arguments with cited evidence. Explain to students that they
should use the information they found to form a hypothesis about life in Jamestown. Tell
students that they should decide on generalizations about life and culture in Jamestown as
a group.
Evaluation
Formative: Observation of student participation in researching and discussion.
Summative: Completion of worksheet recording impressions, questions, and
documented research and completion of the attached essay question below.
Background Information/Content:
In 1994, the Preservation Virginia organization began an archaeological research
project on the 22 1/2 acres they owned on Jamestown Island. They named this project
Jamestown Rediscovery. Jamestown Rediscovery’s main goal was to find the site of the
earliest fortified town on the island, James Fort, which the English settlers of the Virginia
Company first built in 1607 through excavations. James Fort later became Jamestown,
the first permanent English settlement in the New World. Jamestown Rediscovery is lead
by archeologist, Dr. William Kelso. Since 1994, Dr. Kelso and his team have uncovered
material evidence that gives the public an idea about how the English settlers lived in
James Fort.
Background for artifacts:
Broad axe: An important tool of the colonists, this axe has a very sharp blade and was
used for cutting timber and shaping the wood into smaller pieces suitable for fires and
other purposes.
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
English coin: Coins are a particularly useful find for archaeologists because they are one
of the few artifacts that have a date on them. But in Jamestown, there was a shortage of
change, so coins often were used for a long period of time. This means that
archaeologists have to be careful about attributing a specific date to the coin.
Ring: This ring has been attributed to a colonist named William Strachey, who was in
Jamestown for only a year, between 1610 and 1611. While sailing to Jamestown on the
Sea of Venture, he ran into intense storms, which left him shipwrecked in Bermuda.
Apparently his account of the adventure inspired William Shakespeare to write the play
The Tempest.
Copper necklace: The colonists made jewelry out of copper to trade with the Indians in
exchange for food.
Resources
Discovery Education. (2010). What Artifacts Reveal About the Past. Retrieved on April
6, 2010 from http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/programs/artifacts/
Historic Jamestowne. (2010). James Fort Dig. Retrieved on April 6, 2010 from
http://historicjamestowne.org/the_dig/
Historic Jamestowne (2010). Strachey Ring. Retrieved on April 6, 2010 from
http://historicjamestowne.org/featured_find/featured_find.php?id=6
Preservation Virginia. (2007). Jamestown Rediscovery. Retrieved on April 6, 2010 from
http://www.preservationvirginia.org/rediscovery/page.php?page_id=393
Assessment
(10 points) Explain what life was like for people living in the James Fort from 1607
to 1619 (5 points). Give archeological evidence for the inferences you have made (5
points).
Materials
Example of Student Work:
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
NAME_______________
Student Investigation—James Fort Archeology
I. After looking at the 4 artifacts found in James Fort, record one interpretation of what
life was like for English settlers in Jamestown between 1607-1619.
II. What further questions do you have about what the artifacts reveal about life in James
Fort?
III. Investigate your questions by conducting further research. Record your findings
below.
Question:
Resource Consulted:
Information discovered relevant to question:
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
Additional information discovered:
Additional questions:
Time devoted to today’s research:
Example of Student Work:
NAME__Student
A
Student Investigation—James Fort Archeology
I. After looking at the 4 artifacts found in James Fort, record one interpretation of what
life was like for English settlers in Jamestown between 1607-1619.
After looking at the English coin, I guess that money was
an important part about life in James Fort because it was
brought over from England. The English settlers needed
money to create an economy in the New World.
II. What further questions do you have about what the artifacts reveal about life in James
Fort?
I want to know if archeologists have found coins from other
countries besides England. Did they find any coins from
the Scotch-Irish immigrants we learned about?
III. Investigate your questions by conducting further research. Record your findings
below.
Question:
Have archeologists found coins from other countries besides
England?
Resource Consulted:
Preservation Virginia website
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
http://www.preservationvirginia.org/rediscovery/page.php?pa
ge_id=120
Information discovered relevant to question:
Archeologists have found coins mostly from England,
but they also found Irish and Dutch coins. English men who
helped colonize Ireland may have brought the Irish coins to
Jamestown. The Dutch coins were created during the Eighty
Years' War against Spain. In this war, many English
settlers from Jamestown fought with the Dutch.
Additional information discovered:
I also found that coins had different weights. There
were brass coins, gold coins, and silver coins. The value
of the coins depended on how much gold and silver were in
them.
Additional questions:
How were coins used at James Fort? Did they make
money in James Fort, or did they import coins from England?
Were they worth the same amount as in England, Ireland, or
the Netherlands?
Time devoted to today’s research:
2:20-2:50 (30 minutes)
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
Photos: Artifact Images
Assessments
Name (1 pt)__________________
Objective Questions—
Directions: The teacher will distribute the questions to the students. Ask
students to silently read the questions and answers to themselves. Tell
students to circle the answer that they feel is correct. Each question is worth
2 points.
1. What was the most important reason that influenced the British to
settle at Jamestown? (2 pts)
A. The location on the James River provided protection.
B. The crop-friendly soil would help the economy.
C. They could spread their religion there.
D. They had a good relationship with natives.
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
2. What was the primary reason that the Powhatans traded wampum
belts? (2 pts)
E. They were a form of money.
F. They acted as a message of peace.
G. They bought good spirits to the tribe.
H. They represented a marriage proposal.
3. How did John Rolfe portray civic leadership in Jamestown between
1609-1617? (2 pts)
E. He served as captain of the Godspeed that sailed to Jamestown from
England.
F. He traded wampum belts with the Powhatans.
G. He built houses for the Jamestown Settlement.
H. He served as a member of the House of Burgesses.
Name __________________
Essay Question—
Directions: The teacher will distribute the question to the students. Read
the question out loud to the class. Then have students read the question to
themselves. Clarify any questions before telling students to begin writing.
The question is worth a total of 10 points.
(10 points) Explain what life was like for people living in the James Fort
from 1607 to 1619 (5 points). Give archeological evidence for the
inferences you have made (5 points).
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
Bibliography
Bernhard, V. (1992). “Men, Women and Children" at Jamestown: Population and Gender
in Early Virginia, 1607-1610. The Journal of Southern History, Vol. 58, No. 4,
pp. 599-618.
Britannica Encyclopedia (2010). William Penn Wampum Belt. Retrieved on March 16,
2010 from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic-art/635213/7967/Beadedwampum-belt-given-to-William-Penn-1682-in-the
Browne, C.A. (1939). Reverend Dr. John Clayton and His Early Map of Jamestown,
Virginia. The William and Mary Quarterly, Second Series, Vol. 19, No. 1, pp. 2-7
Cooper, M. (2006). Jamestown, 1607. New York: Holiday House
Discovery Education. (2010). What Artifacts Reveal About the Past. Retrieved on April
6, 2010 from
http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/programs/artifacts/
Garrett, N. (2004). Algonquian Language Group Powhatan Tribe: Culture. Retrieved on
39
ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
March 16, 2010 from
http://mal.sbo.hampton.k12.va.us/fourth/socstudies/indianwebquest/algon.htm
Gookin, W.F. (1950). The First Leaders at Jamestown. The Virginia Magazine of History
and Biography, Vol. 58, No. 2, pp. 181-193.
Hatch, C.E. (1942). Jamestown and the Revolution. The William and Mary Quarterly,
Second Series, Vol. 22, No. 1, pp. 30-38
Historic Jamestowne. (2010). James Fort Dig. Retrieved on April 6, 2010 from
http://historicjamestowne.org/the_dig/
Historic Jamestowne (2010). Strachey Ring. Retrieved on April 6, 2010 from
http://historicjamestowne.org/featured_find/featured_find.php?id=6
Jamestown Geography. (2010). How Did Geography Affect the Site for First Settlement?
Retrieved on March 1, 2010 from
http://www.pkwy.k12.mo.us/CandD/CurriculumAreas/SocStudies/documents/Jam
estown_Geography_lesson_.pdf
Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. (2010). Jamestown Settlement. Retrieved on February
20, 2010 from
http://www.historyisfun.org/Jamestown-Settlement.htm
Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. (2010). Pocahontas and the Powhatans of Virginia.
Retrieved on February 20, 2010 from
http://www.historyisfun.org/pocahontas-and-the-powhatans-of-virginia.htm
King, D. (2008). First Americans: The Powhatans. Tarrytown, NY Marshall Cavendish.
Kellogg, L.P. (1941). Pocahontas and Jamestown. The Wisconsin Magazine of History,
Vol. 25, No. 1, pp. 38-42
Montgomery, D. (1994). Captain John Smith. Colonial Williamsburg Journal, Vol. 16,
No. 3, p. 14.
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http://www.nps.gov/jame/historyculture/index.htm
Preservation Virginia. (2007). History of Jamestown. Retrieved February 20, 2010, from
http://www.preservationvirginia.org/rediscovery/page.php?page_id=6
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Preservation Virginia. (2007). Jamestown Rediscovery. Retrieved on April 6, 2010 from
http://www.preservationvirginia.org/rediscovery/page.php?page_id=393
Rountree, H.C. (1998). Powhatan Indian Women: The People Captain John Smith Barely
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Woodward, G. S. (1980). Pocahontas. Norman, OK: The University of Oklahoma Press.
Appendix A: National and State Standards
Introduction to History and Social Science
Standards: Virginia Studies
Skills
VS.1 The student will demonstrate skills for historical and geographical analysis
and responsible citizenship, including the ability to a) identify and interpret
artifacts and primary and secondary source documents to understand events in
history
i) analyze and interpret maps to explain relationships among landforms, water
features, climatic characteristics, and historical events.
Virginia: The Physical Geography and Native Peoples
VS.2 The student will demonstrate knowledge of the physical geography and
native peoples, past and present, of Virginia by
e) describing how American Indians related to the climate and their
environment to secure food, clothing, and shelter
f)describing how archaeologists have recovered new material evidence at
sites including Werowocomoco and Jamestown
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
Colonization and Conflict: 1607 through the American Revolution
VS.3 The student will demonstrate knowledge of the first permanent English
settlement in America by
a) explaining the reasons for English colonization
c) identifying the importance of the charters of the Virginia Company of
London in establishing the Jamestown settlement;
d) identifying the importance of the General Assembly (1619) as the first
representative legislative body in English America
e) identifying the importance of the arrival of Africans and English women to
the Jamestown settlement;
f) describing the hardships faced by settlers at Jamestown and the changes that
took place to ensure survival;
g) describing the interactions between the English settlers and the native
peoples, including the contributions of Powhatan to the survival of the settlers.
VS.4 The student will demonstrate knowledge of life in the Virginia colony by
a) explaining the importance of agriculture and its influence on the institution
of slavery
e) describing everyday life in colonial Virginia
National Standards for Art Education (Visual Arts)
4.1 Students use different media, techniques, and processes to communicate ideas,
experiences, and stories
4.3 Students select and use subject matter, symbols, and ideas to communicate meaning
4.4 Students identify specific works of art as belonging to particular cultures, times, and
places
National Council for Social Studies in the Schools (K-4)
National Social Studies Standards (Middle Grades)
Standard 3B: The People, Events, Problems, and Ideas that Created the History of
Their State—Analyze some of the interactions that occurred between the Native
Americans or Hawaiians and the first European, African, and Asian-Pacific explorers
and settlers in the students' state or region.
NSS-C.K-4.5 Roles of the Citizen: What is the importance of political leadership and
public service?
Standards in History for Grades K-4 (Content Standards)
Standard 1: Family Life Now and in the Recent Past; Family Life in Various
Places Long Ago
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
Standard 2: History of Students’ Local Community and How Communities in
North America Varied Long Ago
Standard 3: The People, Events, Problems, and Ideas that Created the History
of Their State
Standard 4: How Democratic Values Came to Be, and How They Have Been
Exemplified by People, Events, and Symbols
Standard 5: The Causes and Nature of Various Movements of Large Groups of
People into and within the United States, Now and Long Ago
Standard 7: Selected Attributes and Historical Developments of Various
Societies in Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe
Expenses
Lesson Plan
Lesson Plan #2
Lesson Plan #3
Lesson Plan #4
Item
Construction Paper
Elmer’s School Glue
Plastic Beads
Scissors
Popsicle Sticks
Crayons
Modeling Clay
Wooden Dowels
Cost
1 pack @ $7.99
$2.49
2 packs at @ $2.95 each
1 pair @ $4.99
1 pack of 50 @ $1.99
$1.59
1 pack @ $0.97
1 pack of 10 @ 1.49
Total Expenses: about $27.41
The majority of these prices were retrieved from Walmart and Target.
To keep costs low for this unit, the students can provide their own glue bottles, scissors,
and crayons.
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ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL TIME
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