Learning Activity

Early European Explorers! (Part One)

Subject Area

Social Studies

Grade(s)

Overview

In this activity, students will build background knowledge of the Early European Explorers and their motives for exploring the New World. Students will learn that Europeans were on the search for spices and trade with the East Indies, but found the Americas instead. Students will become familiar with different explorers and pick one to research more in-depth.

This resource was created in partnership with Dothan City Schools.

Content Standards

Social Studies (2010) Grade(s): 4

SS10.4.2
Relate reasons for European exploration and settlement in Alabama to the impact of European explorers on trade, health, and land expansion in Alabama.

Unpacked Content

Vocabulary

settlement
European exploration
culture
expansion
trade (barter)

Knowledge

Students know:

The location, purpose, and importance of European settlements including Fort Conde, Fort Toulouse, and Fort Mims in early Alabama.
The routes taken by early explorers including Juan Ponce de León, Hernando de Soto, and Vasco Núñez de Balboa.
Reasons for conflicts between Europeans and American Indians in Alabama from 1519 to 1840, including differing beliefs regarding land ownership, religion, and culture.

Skills

The students will be able to:

Explain the impact of European explorers on trade, health, and land expansion in Alabama.
Locate on maps European settlements in early Alabama, including Fort Condé, Fort Toulouse, and Fort Mims.
Trace on maps and globes, the routes of early explorers of the New World, including Juan Ponce de León, Hernando de Soto, and Vasco Núñez de Balboa.

Understanding

Students understand that:

There were specific reasons Europeans began exploring and settling in Alabama and this impacted existing settlements in Alabama.

Interdisciplinary Connections

Phase

Before/Engage

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of the activity, students will be familiar with the Age of Exploration and be able to explain the reasons why Europeans expanded beyond their borders.

Students will be able to explain that the Europeans started to explore to find a faster way to the East Indies, but ended up discovering the Americas.

Students will also determine the motivating factors behind European Exploration, including finding gold and land for their homelands. This would lead them to the shores of Alabama.

Activity Details

1. Students will utilize ReadWork's "Passage a Day" on the Age of Exploration. Depending on the setting, the teacher could choose to print out this passage to read as a whole group, have students access the passage for independent reading practice, or use one common screen (like a SmartBoard) for the students to use in a whole group setting.

2. The teacher can choose to teach these in one day or spread out. There are six different passages that can be accessed through this ReadWorks thread.

3. The teacher can also decide if students need to complete the related reading activities along with each passage. ReadWorks includes a "Book of Knowledge" for the article of the day passages, where the students can record thoughts and notes from their readings.

4. After reading these passages, each student will receive a list of Early European Explorers. Students need to have time to do initial research before picking one to research in-depth (this step is only if the teacher chooses to extend the activity). Initial research means that the students will simply have the opportunity to review the list of European Explorers to find one they may be interested in going further in-depth with their research. For the description of the research required for the extended activity, please see Early European Explorers! Part Two for a detailed explanation.

5) Please click here for a list of European Explorers to choose from.

Assessment Strategies

~Informal assessments can occur by using the ReadWorks-related activities with the reading passages in the "Age of Exploration."

~Teacher can also informally assess by asking Depth of Knowledge questions based on the ReadWorks passages.

Acceleration and Intervention

Acceleration

Advanced students can utilize ReadWorks to find more information about the Age of Exploration or individual explorers.

Intervention

Tier II students can work with a partner or have the ReadWorks platform read the passages aloud for further comprehension.

Related Learning Activities

Background and Preparation

Background / Preparation

ReadWorks is a website that provides K-12 teachers with free literacy resources. ReadWorks has literary and informational texts on a variety of subjects and reading skills. You may narrow your search using grade level or Lexile level, making this website a wonderful tool for differentiation. Students will complete their work digitally, and you will provide their score and feedback digitally. This makes it easy to go paperless for this activity.

Prior to implementing this activity, you will need to sign up for an Educator Account on ReadWorks. After setting up an account, create a class from the Class Admin tab, this will provide you with a Class Code to give to students. Next, use the Find Content tab to search for the informational article that will be used during this activity, "The Age of Exploration." After navigating to the article, click on the blue Assign button to assign it to your class.

Each student will need access to a digital device, such as a tablet or laptop. The first time students enter the website they will need to enter the Class Code that is listed on your Class Admin page, or you can import them into your Google Classroom. Alternatively, you can print the article and corresponding questions for students, if digital devices are not available. The teacher could also complete this activity by projecting the article and questions for the whole class to view.

~Print the list of European Explorers for students to use during their primary research (if extending this activity).

Digital Tools / Resources

The Age of Exploration Article-A-Day from ReadWorks.org

https://www.readworks.org/article/The-Age-of-Exploration/d408fcd3-1738-4fd0-83d…

Approved Date

2022-12-12

Author

Owner (Author)

meahenderson

Learning Resource Type