Mapping the Colonies

Open Ended

Notice where Great Britain is located on this map. Why do you think original British colonists settled and established colonies along the East Coast of the United States?

Open Ended

Why do you think they didn’t originally settle on the west coast of the United States (near the Pacific Ocean)?

Open Ended

According to this image, which ocean were the colonies closest to?

Open Ended

Why might access to this ocean be important to the economy and longevity of the colonies?

Open Ended

According to this image, how many different geographical regions or groups were the colonies divided into?

What was the name of each region?

Open Ended

Which geographic region seems to have the most land? Which region has the least amount of land?

Open Ended

How might this have impacted what kinds of settlements formed where? For example, which colonial region do you think would have more cities, which would have more rural areas? Why?)

Open Ended

According to this map, which two groups of people were settled on lands to the WEST of the thirteen British colonies?

Open Ended

What geographical feature do you think the black textured lines on this map represents?

How might this geographical feature impacted where the British colonists established settlements?

Open Ended

What geographical feature do you think the black textured lines on this map represents?

How might this geographical feature impacted where the British colonists established settlements?

Open Ended

Based on the information in the chart which colony do you think found it easier to establish farmlands, South Carolina or Massachusetts? Why?

Open Ended

What is one geographical feature all three colonial regions have in common? Why do you think this geographic feature was important to British colonists?

Open Ended

Prompt

Imagine you are dropped into an unknown land with no GPS, no Google Maps, and no phone. You only have a hand-drawn map someone gave you.

What details would you need on that map to survive and build a settlement?

What things would you want the mapmaker to leave out (if anything)?

Write down 3 things you’d put on your survival map.

Multiple Choice

When analyzing a document, what does Historical Context ask us to consider?

• A) What was going on at the time the source was created

• B) Whether the document is old or new

• C) How colorful or detailed the source looks

• D) What we personally think about the event

Multiple Choice

Why does knowing the Intended Audience matter?

• It helps us figure out the author’s handwriting

• It tells us who the source was made for, which can shape how the message is presented

• It tells us whether the document is accurate or not

• It explains why the source is kept in a museum

Multiple Choice

When we add Outside Information (O in HIPPO), what are we doing?

• Ignoring the document and writing about something else

• Looking for hidden messages in the picture

• Making random guesses about the past

• Bringing in what we already know from history to make sense of the source

Open Ended

Analysis: What symbols do you notice on your map? What do you think these symbols represent?

Open Ended

Contextualizing: Why do you think the geographical features that are represented were included by the map maker (hint: think about WHEN the map was made and for whom / audience)?