Intro to European Explorers

​European Explorers

Social Studies SOL 2.6

What is Exploration?

Exploration means traveling to new places to learn about them. Explorers are brave people who travel to places that are unknown to them. They make maps and tell others what they find.

When European explorers came to North America, they were looking for:

• New trade routes to Asia

• Natural resources like gold and silver

• Places to build settlements

• Land for their countries

How Explorers Traveled

European explorers traveled across the ocean in wooden sailing ships. These journeys were very dangerous!

Challenges they faced:

• 🌊 Storms and rough seas

• 🧭 Getting lost (no GPS back then!)

• 🚫 Running out of food and water

• 🤒 Diseases

• 🩹 Ships could sink or be damaged

Trips across the Atlantic Ocean could take 2-3 months. Explorers used the stars, sun, and special tools to find their way.

Multiple Select

Which two of these were problems faced by the explorers?

• illness & disease

• no phone chargers in the New World

• getting lost

• not being able to play games

Maps and Navigation

Explorers used special tools to find their way:

• 🧭 Compass - Shows which way is north

• ✨ Astrolabe - Helps find location using stars

• 🗺️ Maps - Often incomplete or wrong

• ✨ Sextant - Measures angles between stars

After explorers visited new places, they made maps to help others find their way. Each expedition helped create better and more accurate maps of North America.

Multiple Choice

Which of these was not a tool European explorers used?

• 🧭 Compass

• 🚢 Ship

• 🗺️ Maps

• 📳 GPS

Who Were the European Explorers?

European explorers came from different countries in Europe. The main countries that sent explorers to North America were:

• Spain 🇪🇸

• France 🇫🇷

• England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

These countries wanted to claim land in the "New World" and find riches.

Multiple Choice

Which of these was NOT a European country that sent explorers to the new world?

• 🇬🇧 England

• 🇫🇷 France

• 🇺🇸 United States

• 🇪🇸 Spain

Why Did They Explore?

European explorers came to North America for many reasons:

• To find gold and silver

• To find a faster way to get to Asia

• To claim new land for their countries

• To spread their religion

• To start new settlements where people could live

Countries in Europe were competing with each other to get more land, more resources, and become more powerful.

Resources Used by Explorers

European explorers used many resources they found in North America:

• 🪵 Timber (wood) for building ships and houses

• 🐻 Furs from animals for warm clothing

• 🐟 🦊 Fish and game (animals) for food

• 🏆 🩶 Gold and silver when they could find it

• 🌽 Tobacco, corn, and other crops to grow and sell

• 💦 Rivers for transportation and fresh water

These resources helped the settlements grow and become successful.

Match

Match the following resources to their use.

• Timber (wood)

• Fur

• Rivers

• Fish & Game

• Gold & Silver

building homes and ships

making clothing

transportation and water

food

to make money

• building homes and ships

• making clothing

• transportation and water

• food

• to make money

What is one interesting fact you learned today?