James Madison University – College of Education
Social Studies Lesson Plan Format
Name: Jennifer McKannan
Subject/Class: U.S. History
Date: 7/10/11
Grade Level: 11th grade
Topic: Colonial Regions
NCSS Theme #1 & 3: Culture; People, Places, and Environments
Subthemes: Knowledge: concepts such as beliefs, values, mores, institutions…; concepts such as: location,
physical and human characteristics…
Processes: analyze different interpretations of the causes and effects of migrations of people in
various…
Essential Questions/Big Ideas:
1. Why did Europeans settle in the English colonies?
2. How did their motivations influence their settlement patterns and colony structures?
3. In what ways did the cultures of Europe, Africa, and the Americas interact?
4. What were the consequences of the interactions of European, African, and American cultures?
5. How did the economic activity of the three colonial regions reflect their geography and the European
origins of their settlers?
6. Why was slavery introduced into the colonies?
7. How did the institution of slavery influence European and African life in the colonies?
SOLs/Standards addressed: VUS2, 3
Learning Outcomes/Objectives:
1. Identify and contrast the political, social, religious, and economic characteristics of early exploration
and settlements of the New England, Middle, and Southern colonies. (explain)
2. Explain the political contributions of the early colonies (House of Burgesses, Mayflower Compact,
town meetings). (explain)
3. Identify and locate the original 13 colonies on a map. (skill)
4. Contrast indentured servitude with slavery. (emphatic)
Assessment alignment chart: How will you know they know the objectives listed above?
Objective
Assessment (formative and
summative)
U1: SWBAT identify and contrast the
political, social, religious, and economic
characteristics of early exploration and
settlements of the New England, Middle, and
Southern colonies.
Students will write 1-2 sentences summarizing
each colonial region. They complete a matrix on
the colonial regions. Students will also complete
a brochure on the colonial regions.
U2: SWBAT explain the political
contributions of the early colonies.
U3: SWBAT identify and locate the original
13 colonies on a map.
U4: SWBAT contrast indentured servitude
with slavery.
Students will complete a brochure on the colonial
regions; unit test
Students will participate in a smartboard exercise
and complete a map quiz.
Students will answer a direct question by the
teacher; unit test
Dept. of Middle, Secondary, and Math Education
modified by Dr. Cude & Dr. Stern 8/10
Background Content Outline: Feldmeth, Greg D. "U.S. History Resources: (31 March 1998).
I. European Models for Colonizing America
A. Spain--colonization with conversion
1. Earliest colonies in America (St. Augustine 1565, Santa Fe 1610), though most outposts were
destroyed by Indian attacks
2. Spain turned to Franciscan missionaries to control Indians, placing land grants in the hands of
encomenderos. Spanish rule was cruel, used slavery, and was limited, except for New Mexico.
California was virtually ignored until the late 1700s.
3. By 1560, the main goal of Spanish colonial policy was keeping other Europeans from
establishing colonies.
B. France--fur-trading empire
1. Indian wars developed as tribes fought for the French fur trade.
2. French missionaries did not enslave Indians and attempted to limit trading of alcohol
3. Though few in number, French settlers brought diseases that wiped out up to 90% of the
Indians in the Great Lakes region.
D. The English model--tobacco and settlers
1. Causes for English Colonizing in North America
a. Fall of Spanish Armada in 1588 opened North Atlantic to English expansion
b. England infused with a spirit of self-confidence and enthusiasm for adventure.
c. England could plant, supply, and protect colonies easily.
2. Changes in English economy.
a. Rise of merchant class to provide business leadership and wealth for colonial investment.
b. Joint-stock company allowed for pooling of capital with limited risk.
c. Surplus population in cities as farmers were pushed off lands converted to sheep herding
3. Protestant Reformation
a. Priesthood of all believers inspired religious dissidents
b. Anti-"Popish" believers (Puritans) felt that the Church of England was not Protestant
enough in its beliefs and practices.
c. Persecution of Puritans, Catholics, and Quakers led to conflict with religious and
political authorities
d. America was seen as a desirable haven for these groups.
II. Jamestown and Virginia
A. Virginia Company received charter (guaranteeing settlers the same rights as Englishmen at home)
from King James I for settlement in America (1607). Goals:
1. Gold and wealth
2. Convert Indians to Christianity
3. Find a passage to the Indies
B. Early group suffered from laziness, starvation, and malaria. Saved by leadership of John Smith and
enterprise of tobacco planter John Rolfe, who perfected methods of raising and curing tobacco?
1. Tobacco brought capital and workers to Virginia. Exports rose to 10 million pounds by 1660.
The Virginia Company provided land, established a headright system and courts, and allowed
self-government by planters.
2. Problems with tobacco farming
a) Chained prosperity of Virginia to one crop
Dept. of Middle, Secondary, and Math Education
modified by Dr. Cude & Dr. Stern 8/10
b) Exhausted the soil
c) Promoted large-acreage plantations, which needed large amounts of cheap labor. First
indentured servants with few rights or chances to advance and then slaves with fewer rights
and no chance to advance.
C. Contributions of early Virginia
1. Provided model for further economic investment in America
2. First representative self-government (House of Burgesses--1619)
3. Demand for slaves (1st slaves sold by Dutch to settlers in 1619)
III. New England Colonies--settled most frequently by families
A. Separatists (Pilgrims) arrived at Plymouth in 1620 on Mayflower after initial settlement in Holland.
1. Mayflower Compact--first document of self-government in America.
2. After difficult first winter (44 out of 102 survived), Pilgrims survived under the leadership of
Governor William Bradford.
B. Puritans established Massachusetts Bay in 1630 (John Winthrop and 900 settlers) for economic and
religious reasons.
1. Large numbers of middle class settlers, many of whom were educated.
2. Successful as fur traders, fishermen, and shipbuilders.
3. Great Puritan Migration of 1629-1640 brought many new settlers.
4. Ruled as 'Bible Commonwealth" with franchise restricted to male members of Puritan (later
Congregational) church--probably 1/5 of adult white male population.
C. Puritans and Pequots--series of disastrous contacts
1. Smallpox epidemic of 1633 killed over 10,000 Pequots
2. 500 Pequots killed by Puritans in 1636
3. Disease, military force, and religion (praying towns) essentially pacified Indians of New
England by 1670.
D. Contributions of early New England
1. First Self-government (Mayflower Compact)
2. Direct democracy with town meetings
IV. Middle Colonies
A. Religious Tolerance
B. Commercial Trading Centers
C. Large middle class
DEAN CHART
Concept word
Proprietary
Heretic
Indentured
servants
D=define
Colony that is
privately owned
People who
disagreed with
established
religious beliefs
Person who
contracted their
labor in the
colonies
E=examples
Maryland
A=attributes
Not royal
ownership
Anne Hutchinson Spoke out
against Puritan
church
N=non-examples
Virgin
English and Irish
tobacco workers
Enslaved persons
Dept. of Middle, Secondary, and Math Education
modified by Dr. Cude & Dr. Stern 8/10
Poor or penal
Believer
Town meeting
inexchange for
their voyage to
be paid
Local
governments
with landowners
allowed to
participate
New England
governments
All landowning
males could vote
/ direct
democracy
Totalitarian
Instructional Plan:
What the Teacher Will Do
What the Students Will Do
*Introduction Columbus Bell Ringer: Students will study the Students will study the illustrations and answer
(5 min)
engraving and cartoon of Columbus’ arrival
the question.
and answer the following question:
a. Columbus’s landing in the
Americas is one of the great
turning points in world history.
How do the illustrations give us
some insight into our changing
views of Columbus and his
times?
PowerPoint
Notes
(10 min)
Motives of Exploration
a. How did advancements during the
Renaissance lead to European
exploration?
Students will complete a note template.
a. Revenue from increased trade and the
creation of strong states, along with new
technologies in navigation and shipping
facilitated exploration.
b. What were the political motives of
exploration / colonization?
b. Competition for global empires
c. What were the economic motives
of exploration / colonization?
c. Gold; trade routes; fur trades
d. What were the religious motives of
exploration / colonization?
d. Religious freedom; spread missionary
work
e. In what ways were the English
colonies different from the French
colonies?
e. Population; use of the land; religion;
how they were governed; permanent
settlements
Dept. of Middle, Secondary, and Math Education
modified by Dr. Cude & Dr. Stern 8/10
Geography
Review (8
min)
Colonial
Region Photo
Gallery
(25 min)
Map Activity of the 13 Colonies
Students will identify the names of the colonies
on the smartboard map.
1. Distribute photo gallery handout to the
students and explain directions. Ask for
clarifications before moving forward.
2. Start with the New England colonies.
Play the PowerPoint. Allow looping
around two to three times.
3. Ask students what / who they saw in the
pictures.
Students will study each picture for 5 seconds
and write down key words to describe the
answers to the following questions:
 How did the people make use of the land
and surrounding waters?
 What do you see happening in the
pictures?
 What people do you see? What are they
doing?
 What type of farming took place in the
regions?
New England Questions:
a. Europeans who differed from
Native Americans in their use of
the land and surrounding waters
settled these colonies. List 3 ways
you think the Europeans used
their environment and connect
each guess with an arrow to a
place it might have happened.
b. What do you think the land was
like in New England? The
weather?
c. Given the poor soil conditions &
harsh winters, what type of farms
do you think developed in New
England?
d. In what other ways could New
Englanders make a living from
the land?
e. How did New Englanders who
lived in coastal cities use the
ocean to their advantage?
f.
Why was the Mayflower Compact
so important?
a. Environment greatly affected the culture
a. Developed ways of life that differed from those in
Europe & in other parts of the colonies
a. Abundant forests, streams, and natural harbors
b. Topsoil was thin, rocky landscape/
inlanddense forests
b. Weather harsh—winters long & cold, violent
storms, & heavy snowfalls
c. Subsistence farming—few farms large enough to
make slave labor profitable
c. Dependent on the help of their families to plant,
cultivate, & harvest
d. Timber industry developed into a major source
of income for the region
d. Fur trappers (beaver, otter, raccoon)
e. Shipbuilding grew rapidly as fishing became the
area’s most important commercial activity
e. Trade (between the colonies, England, and the
West Indies)
f. Established a set of rules to live by
Dept. of Middle, Secondary, and Math Education
modified by Dr. Cude & Dr. Stern 8/10
g. How important was the church to
the Puritans?
Middle Colonies Questions:
a. What do you think the land was like in the
Middle Colonies? The Weather?
b. Look carefully at the picture. What types
of farming methods do you suppose the
Middle Atlantic colonists used?
c. This picture shows small farms in PA
where farmers produced abundant crops.
What do you think they did with the excess
crops, and how did this affect their way of
life?
d. According to the picture, how would you
describe the relationship the Quakers had
with the Natives?
VA and Southern Colonies Questions:
a. What do you think the land was like in the
Southern Colonies? The climate?
b. Look carefully at the picture. What type
of settlement do you think this is? Why
was this settlement founded on a river?
c. What type of crops?
d. Where did the large plantation owners
find enough labor to work their vast
plantations? How did their labor
decisions affect land use in the Southern
colonies? Did all colonists live on huge
plantations?
Dept. of Middle, Secondary, and Math Education
modified by Dr. Cude & Dr. Stern 8/10
g. Lives evolved around the church
a. Richest farmlandagriculture became the
foundation of the region’s economic life
a. Regular rainfall—winters lees harsh than New
England
b. Wheat & barley (European plants) / corn,
squash, & tomatoes (Native American crops)
PA farms pride of Middle Colonies (Bread
Basket)—German (Dutch) farmers turned
agriculture into a thriving commercial
enterprise
c.
Large surpluses of wheat, rye, & corn (even
shipped to Europe) / To move the crops, series
of roads built / also used rivers
d. peaceful / tolerant
a. Picture represents the tidewater region (flat
coastal plain w/ land so low in places that the
rivers crossing it flowed backwards w/ the
incoming tides
 Mild winters / heat & humidity in
summers
b. Grew into a major port exporting agricultural
goods and imported manufactured goods from
England
c. Tobacco (as in VA and SC)—as market for
tobacco grew, the plantations multiplied
 Cash cropstobacco, rice, indigo
 Cash crops had to be cultivated on a
large scale to be profitable, a
plantation’s prosperity depended on a
large supply of labor.
d. 1stIndentured Servants but planters found it
difficult to attract enough indentured servants to
America to meet the needs of their growing
plantations
 slave laborJamestown (1619), 1st
Africans were indentured servants, but
became permanent bondage b/c planters



Summarizing
(5-8 min)
*Quick
Assessment
(5 min)
Assessment
(25 min)
Closure
1. Distribute the note outline on the colonial
regions.
2. Students will write a brief summary
highlighting the key features of each
colonial region.
3. Have 2 students share their sentences for
each colonial region.
Colonial Region Matrix: Distribute and have
the students complete by placing the “X” in
the correct column.
Colonial Region brochure
1. Review the directions with the class.
2. Divide the class into groups of 3 to 4
students.
3. Each student will be assigned a specific
page of the brochure.
4. Have the students create their brochure
using Microsoft brochure template.
Ticket out the Door: Ask the students which
colonial region they would prefer to live in
and why?
wanted more control over their labor
force
English government est. the Royal
African Company to carry on the slave
trade
Plantations—100s to 1000s of acres
each / few rich planters owned vast
sections of land & slaves
Backcountrysubsistence farming (live
on & just enough to trade at the local
market for tools & other necessities
Students will demonstrate their knowledge by
writing the sentence summaries for each
colonial region.
Summative assessment for the students.
Students will apply their knowledge and create
a colonial brochure.
Students will answer the question on a slip of
paper and give it to the teacher on their way out
the door.
Materials Needed for the Lesson:
 Colonial regions photo gallery handout / PowerPoint
 LCD projector, smartboard, computer
 Computer Lab (for the last part of the period)
Adaption/Differentiation:
ELL/struggling
Visuals will help build background. Students will receive a copy of the
readers
outline notes. Students will have peer-helpers.
ADHD
This lesson accommodates such learners because they will have the
opportunity to get out of their seat and move around.
Gifted
Gifted learners will assist struggling readers during the colonial brochure
project.
Dept. of Middle, Secondary, and Math Education
modified by Dr. Cude & Dr. Stern 8/10
Explanation of Instructional Strategies Used:
The students will hear, see, and say the concepts in this lesson. There are a wide variety of strategies used from
notes/discussion, imagery, map identification, writing, and a cooperative, creative group assignment.
* CTA 30 –Second View, Brian Heintz (modified)
Quick Assessment, Christa Owens
Dept. of Middle, Secondary, and Math Education
modified by Dr. Cude & Dr. Stern 8/10