Anayzing Photos of Colonial Life

Have you ever been to the Jamestown/Yorktown website? They have some amazing lesson plans, video clips, and images available for free. 

This next lesson comes straight from there.  You will need to go to :
http://www.historyisfun.org/colonial-life.htm

There you will find the worksheets you will need for you (background information) and for each cooperative group as well as the graphic organizer.
Colonial Life background essay (pdf)
What was a man's role on a farm? (pdf)
What was a woman's role on a farm? (pdf)
What was the role of children on a farm? (pdf)
What was life like for slaves on a Virginia farm?(pdf)
"What was life like?" graphic organizer (pdf)
I have my students working at table groups and so each group is responsible for one role - man, woman, child or slaves.  I downloaded and copied each pdf and put them in plastic sleeves inside a folder (with brads).  This makes it easy for clean up and distribution.

Make sure you run off enough copies of the graphic organizer.

Everyday Life in Colonial Virginia

Day 2

Objective:
Students will read and analyze passages and photographs in order to learn about everyday life on colonial Virginia.

Standards of Learning:
Virginia SOL: VS1.e; VS4.e; US1.5c; English 4.5; English 5.6, 5.7

Procedure:
Students will work in cooperative groups to determine the roles of various colonial Virginians.

Step 1: Ask the students what jobs they have at home. Discuss their jobs and those of their parents and other family members. Ask the students how these jobs might be different from those in colonial Virginia. Ask them how they think everyday life was different for whites and enslaved African Americans in colonial Virginia.

Step 2: Begin the lesson by telling students that most people in colonial Virginia at the time of the American Revolution lived on small farms. Divide the class into four groups – table groups. Explain to each group that they will read and analyze a different Student Handout about the role of one of the following groups: men, women, children, or enslaved people in colonial Virginia. Tell them that each group will then report their findings to the class.

Step 3: Distribute a different Student Handout to each group, along with a copy of the Graphic Organizer - What was everyday life like in colonial Virginia? Instruct student to read their passage and look at the photographs. Suggest that students highlight key words pertaining to the roles of their assigned group as they read the passage. Have each group discuss among themselves the roles of their group and record them in the appropriate section of the graphic organizer.

Step 4: Have each group select a member of their group to present findings to the rest of the class. Instruct all students to add information on the other groups to their graphic organizer as their classmates report.

Summary Activity:
Have students write a journal entry comparing life in colonial Virginia to life in Virginia today in their Va. Studies notebook.