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Primary
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University of Western Ontario: Early Writing in Canada: Catharine Parr Traill

For Students 9th - 10th
Excerpts of letters written by Catharine Parr Traill, which she collected and published, along with her journals, in The Backwoods of Canada (1836). In these excerpts, she writes about her arrival in Newfoundland and a journey to Quebec.
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Handout
Mayflower History

Mayflower history.com: Houses in Early Plymouth Colony

For Students 4th - 8th
Explains what is known about the types of houses the Pilgrims built in Plymouth Colony.
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Handout
Siteseen

Siteseen: Land of the Brave: Anne Hutchinson

For Students 9th - 10th
Overview and biographical facts on the life of Anne Hutchinson, an early colonist of the Massachusetts Bay Colony who was banished from Boston in 1637 for her religious and feminist beliefs and fled to the Rhode Island Colony.
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Website
Library of Congress

Loc: Thomas Jefferson Timeline

For Students 9th - 10th
This detailed timeline describes Thomas Jefferson's life, spanning the colonial period, the American Revolution, and the early Republic. You will also find maps and written documents within this collection.
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Lesson Plan
Library of Virginia

Virginia Memory: Blank Space: Mapping the Unknown

For Teachers 9th - 10th
How did early maps show the mapmakers' perception of the known world? Early mapmakers used maps drawn from coastal explorations, land travels, and even information heard word of mouth from American Indians or from colonists or traders....
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Unit Plan
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

Gilder Lehrman Institute: Ap Us History Study Guide, Period Two: 1607 1754

For Students 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login Required] Advanced placement U.S. History learning module on the emerging colonial and native societies between 1607-1754. Resources for students include video, essays, timeline and primary source documents.
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PPT
Metropolitan Museum of Art

Metropolitan Museum of Art: Art and Identity in British North American Colonies

For Students 9th - 10th
Consider the English identity of American colonists by examining the sorts of imported goods and decorative arts Americans chose to purchase and display.
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Website
Brown University

John Carter Brown Library: Slavery and Justice

For Students 9th - 10th
Brown University boasts ownership of one of the greatest collections of early Americana in the world. In 2007 the university's John Carter Brown Library introduced a thorough exhibit after the publication of "Report of the Brown...
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Website
Trent University

Susanna Moodie: Life

For Students 9th - 10th
This detailed article on the life of Susanna Moodie has information on what Moodie wrote prior to marriage and emigration to Canada, her early experiences in Canada and writing that stemmed from them, and the hardships she and her family...
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Handout
Poetry Foundation

Poetry Foundation: Anne Bradstreet (1612 1672)

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource presents a detailed biography of Anne Bradstreet, an important early American poet. Includes links to the full text of many of her poems and an audio of the poem "To My Dear and Loving Husband".
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Website
Library of Congress

Loc: America's Story: Square Dancing

For Students 3rd - 8th
Square dancing has been part of American culture since the colonial settlers blended their varied traditions together. Contains historic photos, and an audio track of "Gents Go Center." Requires RealPlayer.
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Website
Other

Trail of Tears Assoc: The Story Trail of Tears National Historic Trail

For Students 9th - 10th
Follow the early history of Native American and European contact in America. As more settlers moved west, a law was passed to relocate the Cherokee from Arkansas. The routes they followed and the cruelties they suffered came to be known...
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Handout
Library of Congress

Loc: American Memory: George Washington: Surveyor and Mapmaker

For Students 9th - 10th
Most Americans know George Washington as the brilliant military and political leader; but as a young man, he was a surveyor by trade. Follow his career through this easy-to-read narrative complete with his early maps and surveys.
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Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Cutting Through Soil

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students pretend they are agricultural engineers during the colonial period and design a miniature plow that cuts through a "field" of soil. They are introduced to the engineering design process and learn of several famous historical...
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Article
Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation

History Is Fun: Life at Jamestown [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
A 16-page history of the establishment and growth of the colony of Jamestown. Covers the early challenges, the starving time, the Virginia Company, the conflict with Powhatan, the beginnings of the tobacco economy, the introduction of...
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Activity
Indiana University

Indiana University: Colony & Early Republic

For Students 9th - 10th
This site from the Indiana University analyzes the role of political cartoons in early American history. Four artists, Paul Revere, Henry Pelham, Wm. Humphreys, and Wm. Charles are highlighted.
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PPT
British Library

British Library: Teaching Resources: The Tempest: Slideshow Who Is Savage & Who Is Civilised?

For Students 9th - 10th
These activities encourage students to explore the 'brave new world' of The Tempest in light of thought-provoking texts on early modern colonization. A link to a slideshow featuring images of Native Americans and Europeans which...
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Unknown Type
History Teacher

Historyteacher.net: Late 17 C and 18 C American Society: Quiz (1)

For Students 9th - 10th
This 11-question multiple choice quiz is immediately scored and includes a variety of questions covering life in the early colonies.
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PPT
Tom Richey

Tom richey.net: Native American Cultures 1491 1607 [Ppt]

For Students 9th - 10th
Presents key ideas for examining the cultures of Native American tribes that lived in North America in early colonial times. Discusses the major groups, the way of life of each group, and where they lived.
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Website
Smithsonian Institution

Anacostia Community Museum: Still Cookin' by the Fireside

For Students 9th - 10th
This online presentation documents the role of the African American in food service from early colonial days through the 1940s. Primary source documents and photographs are included.
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Lesson Plan
Louisiana Department of Education

Louisiana Doe: Louisiana Believes: Social Studies: Grade 5: Peace Treaty of Massasoit

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders develop and express claims through discussions and writing which examine the causes and consequences of historical events as they explore the relationships between early colonists and Native Americans.
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Graphic
Curated OER

Etc: Colonial Maryland and Virginia, 1607 1634

For Students 9th - 10th
A map of the early colonies of Virginia and Maryland showing the first settlements of Jamestown (1607) and St. Mary's (1634). The future sites of Baltimore (1729) and Washington (1790) are also shown.
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Graphic
Curated OER

Educational Technology Clearinghouse: Maps Etc: Colonial Georgia, 1732 1763

For Students 9th - 10th
A map of Colonial Georgia, showing the proclamation line of the original United States established at the end of the American Revolutionary War in 1763, the boundary when Georgia was established from the Carolinas as a buffer between the...
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Graphic
Curated OER

Etc: Types of Colonial Governments, 1682 1730

For Students 9th - 10th
A series of three maps of the British colonies in North America showing the types of colonial governments between 1682, 1692, and 1730, and the shift from charter colonies electing their own governors to the colonies with councilors...