The colonisation of North America
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can recall that during the 16th and 17th centuries many people migrated to the Americas and forcibly removed indigenous peoples from their land.
Key learning points
- Exploration of the 'New World' took place under Elizabeth I and James I due to England's sea-faring capability.
- Many people migrated to the Americas for economic reasons and to take advantage of fertile farmland and fishing grounds.
- Nonconformists migrated to the Americas to escape religious persecution after the Reformation and English Civil War.
- Settler colonialists forcibly took land from the Native Americans; many of whom died from smallpox and violence.
- The settlers in America forged a new American identity after the colonisation of North America.
Keywords
Indigenous - indigenous people are the original inhabitants of a specific area
Colony - a country or area under the control of another country and occupied by settlers from that country
Emigrated - having left one’s own country permanently and gone to live in another one
Native American - a member of any of the societies who originally inhabited North and South America and the Caribbean Islands
Common misconception
Most of the Native Americans were killed in battle by British colonists.
Although many Native Americans succumbed to British violence, the overwhelming majority of Native Americans were killed by European diseases, to which they had no natural immunity.
Teacher tip
For Task A, encourage students to pick out points from both the content and the provenance of the source to discuss.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision required
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the words to their correct definitions.
the area of England in the north and east controlled by the Vikings
a member of the Scandinavian seafaring people who raided Britain
the people who settled in Normandy in the 10th century
territories in England, Wales, Ireland and France held by Henry II
Q2.Which word describes took over a territory by force?
Q3.Complete the sentence: The invasion of the Vikings led to the merging of Viking culture and customs with _________ culture and customs.
Q4.Which of the following forged a cultural connection between England and France?
Q5.Match the evidence from medieval Britain to whether or not it shows change or continuity as a result of migration.
language, government, land ownership and the Church
Christianity and parts of the Anglo-Saxon language
Q6.The loss of which war saw England begin to have a separate English identity?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which word describes a country or area under the control of another country and occupied by settlers from that country?
Q2.Which word describes having left one’s own country permanently and gone to live in another one?
Q3.Under which monarchs did exploration of the 'New World' take place?
Q4.What economic reasons were there for people emigrating to North America?
Q5.What percentage of Native Americans were killed by European diseases as a result of colonial settlement?
Q6.Complete the sentence: The settlers in America forged a new American after the colonisation of North America.
To help you plan your 10 history lesson on: The colonisation of North America, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 10 history lesson on: The colonisation of North America, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 4 history lessons from the Britain: Migration, empires and the people - c790 to the present day unit, dive into the full secondary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.