Grade 5 Lesson at a Glance: Chapter 7, Lesson 1

Houghton Mifflin Social Studies
America Will Be

Lesson at a Glance
Chapter 7, Lesson 1: A New Settlement in Virginia (pp. 156-162)

The Big Idea
Framework Concepts: Scarcity and Change Early settlers in Jamestown experienced disease, harsh winters, little food, and found no wealth.

Point to Jamestown on a map, and ask students to share what they know about life for the first settlers to Jamestown. Tell students that Jamestown has a temperate climate in the summer, but winters can be very harsh. Mosquitoes breed in swamps, and sometimes the water in the James River is mixed with water from the ocean. The settlers were not so interested in farming, and wanted to find precious metals. Then ask students what difficulties they think the settlers had and why these occurred.

Ask students if they have ever been excited about doing something or going somewhere, but when they got there it was totally different than what they imagined. Have them share their experiences and tell them that is similar to what happened to the settlers in Jamestown.

Lesson Outline
Use the Lesson Outline to preview the content of the lesson. You may wish to print it for your students as a guide during reading.

Check for Understanding

Ask students to imagine they lived in England during the colonial times and met Pocahontas during her visit there. Have them write questions they would ask her about life in Jamestown and then write her answers.
Provide natural materials, cardboard, glue, crayons or markers, and a large heavy poster board as a base. Then have groups of students create a model of a Virginia settlement similar to the one shown on p. 160.

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