Lesson 3: The Middle and Northern Colonies
Wrapping Up
Conclusion
As you have seen, life in the early American colonies differed widely depending on where one lived. While strict religious communities dominated the northern colonies and ventured into shipping and trade, the middle colonies were founded largely by merchants and relied on rich natural resources. The southern colonies sought profit through plantation agriculture, eventually run with slave labor. In the next lessons, you'll learn more about daily life in the various colonies, focusing on the differences between rural and urban life.
Life Application
Web Link
Salem Witch Museum
The Salem Witch Museum in Salem, Massachusetts has an excellent website. With a parent's permission, visit the museum's site and take a virtual tour. If you look under the "History and Education" section, under the "videos" subsection, there's a "Kids Questions" area with videos answering commonly asked questions about the witch trials. You may find the answers to these questions interesting, and you may also enjoy exploring some of the other educational resources on the website.
This link was verified on 11/27/2023.
Questions to Discuss
- Do you think you would prefer to live in a northern colony, a middle colony, or a southern colony? Why?
- What do you think was the most likely explanation for the Salem witch trials?
Things to Review
- Review your child's responses to the reading questions for both days.
- Review your child's Mayflower Compact activity page.
- Remind your child to review this table about the founding of the 13 colonies regularly since it will be covered on the unit test.
- Review your child's timeline. Remind your child that this content may be covered on the unit test.
- Review your child's responses on the "Salem Witch Trials" activity pages.