What motivated Europeans to explore the New World, and what effects did their exploration have on Native American populations? The second installment of a 16-part American Passages series prompts pupils to watch a video and read several biographies of European explorers. They engage in discussions, draw pictures, write poetry, and complete a multimedia project to answer these questions and many more. There are also options for additional problem-based learning projects.

Concepts

native american culture, native americans, colonization, christopher columbus, the new world, multiculturalism, native american history, literary analysis

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Additional Tags

social studies

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Instructional Ideas

• Have learners write first person narratives from the perspective of both European explorers and native peoples 
• Provide scholars with examples of Aztec poetry and ask them to choose a favorite to share with the class

Classroom Considerations

• Find the referenced video on the Internet by searching for the unit title 
• Print the timeline and explorer biographies for student reference
• Requires a projector or other video viewing device

Pros

• Includes thorough overview questions and specific learning objectives
• Contains comprehension, context, and exploration questions for the video 
• Provides a wealth of information, teaching tips, activities, and additional resources

Cons

• None

Common Core

RL.11-12.1 RI.6.1 RI.7.1 RI.8.1 RI.9-10.1