13 Colonies Process

Use the links found on http://teacherportfolio.indstate.edu/jnorris/new_page_4.htm to answer the questions found in the Information Worksheets. Use this to help with colonies and their founders: http://americanhistory.about.com/library/charts/blcolonial13.htm 

Another website to help find economic conditions in your colony is here: http://www.brtprojects.org/cyberschool/history/ch04/economy.html

Once the Information Sheets are completed, you are ready to begin creating your publication.  You must understand what makes your colony stand out from all the others.  You must use your research to convince those 500 new Colonist to move to your colony.  Remember, you are creating this publication during the early 1700's.  Your information MUST be from this time period and historically accurate.  After completing your research, you must choose what type of publication to present  to the new colonists.  Your may choose from a poster, brochure, or 1 minute Animoto video. Your publication must include the following:

• Map of your colony as it was during the early 1700's
• Major towns or communities
• Geographic features
• Climate and agricultural information
• Economic development or how they made their money
• Why and who originally founded the colony
• Two reasons your colony is better than the others
• At least three pictures but no more than five - (if making an ANIMOTO video, use any many images you would like)
  

Please continue to refer to the list above to ensure that you include EVERYTHING needed in your publication.

The grade sheet for your project is at the Google Docs Template Gallery

13 Colonies

The Task:

Your task is to create an informative report in the form of a Poster, Brochure, or ANIMOTO video about your colony.  You will need to identify and make discoveries regarding the 13 original colonies in order to report to the new colonists why your colony will best suit their needs. You will uncover this information through research. Your final report will include:

• Completed worksheets on Southern, Middle and New England Colonies - found in Process Section.
• Poster, Brochure, or Animoto video  for your colony 

King John and the Magna Carta: A Background to the House of Burgesses and a Representative Government

King John was an English king. He was not a very pleasant person. He told lies. He put innocent people in prison so that he could steal their belongings. He put a poor man in prison once just so he could steal the man's horse and cart.  There was a rumor that he murdered his nephew, but it was never proved. The King of France demanded to know where the boy was. King John was a vassal of the King of France. That meant he had to answer. But he did not respond to the King of France.  Promises never bothered King John. He would promise anything to anybody, especially if there was money in it for him, but he soon broke his word. When the archbishop of Canterbury died, King John seized the monastery, banished all the monks, and kept the land and the wealth for himself. This made the archbishop furious. The archbishop called all the nobles together and read the law of the land to them. He made sure they understood their rights under the law. Some could not read, and many did not know their rights. They amazed to discover that King John was breaking the law, and that they could do something about it.  The nobles confronted King John. King John promised he would do better. He promised the nobles that he would raise taxes again without discussing it first. After all, it was the law. In truth, however, the law had as much value to King John as did his word. Weeks later, he raised taxes again without consulting anyone. He had two of his nobles arrested, and seized their lands, without allowing them to present any defense.   The nobles were furious. Armed and ready, they gathered a huge force of nobles at the town of Runnymede. They brought the king there. The archbishop read aloud to the king from a parchment he held, a parchment called the Magna Carta, the Great Charter.  As the king listened, he became more and more angry. How dare his nobles treat him like this. How dare the archbishop read from a piece of paper and except him to sign it. It was clear, even to selfish King John, that if he did not sign, his nobles would desert him. Without an army behind him, some pretender would soon steal his throne. The king was furious about it, but he signed the Magna Carta. The Magna Carta was a list of rights. Most rights were already law. The Magna Carta restated them so there would be no confusion. The Magna Carta added new rights. One of the new rights was that nobles could keep watch over the king. They could seize his castles if he did not keep his word.  Some historians say that after signing the Magna Carta, King John went home in a huff, and screamed, and rolled around on the floor like a madman. Perhaps he did. But it did not matter. From that day on, things changed in England forever. The king could no longer do whatever he wanted. He had to obey the law, just like everyone else. If he did not, his nobles could seize his lands and banish him from England. (From http://medievaleurope.mrdonn.org/magnacarta.html)  Don't forget the podcast we watched in class: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUVnpe8uffs

Roanoke and Jamestown: What Worked and What Didn't!

http://www.nationalcenter.org/ColonyofRoanoke.html

This website offers a wealth of information about Roanoke for this lesson. Although brief, it gives
both a primary and secondary source and insight that will be helpful to
you in learning about the Lost Colony and successfully completing the
summative assessment at the end of the unit of study. (NOTE: The answer
to the activity $ 64,000 Question is located in this text)

www.tobacco.org/History/Jamestown.html

This site has a wealth of information about Jamestown for this lesson. Although it is lengthy, there
is much to be learned from this site. Timeline re-accountings, narratives,
and rich detail are included, making it easy for you to evaluate and
interpret what you are reading.

Your first job will be to take notes on your given "settlement". What is the history and what happened here? Research the location much like a reporter would do, finding out the who, what, where, when and why's of the community. Both settlements struggled. What were these struggles. And finally, how did one survive and the other....disappeared!