Description of lesson/activity
1. research the ethnic, religious, social, and governmental diversity of each geographic region.
2. write journal entries for each of the three geographic regions based on research information gathered.
3. interpret the research to make a judgment about which geographic region to live in.
4. work in cooperative groups.
5. gather and organize information.
1. Resources for this lesson include the social ladder developed in Question/Problem 3, student worksheets from Question/Problem 2 and student maps and charts from Question/Problem 1; additional textbooks and library media center resources should also be used as available.
2. The teacher should divide the class into groups, each of which will be assigned a geographic region of the English colonies to research using the accompanying "Diversity in the English Colonies Chart."
3. Each group should create a poster based on its research and a list of five significant questions that can be answered by the poster. The poster should describe the diversity of the region studied. The poster should include, in pictures and words, information about ethnicity, religion, social rank, and government. The teacher should post these posters around the room, arranged by geographic region, for use in the next step of the activity. At the same time, the teacher should collect the lists of significant questions.
4. The teacher should make up a worksheet listing all the questions created by the groups. Armed with this worksheet, students should be assigned to tour the "gallery" of posters, finding as many answers as possible. The teacher may decide how to grade this worksheet.
5. The teacher should distribute and review the accompanying "Student Guide for Observations of Colonial Diversity Journal." Directions on this sheet explain theactivity, and the accompanying "Criteria for Authentic Assessment of Journal Entries" explains what is expected and should be shared with students prior to beginning the assignment.
Resource 1: Diversity of the English Colonies: Chart
Resource 2: Student guide: Observations of Colonial Diversity: Journal
Resource 3: Criteria for Authentic Assessment of Journal Entries