Students explore how geography and founding goals influenced life in the New England, Middle, and Southern colonies. They analyze how physical and human characteristics shaped regional economies, daily life, and the development of colonial society and government.
Students view an image of the Pilgrims landing at Plymouth and read introductory text about how communities differ in how people live, work, and meet their needs. They respond to a collaborative wall prompt explaining how land and climate affect the way people live, work, and build communities, using complete sentences and drawing on their own experiences. Students then read an overview of the experience and the lesson objectives, focusing on how geography and founding goals shaped life in the three English colonial regions.
Teacher MovesIntroduce the experience by previewing how students will compare New England, Middle, and Southern colonies and by reviewing key vocabulary (charter, proprietary). Prompt students during the wall activity to connect ideas like crops, clothing, housing, and transportation to geography and climate, building a foundation for later comparisons. Clarify the objectives and emphasize that students will be tracing how land and climate influenced colonial economies, societies, and governments before unlocking the next scene.
Students read Geography and Economy in the Colonial Regions to learn how physical features such as soil, climate, and natural resources shaped the economies of New England, the Middle Colonies, and the Southern Colonies. Using a graphic organizer, they describe the key geographic features of each region and explain how those features influenced economic activities, including farming, trade, and the development of plantations.
Teacher MovesBuild background on the thirteen colonies as needed and review the term plantation so students understand its economic and social implications. Monitor students as they complete the graphic organizer, then lead a brief discussion to surface key takeaways about how geography made certain types of work and settlement more likely in each region. Ask students to share examples and consider how geography affected cities, transportation, and community structure before moving on.
Students examine an image and caption about population density in the colonies, then read Daily Life Across the Colonial Regions to explore how population, work, and community life differed in New England, the Middle Colonies, and the Southern Colonies. They complete a graphic organizer describing population characteristics and daily life for each region. Next, they respond to a collaborative wall prompt explaining what factors shaped daily life in the colonies, using evidence from at least two regions.
Teacher MovesPreview the organizer categories (population and daily life) and clarify that population refers to who lived in each region, their backgrounds, and how communities were structured. Provide language supports or sentence stems as needed. After students complete the organizer, facilitate a discussion using guiding questions about who made up each region’s population and how people organized daily routines and communities. Prompt students to connect these patterns back to geography and economies, and to compare regions. After the wall responses, lead a whole-class conversation that highlights how settlers’ beliefs, goals, and backgrounds—along with the land—shaped religion, family life, labor systems, and settlement patterns, encouraging students to cite their organizers and the article.
Students read background text about English colonial charters and how they structured power and leadership in the colonies, then read Colonial Charters to learn about royal, proprietary, and charter (joint-stock) colonies. Using a graphic organizer, they identify who was in charge under each charter type and how that structure affected population and daily life. Next, they read adapted excerpts from the First Charter of Virginia, the Charter of 1662, and the Charter of Privileges. For each excerpt, students answer an inline-choice question to determine the charter type and post on a wall explaining which words and phrases helped them identify it.
Teacher MovesExplain or review the terms charter and proprietor, and clarify that this scene is an optional extension focused on government structures. Support students as they complete the organizer by drawing attention to who holds authority, how leaders are chosen, and how much power colonists have under each charter type. After students work with the excerpts, debrief as a class: confirm the charter types, ask students to share the textual clues they used, and prompt them to consider how living under each system might have felt. Guide discussion about how different charter structures influenced colonists’ control over local decisions, their daily experiences, and their sense of freedom and community involvement.
Students complete the exit quiz by answering all the questions.
Teacher MovesFacilitate the assessment and use student data to evaluate understanding, address misconceptions, and identify areas for growth.
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