Major Concepts:

1. Europeans settled in colonies for a variety of reasons. They also founded the communities in a variety of ways.

2. Colonial society was monarchic. As a result, social rank was highly significant for both society as a whole and for the lives of individuals.

3. The societies founded by the colonists were diverse in terms of ethnicity, religion, government, and social rank.

Objectives: The student will be able to:

1. Summarize, in some form, the major differences in the colonies relating to ethnicity, religion, government, and social rank.

2. Describe the fundamental reasons for the settlement of each of the colonies.

3. Explain how the communities in the different colonies were founded.

4. Create a scenario that includes individuals of different social ranks and also demonstrate the significance of each rank for the lives of the individuals in the colonies.

Suggested lesson/activities:

1. Introduce the lesson by reading three of the concise statements generated by students from Lesson One, one describing a New England colony, one describing a middle colony, and one describing a southern colony.

2. Distribute the list of lesson objectives to students.

3. In pairs or triads, develop a summary sheet that outlines the major difference among the three colonial regions in ethnicity, religion, government, and social rank.

4. Using reproductions or primary documents and school reference materials available either in the classroom or media center, have students identify and describe the reasons for the founding and settlement of the different colonies. (Those teachers who do not have access to extensive in-school resources should look to the bibliographic essay for Unit III for outside assistance.)

5. Show the students any colonial street scene that depicts the various social ranks and lives of its residents. For example, project a transparency of reconstructed Colonial Williamsburg which depicts the houses, shops, taverns, and governmental buildings that line Duke of Gloucester Street and distribute a photocopy to each student. Present a brief lecture that depicts the various social ranks and lives of the people one would have met there while traveling up and down the street. (For information about Colonial Williamsburg, call 1-800-HISTORY or write Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, P.O. Box 1776, Williamsburg, VA, 23187-1776.)

6. Using the same groups as earlier, have students create a scene that might have occurred on an ordinary day on the street. Be sure that the scene depicts the interactions of all three classes of social rank.