Teacher Name Donna Del Guercio Blum School Thomas Jefferson Elementary
Subject Area___Social Studies__________ Grade/level___5th Grade____________
Adventures of the American Mind Northern Virginia
Alexandria Summer Curriculum Writing 2004
Lesson Plan Template
Title of Lesson
Jamestown: Taking the Good with the Bad
Unit Topic
Colonization and Conflict
Enduring
As a result of this lesson, students will understand:
Understanding
Content
Knowledge
•
negative experiences.
As a result of this lesson, students will know:
•
The Jamestown colony was established in 1607.
•
The settlers underestimated the hard work necessary to survive.
•
John Smith was essential in helping the colonists survive.
•
Powhatan felt threatened by the settlers’ expansion.
•
Skills
Settlers in the New World had both positive and
Pocahontas may have saved John Smith’s life.
As a result of this lesson, students will be able to:
•
Extract key facts from stories about the colony, Pocahontas, and
John Smith
•
Use graphic organizers to gain an understanding of life in
Jamestown
•
Transfer information from graphic organizers into creative
writing in the form of a postcard
SOLs
addressed
Virginia Studies
VS.3 The student will demonstrate knowledge of the first permanent
English settlement in America by
a) explaining the reason for English colonization;
c) identifying the importance of the charters of the Virginia
Company of London in establishing the Jamestown settlement;
f) describing the hardships faced by settlers at Jamestown and the
changes that took place to ensure survival;
g) describing the interactions between the English settlers and the
Powhatan people, including the contributions of the Powhatans
to the survival of the settlers.
Length of
1 one hour and fifteen minute class period
1
Lesson
(depending on student pacing)
Overview of
After examining primary sources about the Jamestown colony, this
lesson
*Postcards can be done for homework if necessary.
lesson uses “America’s Story: Jump Back in Time” to engage students in
reading and writing about the challenges faced during the
establishment of the Jamestown colony. After completing graphic
organizers based on readings, students will write postcards to their
homes in England describing their experiences.
Prior
Students will need to be familiar with where Jamestown is on a map of
Knowledge
Virginia. They will also need to know about the First Americans who
lived in the area of the Jamestown settlement. Since creative writing
will be done, students should be familiar with the content and
conventions of strong writing. They should be comfortable with the
use of rubrics.
Resources
Library of Congress Resources with title and permanent URL
needed
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/jb/colonial
(America’s Story From America’s Library: Jump Back in Time)
Pocohantas
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/colonial/jb_colonial_smith_2_e.html
Pocohantas and John Smith
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/colonial/jb_colonial_smith_1_e.html
Algonquian
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/colonial/jb_colonial_jamestwn_4_e.
html
Map of Jamestown
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgibin/map.cgi?data=/assets/jb/colonial/jb_colonial_jamestwn_2.sid&tnai
l=/assets/jb/colonial/jb_colonial_jamestwn_2_n.gif&template=/jb/colo
nial/jb_colonial_jamestwn_2_e.html
Virginia Charter
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/colonial/jb_colonial_jamestwn_3_e.
2
html
Other resources
•
Laminated/enlarged photographs of John Smith and Pocahontas,
Pocahontas in European garb, a map showing the new settlement
of Jamestown, the Charter for the VA Company of London, and a
Virginia Algonquian man (found at link listed above)
•
Laptops or computers for pairs of students
•
Question sheets and graphic organizers (see attached)
•
Copies of postcards (attached pictures need to be copied onto
cardstock)
•
Process of
lesson
Grading scales for postcard
1. Put students into 5 groups to observe the photographs listed
above. Each group gets one of the pictures. Ask each group to
describe the picture, explain what it may be, and discuss how it
fits into what the students have been working on in Social
Studies. You may want them to use the attached sheet to put
their observations in writing. Tell them they will see these
pictures once they get onto the computers. Do not tell them
what the pictures are at this time. Allow each group to briefly
share their picture and their observations.
2. Put the students in pairs of two with a laptop computer, a
question packet, and a note card with this URL listed on it:
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/jb/colonial
3. As the page opens, introduce them to how it is set up. Point out
the timeline, picture, and passage. Ask volunteers to read the
passage aloud.
4. After reading and discussing as a group, have the pairs answer
comprehension questions from the first page in their packet.
5. Tell the pairs that when they finish, they should choose one of
the stories listed below. They should choose from Saved by
Pocahontas, “John Smith Became a Leader of Jamestown” or A
Settlement with Unsettling Challenges, “Jamestown was
Established” for this activity. They should read the information
and observe the photographs. Remind them they can click on the
photos to enlarge them.
6. As they finish reading and observing, the graphic organizer for
3
the story they chose should be filled out.
7. Pairs who finish early can look at the other story.
8. As students finish, they should return laptops. Packets should be
held onto for use in the next part of the activity.
9. They can then receive postcard directions and the grading scales
(attached). Each student should select a postcard (copied earlier)
and write a message. You may want to review the directions and
grading procedures with the students before they begin.
10. After postcards are completed, students will pair up again and
share and evaluate their partner’s postcard. They should use the
grading scale on their direction sheet. Postcards and grading
sheets will be collected.
Evaluation
The comprehension questions and graphic organizers will be evaluated
by the teacher,
The postcards will be evaluated by each student’s partner and by the
teacher using a grading scale.
Please see attached grading scale.
Extension
Students could read additional stories about the settlement of the
Activities
Jamestown colony.
Students could further research Powhatan, Pocahontas, and John Smith.
Students could research the Plymouth colony and compare it to
Jamestown.
Students could design a Power Point presentation based on their
research.
Possibilities
Some students may need access to a dictionary to look up meanings of
Differentiation
Some students may need pre-printed and highlighted copies of the
for
some words.
information they are going to read.
Students will be able to read additional stories and search further in the
website if they finish quickly.
Since students will be paired, they will be able to provide support and
challenges for each other.
4
What’s this Picture all About???
Group Members______________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
Describe your picture in detail. _______________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
Why do you think I gave this picture to you?
What does it have to do with what we are currently
doing in Social Studies? _____________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
PARTNER PACKET FOR
AMERICA’S STORY
“JUMP BACK IN TIME”
Names:_______________________
_______________________
Date:_______________________
Use the introductory story in the Colonial America section to
answer these questions. Remember to use complete sentences
and be careful about capitals and punctuation. Use the story to
help you spell correctly.
1. Why did Europeans want to come to the Americas?
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
2. How were colonists able to survive in both Massachusetts
and Virginia? _________________________________
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
3. What crops helped the settlers survive in each of the
colonies in Massachusetts and Virginia?
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
4. When did enslaved Africans begin living in these
colonies? _____________________________________
_________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
CHOOSE YOUR NEXT STORY & COMPLETE THE ACTIVITY FOR THE STORY YOU
CHOSE.
REMEMBER TO CHOOSE from Saved by Pocahontas, “John Smith Became a
Leader of Jamestown” or A Settlement with Unsettling Challenges, “Jamestown was
Established.
Saved by Pocahontas, “John Smith Became a Leader of Jamestown”
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/jb/colonial/smith_1
Read all 3 pages of the story. Use the information to fill in the
organizer. This organizer will help you to write your postcard
later.
Accomplishments
(List as many as
you can find in
the reading.
Challenges
or problems
faced
Who they
helped
and how
John Smith
Pocahontas
A Settlement with Unsettling Challenges, “Jamestown was Established”
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/jb/colonial/jamestwn_1
Read all 4 pages of the story. Use the information to fill in the
organizer. This organizer will help you to write your postcard
later.
Accomplishments
made by settlers
Challenges
faced by settlers
Reasons for
accomplishments
Reasons for
challenges
Postcard Directions
Imagine you are a colonist in Jamestown. You are going
to send a postcard to your family and friends back in
England. Tell them about the settlement, the people you
have met, and the challenges you faced. Your
comprehension questions and graphic organizers will help
you to include details in the writing of your postcard.
Choose a postcard. The pictures are the same ones you
looked at on the computer. On the top of the left side of
the postcard, write a one or two sentence caption for the
picture. Under your caption, write your greeting and at
least five sentences telling about your experience in
Jamestown. Include details about people you met and
both positive and negative experiences you had.
Remember to sign your name at the bottom.
On the right side of your postcard, create a name and
address for a relative or friend in England.
The grading scale will be used when you share your
postcard with your partner.
Grades
Postcard created by ________________________________
Postcard evaluated by_______________________________
Use the attached rubric to give a score for each category.
Content
________
Voice
________
Conventions
________
Sentence Fluency
________
Comments
Grading Scale
4
3
2
1
Content
There is one clear,
well-focused topic.
Main idea stands out
and is supported by
detailed information.
Main idea is clear but
the supporting
information is
general.
Main idea is
somewhat clear but
there is a need for
more supporting
information.
The main idea is not
clear. There is a
seemingly random
collection of
information.
Voice
The writer seems to
be writing from
knowledge or
experience. The
author has taken the
ideas and made them
"his own."
The writer seems to
be drawing on
knowledge or
experience, but there
is some lack of
ownership of the
topic.
The writer relates
some of his own
knowledge or
experience, but it
adds nothing to the
discussion of the
topic.
The writer has not
tried to transform
the information in a
personal way. The
ideas and the way
they are expressed
seem to belong to
someone else.
Conventions
Writer makes no
errors in spelling,
capitalization, or
punctuation, so the
paper is exceptionally
easy to read.
Writer makes 1 or 2
errors in spelling,
capitalization, or
punctuation, but the
paper is still easy to
read.
Writer makes a few
errors in spelling,
capitalization,
and/or punctuation
that catch the
reader's attention
and interrupt the
flow.
Writer makes
several errors in
spelling,
capitalization,
and/or punctuation
that catch the
reader's attention
and greatly
interrupt the flow.
Sentence
Fluency
All sentences sound
natural and are easyon-the-ear when
read aloud. Each
sentence is clear and
has an obvious
emphasis.
Almost all sentences
sound natural and are
easy-on-the-ear
when read aloud, but
1 or 2 are stiff and
awkward or difficult
to understand.
Most sentences
sound natural and
are easy-on-theear when read
aloud, but several
are stiff and
awkward or are
difficult to
understand.
The sentences are
difficult to read
aloud because they
sound awkward, are
distractingly
repetitive, or
difficult to
understand.
Rubric created with assistance of Rubistar
http://rubistar.4teachers.org