Introduction 

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be born in another time? Or as another person? Our class is going to journey back in time to Colonial Times. Each of you will become either a man, a woman, or a child from colonial times. You will pretend to live in this  time period and bring your character to life.


The Task

You are to become an authentic character from Colonial Times. Your writing, research, and performance will be from the viewpoint of the colonial character you choose to be. You can be a slave, a founding father, a student, a merchant or one of the many other characters listed in the chart below. You are to write about your life as that person. In addition, you are to include an authentic document that was written during that period. You will create a tri-fold brochure using the program Microsoft Publisher (The Student Writing Center can also be used).


The Process 

        Pick a character from the table below.  Use the Internet resources listed below to gather information about this character. Look at the information that is needed for your brochure. Once the information is gathered you will publish it. Use the format below as your guide.
miller blacksmith brickmaker a founding father
colonial woman student/child gunsmith carpenter
shoemaker manor owner manor lady silversmith
Betsy Ross merchant baker cooper
printer apprentice printer tanner
wheelwright wigmaker basketmaker cabinetmaker
 

I. Cover Page
   Your cover page will have a simulated picture of your person with their name and the colony they come from. The simulated picture can be drawn using a graphics program, scanned in from a book, or use the Internet to copy and paste a picture of a colonial person.

 II. Page 1
. Your character can be living his/her life in one of the following roles, or you can create your own role, providing it is authentic. Gather information about that character from the resources listed. Your first page should introduce your character and give some of your family history and background. You are going to want to bring your character to life, so you can  include the following information: on your first page


 

II. Pages 2-3 
    You are to submit 3 journal entries. This will be done on pages 2-3. It should tell about your trade or describe shelter, furnishings, costume, education, food, chores, and/or recreation common to the colonial child. Describe family life as a colonial child/woman/man. They can be consecutive daily entries or they can be selected from several weeks or months. Express the thoughts and feelings of your character as he/she goes about daily life in the colony. Some ideas to include are: III Page 4
    You are to write up a recipe ( that you enjoyed as that 'colonial person') or write up a description of a game that was popular during that period. The recipe will be made for the Colonial Fair.  If you choose to write about a game then the materials need to be brought in for the fair and you will instruct the class how to play it.
    After the Colonial Fair the brochures will be bar-coded and kept in the library to be used as future resource!

Resources

The History of the 13 Original Colonies
A Walking Tour of Plimoth Plantation
Archiving Early America: Early American History Documents
Black Lives in Colonial America
Biographies of our Founding Fathers
Colonial Trends and Duds
Education in Colonial America
Everyday Life in Colonial America
Women in Colonial Times
Life and Times of Betsy Ross
Colonial Cooking
Trades of Colonial Times
Religion in Colonial Times


Evaluation

Now that you have completed your work on colonial times, lets take a look back and see how your efforts have helped you
to understand the historic time period you studied. We will have a 'Colonial Fair' and the students will dress up as their character and present their brochure to the class. Students will have the opportunity to become familiar with the other  trades after the entire presentation.

Conclusion

The fourth grades will be hosting a Colonial Fair to the third grade. Each student will dress as his/her character and be ready to answer questions about their life/trade in Colonial Times. During the fair the students will display their work, instruct others on how to play a colonial game, present their prepared colonial recipes and display their brochures .  Your character will be introduced to the world!
 
 
Suggested grade level for this project is the 4th grade.

Submitted by: Betty Carle
                        Computer Teacher
                        Dows Lane School
                        Irvington, New York  10533
                        carleb@dowslane.lhric.org
 
 

 
 

Adapted for offline use. For the original WebQuest go to:

http://www2.lhric.org/kat/wq/colonial.htm