South Carolina ETV
Jamestown Journey Part 1 (Grade 4 )
Master Teacher
Melanie Rick
Time Allotment
This is the first of four media-enriched lessons that can be used throughout a 2-21/2 week study of the English colony of Jamestown and the novel, The Double Life of Pocahontas by Jean Fritz.
Each lesson should take approximately 2-3 class periods.Overview
When the English settlers arrived in Jamestown in 1607, a war with Spain had just ended. England had already tried to develop "the lost colony" of Roanoke just years before, with no success. The English government, under King James' rule, helped raise the necessary money and supplies for the first colonists. But separated from the settlers by the Atlantic Ocean, King James I was too far away to be an effective leader
In order for the colony to be successful, Jamestown needed its own leader, a safe location and a positive trade network with the natives. Unfortunately, the leadership was constantly changing, the colonists began quarreling among themselves, and the natives became hostile enemies.
The activities throughout this lesson will provide students with the opportunity to solve one of the two major problems facing the settlers—the best location to settle upon arrival in Jamestown.
Subject Matter
Social Studies
Learning Objectives
Students will be able to:
- contribute to a small group discussion while demonstrating active listening skills and seeking the ideas and opinions of others
- label a map with the best location to settle the Jamestown colony
- effectively communicate in written and oral forms his/her reasons for selecting the settlement location
South Carolina Standards
(Applicable to all four lessons)
Visit the South Carolina Department of Education for the South Carolina Social Studies Standards.
Social Studies—Grade 4
4.1.1 Describe the events in America, Europe and Africa that led to a New World in North America.
4.1.4 Recall the reasons for the voluntary/ involuntary settling of North America by Europeans and Africans.
4.9.2 Analyze settlement patterns to explain why people settle in various areas.
4.2.1 Explain the functions of Government.
2.2.2 Use appropriate geographic tools and technologies such as reference works and computer-based geographic information.
2.2.3 Display spatial information on maps and other representations.
4.14.1 Define trade and explain its benefits.
Reading/Language Arts—Grade 4
Listening
A. The student will listen to oral presentations and reports.
- Demonstrate active listening skills and respond appropriately and accurately to oral information
B. The student will use appropriate listening skills to conduct and interpret surveys and interviews.
Speaking
A. The student will use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings.
- Present accurate directions and convey information to individuals and small groups.
- Contribute to small group discussions.
- Seek the ideas and opinions of others.
- Begin to use evidence to support opinions.
- Speak clearly using appropriate volume, tone and rate.
- Express ideas orally with fluency, elaboration and confidence.
B. The student will ask questions to clarify view points, to develop new understanding and to view findings from various perspectives.
- Discussions
- Interviews
Writing
H. The student will use the writing process to record information accurately and to research and report information.
- Make judgments using evidence to support decisions
Media Components
Video
Tracks, Impressions of America, Lesson 3: Early European Settlements features two children, Duncan and Izzy, who visit the first permanent English settlement of Jamestown. While there, they meet colonist John Rolfe, who explains how the settlement was established, the obstacles the settlers were faced with, the exportation of tobacco, and his (Rolfe's) marriage to Pocahontas.
Web Sites
This Virtual Jamestown site provides teachers with teaching and problem-solving lessons to be used in K-12 classrooms. Information on this site can be used to provide background or enhance any of the four lessons in this unit on Jamestown.
Colonial America: 1492-1763 Timeline provides the reader with a chronological timeline beginning with Christopher Columbus' voyage and a concise overview of the events leading to the settlement of Jamestown.
Materials
Per student:
- a map of Virginia with bordering states (Activity Sheet 1)
- The Double Life of Pocahontas by Jean Fritz
- (ISBN 0-14-032257-4, published by Puffin Books in 1983)
- pencil
- paper
Prep for Teachers
- Bookmark the Web sites.
- Cue the videotape to the appropriate starting point.
- Copy Activity Sheet 1 for each student.
Introductory Activity: Setting the Stage
This lesson is to be taught as a pre-reading activity before beginning The Double Life of Pocahontas. Later students will label a map with the best location for the colonists to settle upon their arrival in Jamestown.
Step 1
Explain to the students that they will learn about the settlement of Jamestown, an important American history event that took place in the year 1607. Ask students to determine how many years ago that was. (2001-1607=394 years ago)
Step 2
Focus for Media Interaction: Ask your students to identify the important events that occurred in 1492, 1565, 1584, 1588 and 1606.
1492—Columbus set sail for the New World.
1565—The first permanent European colony in North America is founded by the Spanish at St. Augustine, Florida.
1584—Sir Walter Raleigh lands on Roanoke Island and names the area Virginia, in honor of Queen Elizabeth I.
1588—In Europe, England defeats the Spanish Armada, beginning the Spanish decline and the rise of English power in the world.
1606—The London Company sponsors an expedition to Virginia.
Refer to Colonial America: 1492-1763 Timeline, which concisely describes the events which lead to the colonization of Jamestown. Lead the class in a discussion reviewing the role that Native Americans played in the past colonization attempts and the colonists' lack of knowledge or skills to survive at the Lost Colony of Roanoke.
Step 3
Conduct a class discussion on how life was different during the year 1607 (no electricity, etc.).
Learning Activity
Step 1
Focus for Media Interaction: Provide each student with a copy of the Virginia map with bordering states (Activity Sheet 1). While students are watching the video clip, they need to pretend that they are settlers on a ship that is about to dock at Jamestown. After watching the video clip, they will need to determine the best location for the Jamestown colonists to settle.
Explain to students that they are now going to watch a video clip about Jamestown that explains how the settlers traveled on three ships to the Chesapeake Bay region of Virginia. START the video when you see "Early European Settlements" on the screen. It will appear on the screen right after you see Tracks, Impressions of America. You will hear music playing. PAUSE the video after you hear the girl read the "Postcard." There will be music playing and she will read the postcard question: "Where would you locate this settlement? Why?"
Step 2
Assign students to small groups (3-4 members per group). Tell students that they are settlers on the ship just arriving at Jamestown. King James, England's monarch leader, did not give orders where they should settle. It is up to each group to determine the best location for the settlement. (Prompt students to remember the importance of water for easy transportation, and food, the starvation that the colonists at Roanoke were faced with and the rivalry between Spain and England.) Provide students around 10 minutes to determine the best location.
Step 3
Allow each group to share with the class where they chose to settle Jamestown providing reasons to justify why their location is the safest and the best for the settlers. Each group member should share at least one group opinion.
Step 4
After working in small groups and listening to each group share their solutions, each student, working independently, should write a paragraph explaining why his/her location for Jamestown is best for the settlers.
Culminating Activity/Assessment
Step 1
Provide students the opportunity to share their individual paragraphs. Sharing with a partner may be most appropriate, so that they can revise/edit with a peer.
Step 2
Focus for Media Interaction: Ask the students which location they chose. Was it the same location settled by the settlers?
Show the next clip from the Tracks video. START the video at the "Postcard" (exactly where you stopped it in Step 1 of the Learning Activity). Be prepared to stop the video shortly after it is started. STOP it when you hear John Rolfe speaking to the young boy and girl. His last word should be "chosen" from the following quote, "We began to think this was the worst possible place they could have chosen." A cross will appear on the screen just after he finishes the quote.
Step 3
Show students the "Jamestown map in Pocahontas' Day" on page 87 in The Double Life of Pocahontas by Jean Fritz. It accurately displays the settlement location. Compare the actual location to the location chosen by the students.
Cross-Curricular Extensions
Social Studies/Reading: Ask students to complete a cause-effect chart of all the problems or events of Chapter 1 in the book. (Example: Because the settlers did not know how to grow crops they had to depend on the natives, which led to starvation.)
Community Connections
Visit a local museum of history that would have artwork from the Jamestown time period or that portrays colonial life.
Activity Sheets (PDF)
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