Enduring Understanding/Learning Objective

Intended Grade Level: 4

Topic Curriculum Link

What would your life be like if you were born in the colonies 250 years ago? So often when one thinks of life in colonial times, what comes to mind are the traditional pictures of Pilgrims and Indians from the 1st Thanksgiving. Was life in the colonies REALLY like that?

Enduring Understanding/Learning Objective

In the early 1600s, in addition to the 30,000 Native Americans already living in Connecticut, Puritans from the Plymouth Colony and Massachusetts Bay Colony established settlements along the Connecticut River. After colonists settled in Connecticut, they made use of natural resources to meet their basic needs for food, clothing, and shelter. As time passed, resources, items, and ideas were shared among the people. Students will be able to examine, analyze, and interpret information to connect their understanding of the past to the present which will allow them to make decisions about the future.

Student Book(s) Connection:

Mentor Text: Colonial Voices by Kay Winters (2008)

Student Books (See Bibliography)

Procedure/activities

Teacher activities:

·  Teacher will begin the unit by teaching students to read with a focus using Colonial Voices as the mentor text.

·  During the reading of the mentor text, teacher will model Fact, Question, Response/FQR (Table 1), the What’s Familiar T chart (Table 2), and the Identification Note-taking Organizer (Table 3).

Student Activities:

·  Students will book pass the texts and complete an FQR to familiarize themselves with the various texts.

·  Students will select and read a text (see Bibliography) at their independent level and take notes focusing on the familiar and the unfamiliar.

·  As introduced by the teacher, students will complete an Identification Note-taking Organizer (Table 3).

·  Students will participate in an HSI Investigation.

·  Based on the investigation, students will complete a RAFT (Table7).

Becoming a Detective

What would your life be like if you were born in the colonies 250 years ago? So often when one thinks of life in colonial times what comes to mind are the traditional pictures of Pilgrims and Indians from the 1st Thanksgiving. Was life in the colonies REALLY like that?

Your task is to sift through the historian’s clues to ascertain [find out] who you are during the American Colonial period. Were you a Native American, a colonial boy or girl, or an African slave? To help you find out who you are, you will handle artifacts and answer guided questions using the various texts you have been reading. Once you have determined your identity you will complete a RAFT explaining the similarities and differences between your life today and that of a colonial person.

Investigating the Evidence: Artifact Filled Bags

Native American
·  moccasin
·  arrowhead
·  wampum
·  corn
·  Three sisters
·  turtle shell
·  clay pot
·  wooden hook (fishing)
·  string of animal teeth
·  image of dugout or burned out bowl
·  corn husk doll
·  cattail doll
·  musical instrument
·  bow and arrow
·  image of small round house or wigwam
·  basket
Note: above items to be supplied by Institute of American Indian Studies, Washington, CT / Colonial Boy
·  moccasin
·  dress (waistcoat/workshirt/breeches)
·  arrowhead
·  Bible
·  wampum
·  hornbook
·  corn
·  http://www.chs.org/embroidery
·  http://www.loc.gov/http://www.earlyamericanimages.com/scenes2.htmlpictures/resource/cph.3a05604/
·  http://www.earlyamericanimages.com/scenes2.html
·  http://www.earlyamerica.com/shopping/ebayproducts.html?itemid=270236659274&rp=earlyamericanart
·  Three sisters
·  clay marbles
·  fishing material
·  bow and arrow
·  quill pen (Silas Deane house)
·  headstone (Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum)
·  town Inventory (Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum)
·  Picture of home
Colonial Girl
·  moccasin
·  dress (bodice/apron/cap)
·  petticoat (chemise)
·  Bible
·  hornbook
·  corn
·  http://www.chs.org/embroidery
·  http://www.loc.gov/pictures/resource/cph.3a05604/
·  http://www.earlyamerica.com/shopping/ebayproducts.html?itemid=270236659274&rp=earlyamericanart
·  http://www.earlyamericanimages.com/scenes2.html
·  rag doll
·  spin top
·  cup and ball toy
·  headstone (Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum)
·  town census (Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum) or inventory
·  Picture of home / African Slave
·  kalimba- thumb piano
·  song – “tua tua” (see resources)
·  http://www.chs.org/embroidery
·  http://www.earlyamerica.com/shopping/ebayproducts.html?itemid=270236659274&rp=earlyamericanart
·  mortar & pestle
·  receipt of sale
·  rolling loop
·  run away ad (see resources)
·  headstone (Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum)
·  town census (Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum) or inventory
·  picture of home

Searching for clues:

1.  Examine the items in Bag A.

2.  Using your sorting mat (Table 4) and Recording Mat (Table 5), sort the clues from Bag A.

3.  In the beginning, you may place artifacts in more than one quadrant, but at the end of sorting Bag A all items must fit into one quadrant.

4.  Fill in Recording Mat (Table 5).

5.  Then use your Recording Mat to answer the questions identifying who your person is.

6.  Repeat for bags B, C, and D.

Questions to Ask….

See Table 6

Cracking the case…

Distribute the RAFT prompt to students. Each student will apply the evidence they obtained from the investigation to write from the perspective of the Native American, Colonial boy/girl, or an African slave.

Assessment

Distribute the assessment “I used to think…but now I know…” (Table 8).

Differentiation

·  Various leveled texts

·  Hands on materials that bring the abstract to concrete level

·  Use of graphic organizers to help student thinking

·  Manipulate materials in the bags depending on student level

·  Allow higher level students to sort and defend their choices

Extensions

These are resources that will help students gather additional information when appropriate. They include video segments, sound clips, and interactive activities.

Courtesy of Plimoth Plantation, Inc. Plymouth, MA.

http://plimoth.org/kids/stories.php

-vocabulary from colonial times

http://plimoth.org/kids/talk.php

-language from colonial times

http://plimoth.org/kids/make.php

-games/activities from colonial times-Wampanoag

http://plimoth.org/kids/recipes.php

-Wampanoag : English Colonists’ recipes

http://plimoth.org/kids/homeworkHelp/

-WHO WERE THE PILGRIMS --Did you know that the "Pilgrims" weren't really pilgrims at all?

-WHO ARE THE WAMPANOAG --Learn more about the "People of the First Light."

- THE MAYFLOWER --Discover more about the ship, the people, and the journey.

-THANKSGIVING --The history goes much further back than Plymouth and 1621.

- GROWING FOOD --What it meant to the Wampanoag and the English Colonists.

-BUILDING A HOME --Two very different approaches to building a home.

-WHAT TO WEAR --Articles on Wampanoag and Colonial clothing.

-PLAYING AND LEARNING --Through games we still play today, important skills were developed.

-WHAT'S FOR DINNER --What the Colonists and Wampanoag thought fit to eat and drink.

-ANIMALS --The Wampanoag and Colonial views on animals and their purpose.

-A CHILD'S ROLE --The important place of children in both cultures.

-SARAH MORTON --There were many other days in her life than in the book Sarah Morton's Day.

-VOCABULARY WORDS --Definitions to common words and terms used in 17th-Century Plymouth.

http://library.thinkquest.org/J002611F/

-Colonial Kids: A Celebration of Life in the 1700's

http://www.noahwebsterhouse.org/lifein1770.html

-Connecticut Life in the 1770s

http://www.hfmgv.org/exhibits/smartfun/colonial/intro/index.html

-Be a history detective. Go back in time and investigate the daily lives of the Daggetts, a colonial family from northeastern Connecticut. Collect clues to uncover answers to 7 questions about colonial life in the 1700s. Then prove your skills as a history detective by discovering "What's wrong with this picture?"

-includes real newspaper articles

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.sonofthesouth.net/revolutionary-war/maps/connecticut-map.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.sonofthesouth.net/revolutionary-war/maps/map-colonial-connecticut.htm&usg=__zZ0yQ6lHdXpnpPAEIWb-p3Th8dY=&h=1081&w=1500&sz=717&hl=en&start=5&itbs=1&tbnid=XBN5yXUyPJ9tdM:&tbnh=108&tbnw=150&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dconnecticut%2Bcolonial%2Btimes%2Bimages%26hl%3Den%26tbs%3Disch:1

-map of Connecticut from 1766

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://ushistoryimages.com/images/colonial-connecticut/fullsize/colonial-connecticut-2.jpg&imgrefurl=http://ushistoryimages.com/colonial-connecticut.shtm&usg=__3ECCkXRc5ugIQ6NKCD9ZIBLD8E0=&h=586&w=600&sz=189&hl=en&start=32&itbs=1&tbnid=e1pIK2pYt8Tv7M:&tbnh=132&tbnw=135&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dconnecticut%2Bcolonial%2Btimes%2Bimages%26start%3D20%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26ndsp%3D20%26tbs%3Disch:1

-colonial Connecticut images (primary sources)

http://www.richmondancestry.org/colonial.shtml

http://edsitement.neh.gov/lesson_images/lesson411/HistorianWorksheet.pdf

http://americanhistory.si.edu/kids/springer/00qprint.htm questions for young historians

http://americanhistory.si.edu/kids/springer/00clues.htm clues for the mystery kids have to solve

http://xroads.virginia.edu/~MAP/TERRITORY/1775map.html

http://www.stratfordhall.org/learn/teacher/education.php colonial school in VA

http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1990/5/90.05.04.x.html comparing colonial life to today

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1294965/posts primarydocuments

Tables:

Table 1

Name: ______
Text: ______
F
(Fact) / Q
(Question) / R
(Response)
What’s Familiar?
Past and Present (Me, Too!) / What’s Unfamiliar?
Past Only (Not Me!)

Table 2

Table 3

Games / Outfits
(How did they dress?) / Language
(Sayings, vocabulary…) / Food / Chores / Specialty
Items
(Religious, medicinal, daily life items…) / Other
Native American
Colonial Boy
Colonial Girl
African
Slave

Table 4

Mat-smaller version (actual mat will need to be reproduced on larger paper to hold artifacts, images, etc.)

Native American / Colonial Boy
Colonial Girl / African Slave

Table 5

Recording Mat

Native American Bag ___
Items that helped you make your decision:
Items you were unsure about: / Colonial Boy Bag ___
Items that helped you make your decision:
Items you were unsure about:
Colonial Girl Bag ___
Items that helped you make your decision:
Items you were unsure about: / African Slave Bag ___
Items that helped you make your decision:
Items you were unsure about:

Questions for Bag____

1.  What person are you investigating? ______

2.  What did this person do for work or play? How do you know? ______

______

3.  Find three artifacts that your person might have used. Identify each artifact and explain its use.

Artifact / Identify It / What It Is Used For

4.  How might your life today be similar and different from the person who you are investigating?

Differences______Similarities______

RAFT

R. (Role) / A. (Audience) / F. (Format) / T. (Topic)
Native American / Present Day Child / Oral Tradition
*Song
*Story / Daily Life
*Plant/Harvest Crops
*Hunt/fish
*Live off land
Colonial Boy / Present Day Child / Written Piece
*Letter
*Song
*Story
*Diary/Journal Entry / Daily Life
*Chores (primarily outdoor)
*School
*Clothing
Colonial Girl / Present Day Child / Written Piece
*Letter
*Song
*Story
*Diary/Journal Entry / Daily Life
*Chores (primarily indoor)
*School
*Clothing
African Slave / Present Day Child / Oral Tradition
*Song
*Story / Daily Life
*Caretakers
*Plant/Harvest Crops
*Chores
Native American / I used to think ______
but now I know ______.
Colonial Boy / I used to think ______
but now I know ______.
Colonial Girl / I used to think ______
but now I know ______.
African Slave / I used to think ______
but now I know ______.

Name ______

Assessment HSI

Sample Artifacts:

* starred items denote items that overlap into other bags

Native American Bag

Wampum / *Moccasin / Clay Pot
Bow and Arrow / Wigwam / Corn
Blanket / Animal teeth / Corn Husk Doll

Colonial Boy Bag

*Whirligig Toy / *Moccasin / *Drum
Musket / *Cup and Ball Toss Toy / *Corn
*Dress / Nightshirt / Tricorn Hat

Colonial Girl Bag

*Whirligig Toy / *Moccasin / *Copper Pot
*Horn Book / *Cup and Ball Toss Toy / *Corn
*Dress / *Bible / *Quill Pen and Ink

African Slave Bag

Kalimba (thumb piano) / Mortar and Pestle / *Copper Pot
Deed of Sale for “Negro Boy”
http://www.yale.edu/glc/citizens/stories/module1/documents/deed_slave_sale.html / Runaway Slave Ad / *Corn
Butter Churn / Manure Fork / * Headstone

References:

Walter Woodward Connecticut State Historian

Nicholas Bellatoni Connecticut State Archaeologist

Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum

African game:

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.history.org/history/teaching/enewsletter/volume2/images/grind_corn.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.history.org/history/teaching/enewsletter/volume2/june04/teachstrategy.cfm&usg=__ZqSVtEywmQUNUwgpG37MJd4STJE=&h=356&w=232&sz=33&hl=en&start=9&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=_RLpwuFLgvh2YM:&tbnh=121&tbnw=79&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcolonial%2Bafrican%2Bchildren%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26tbs%3Disch:1

Runaway slave ads:

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://teacherlink.org/content/social/instructional/runlit/images/banner.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.teacherlink.org/content/social/instructional/runlit/home.html&usg=__R57lJtSollxp6B8TnAftJnGsj94=&h=295&w=474&sz=37&hl=en&start=1&itbs=1&tbnid=tqaxTfc0--gKNM:&tbnh=80&tbnw=129&prev=/images%3Fq%3Drunaway%2Bslave%2Bads%26hl%3Den%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:1

http://ourtimepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/SlaveAd.jpg

Bibliography

Branse, J. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Soldier. Rosen Classroom Books & Materials, 2002. Print.

Branse, J. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Glassblower. Powerkids Pr, 2002. Print

Branse, J. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Sea Captain. PowerKids Press, 2002. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Architects. NY: Benchmark Books, 2000. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Blacksmiths. NY: Benchmark Books, 2000. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Cabinetmakers. NY: Benchmark Books, 1997. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Doctors. NY: Benchmark Books, 1996. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Hatters. NY: Benchmark Books, 2000. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Homemakers. Franklin Watts, 1973. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Limners : America's Earliest Portrait Painters. NY: Benchmark Books, 2000. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Papermakers. NY: Benchmark Books, 2000. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Peddlers. NY: Benchmark Books, 1998. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Schoolmasters. NY: Benchmark Books, 1997. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Shoemakers. NY: Benchmark Books, 1997. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Silversmiths. NY: Benchmark Books, 1997. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Tanners. NY: Benchmark Books, 2000. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Weavers.NY: Benchmark Books, 1998. Print.

Fisher, Leonard. The Wigmakers. NY: Benchmark Books, 2000. Print.

Hoose, Phillip. We Were There, Too! Young People in U.S. History. Farrar, Straus and Giroux , 2001. Print.

*Isaacs, Sally. Life in a Colonial Town. Heinemann/Raintree, 2001. Print.

Kalman, Bobbie. A one-room school. Crabtree Pub Co, 1994. Print.

Kalman, Bobbie. Colonial Life. Crabtree Pub Co, 1992. Print.

Kalman, Bobbie. The General Store. Crabtree Pub Co, 1996. Print.

Kalman, Bobbie. Tools and Gadgets. Crabtree Pub Co, 1992. Print.

*Kalman, Bobbie. Visiting a Village. Crabtree Pub Co, 1990. Print.

Kalman, Bobbie, and Antoinette DeBiasi. Colonial Crafts. Crabtree Pub Co, 1992. Print.

Kalman, Bobbie, and Deanna Brady. The Woodworkers. Crabtree Pub Co, 2002. Print.

Kalman, Bobbie, Ellen Brown, and Barbara Bedell. The Colonial Cook. Crabtree Pub Co, 2002. Print.

Kalman, Bobbie, and John Crossingham. Colonial Home. Crabtree Pub Co, 2000. Print.

Kalman, Bobbie, and Niki Walker. The Milliner. Crabtree Pub Co, 2002. Print.

Kalman, Bobbie, and Tammy Everts. A Child's Day. Crabtree Pub Co, 1994. Print.

Krebs, Laurie. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Indigo Planter. Powerkids Pr, 2004. Print.

Krebs, Laurie. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Lighthouse Keeper. PowerKids Press, 2004. Print.

Krebs, Laurie. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Miller. Powerkids Pr, 2004. Print.

Krebs, Laurie. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Shipwright. Powerkids Pr, 2004. Print.

Lenski, Lois. Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison. HarperCollins, 1995. Print.

Maestro, Betsy, and Giulio Maestro. The New Americans. Harper Torch, 2004. Print.

Merrill, Amy. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Dressmaker. The Rosen Publishing Group, 2002. Print.

Merrill, Amy. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Surveyor. Rosen Publishing Group, 2002. Print.

Sewall, Marcia. Thunder from the Clear Sky. Aladdin, 1998. Print.

Speare, Elizabeth. The Sign of the Beaver. Dell Pub Co, 1984. Print

Tunis, Edwin. Colonial craftsmen and the beginnings of American industry. Johns Hopkins Univ Pr, 1999. Print.

Leeuwen, Jean. Hannah of Fairfield. Puffin, 2000. Print.

Wilmore, Kathy. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Blacksmith. PowerKids Press, 2000. Print.

Wilmore, Kathy. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Innkeeper. Powerkids Pr, 2001. Print.

Wilmore, Kathy. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Printer. Powerkids Pr, 2001. Print.

Wilmore, Kathy. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Silversmith. Powerkids Pr, 2001. Print.

Wilmore, Kathy. A Day in the Life of a Colonial Wigmaker. PowerKids Press, 2001. Print.

Winters, Kay. Colonial Voices. Dutton Childrens Books, 2008. Print.

*Additional Possible Mentor Texts