ED 305 Calvin College Lesson Planning Form

Teacher:
Grace and Michaela Date: 5/12/2016
This land is your land, this land is my land?

Big Idea:
Thread: Culture

I. Objectives

What is the main focus of this lesson?

The main focus of this lesson is to compare and contrast the cultures of colonials
that lived in Jamestown and the Powhatan Indians. The students will be comparing
different elements such as clothes, transportation, food, language, religion and
worldview. The worldview is the most important factor because it explains how the
colonials viewed land as something they could have dominion over while the
Indians thought that they were a part of the land and nature.
How does this lesson tie in to your units Big Idea?

This lesson focuses on comparing and contrasting cultures of colonials and the
Powhatan Indians. The most important difference was the worldview; the English
viewed the land as something they have ownership of while the Indians viewed
the land as something that is part of the nature and it cannot be possessed. This
idea ties into our units big idea because it shows how the different views on land
ownership led to conflicts between the Indians and the English.

What are your objectives for this lesson? (As many as needed.) Indicate
connections to applicable national or state standards. Include any themes or
major concepts from the thread (themes of geography, Core Principles of Economics,
etc)
SWBAT
Analyze pictures and quotes to compare and contrast cultures of the Powhatan
Indians and the English
Complete the comparison chart using the pictures and the guiding questions and
quotes.

5-U2.1.1 Describe significant developments in the Southern colonies, including relationships

with American Indians (Powhatans)

II. Before you start

Prerequisite knowledge and

skills.

Able to locate where Jamestown is on the

map.
Explain how the Chesapeake bay area
changed over time.
Able to read and analyze articles to answer
questions

Assessment (formative and

summative)

Formal assessment- We will assess students

by asking questions while they are analyzing
the pictures.
Summative assessment-Completion of
graphic organizer

Materials-what materials (books,

handouts, etc) do you need for
this lesson and do you have
them?

Do you need to set up your

classroom in any special way for
this lesson? If so, describe it.

Pictures of the Powhatan Indians and the

English for each group
Graphic organizer
World View article from Indians of the
Northeast by Karin Luisa Badt
Quotes of John Smith and other figures
Elmo/document camera
Guiding questions

Students will be sitting in groups of four to complete

the graphic organizer.

III. The Plan

Tim

Parts

The description of (script for) the lesson,

wherein you describe teacher activities and
student activities (indicate in parenthesis
where you are addressing standards and
themes)

e
5-10 mins

Motivation
(Opening/
Introduction/Engag
ement)

40
mins

Development

Ask students how we know what we know about the past.

[We may examine pictures (such as drawings, engravings,
portraits), artifacts, documents (such as letters, diaries,
journals), archaeological remains (such as building
foundations, garbage) or even nature (tree rings)]
Ask students how they know about their families, what
they did, where they lived, what they looked like.
Ask how people in the future will learn about us. How will
it be different from the way we are learning about the
past?
Remind students that all cultures at all times share basic
human needs. How each culture meets its needs may
vary based on geography, available resources, and its
technology. It is because of these differences that cultures
may clash when they come into contact with each other.
This is what happened when the English and the
Powhatans met each other in Virginia in the 1600s. Hand
out a copy of the Cultures at Jamestown Comparison
Chart to each student.
Discuss with students the six human or cultural activities
that are included on the chart. Explain to students that
they will examine pictures of the two cultures and words
of the English to complete the chart. The words of the
English is one-sided because they wrote the Powhatans
culture from their perspective.
Explain that their goal is to be able to describe the
lifestyles of each of the cultural groups, and to find where
they were similar and where they were different. They
may also determine areas where they were able to
cooperate and what ultimately led them to conflict.
Model the activity by completing one of the cultural
comparisons clothing with the class. Distribute copies
of pictures 1 3. Ask students to first study the picture of
the two Powhatan Indians. What is their first impression
of the picture? Is it an action picture or are they posing?
Have them describe what they see including the clothing,
jewelry, and other objects in the picture.
Now have them look closely at the details of the picture.
Use the Comparing Cultures Guiding Questions to guide
the students observations. Have students write their
observations in the clothing section of the Comparison
Chart under Powhatans.
After completing this part of the chart, have students look
at the picture of the Englishman. Ask students the same
guiding questions. Discuss and then have them complete

the chart under English. Explain they will be using

these and other pictures to answer questions about the
other cultural activities of each of the two groups.
Break students into 5 groups with 4 students in each
group. Assign two cultural activities to analyze per groupfood, housing, technology, transportation, communication
or worldview.
Provide each group with a set of pictures 1 7 and the
Comparing Cultures Guiding Questions. Groups should
focus on one picture at a time, using the questions to
guide their observations. Once all groups have completed
their work, have each group discuss their observations
with the class. Record the results on the chart under the
Elmo for all to see. Have students complete their own
charts.
Remind students that all cultures have similarities and
differences and that sometimes these lead to cooperation
and other times, to conflict. Ask students to refer to their
Comparison Charts and find at least two ways all three
cultures were similar. How were they different? Discuss
as a class.

10
mins

Closure

Ask students to imagine they were members of the

Powhatan culture when the English arrived.
Remembering or referring to their charts, ask them how
and why they think they would cooperate with the
English. What did the English have that they wanted?
Iron tools, weapons, copper. Ask if they were English,
what did the Powhatans have that the English needed?
Food, furs, knowledge of the land, hunting knowledge.
Finally, ask students to imagine they were Angolans.
How is their situation different? How might conflict result
when these cultures interacted? The English needed land
for their population to grow and to grow their cash crop,
tobacco. Indians wanted to protect their land to use as
they always had hunt freely, move when necessary.

Explain how this lesson supports your Big Idea. What is the takeaway?

By comparing the two culture groups, students should able to see that the different
world view, especially on land ownership, leads to conflict between the English and
the Indians.