Curriculum Materials

The following teacher materials correlate with curriculum-based programs taught at Jamestown Settlement, Yorktown Victory Center and through the Virginia statewide Outreach program. Teachers may use these materials as pre- or post-visit lessons in their classrooms, or they may be used separately to enhance classroom studies of Jamestown or the Revolutionary War.

Jamestown Settlement Materials

Discovering Jamestown: An Electronic Classroom Adventure 
Lesson Plans, Image Galleries and Educational Videos

 

A Jamestown Timeline (PDF)

 

Jamestown Questions and Answers (PDF)

 

 

Educational Video

Jamestown Chronicles (video biographies)

Quadricentenial Minutes (video)


Audio Files
The World of 1607

Jamestown: A Fruitful Soil

 

 

Podcasts 
Download video and audio files in MP4 and MP3 format and subscribe to the Podcast feed through iTunes.




 

 Essays and Lessons Plans

Cultures at Jamestown
Three cultures converged at Jamestown - the Powhatan Indians, the English and the Africans - each of whom had their own unique way of life. Students compare and contrast these three cultures and learn about their interactions.

Life at Jamestown
In 1607 the Virginia Company of London established a colony in Virginia primarily as an economic venture. They named the colony Jametown, after King James I of England. Learn about early settlement life, the colonists' struggles, how the colony survived and the first representative assembly in English North America.

Living With the Indians
The Indians that the English encountered at Jamestown were the Powhatans, who lived in permanent villages and were ruled by a paramount chief. Explore the day-to-day life of the Powhatans and the ways they used their environment.

Voyage to Virginia (PDF)
The voyage from England to Virginia lasted 144 days aboard the Susan Constant, Godspeed and Discovery. Students learn about life aboard a 17th-century ship, the route the colonists traveled and the instruments they used to navigate.  
 

Jamestown History - Background Essays


Yorktown Victory Center Materials
Life of a Private (PDF)
Thousands of men joined the Continental Army, under the command of General George Washington. Most were from the middle and lower ranks of society and enlisted as privates. Students learn why they joined, the hardship's of a soldier's life, and the role of women and African Americans with the army.

Colonial Life (PDF)
When the Revolutionary War began, about two million people lived in the thirteen colonies, with about 500,000 in Virginia. Many Virginians were farmers or planters, living and working on small farms. Students explore life for a typical family and their slaves on a 1780s Virginia farm.

Colonial Medicine (PDF)
A revolution in science began in the 17th-century with scientists carefully observing and conducting experiments to explain "why" things were the way they were. By the 18th century, old theories were being questioned but still influenced the practice of medicine. Explore the types of health care given in a typical colonial home, medical theries of the day and the many jobs of a colonial doctor. 

Revolutionary Virginia (PDF)
Virginia's geography and economy influenced the lives of Virginians during the Revolutionary War. Explore some of the challenges faced by ordinary farmers and soldiers in Virginia during the time of the war. 
 

Teacher Packets

Jamestown Settlement Resource Packet (PDF)
Yorktown Victory Center Resource Packet (PDF)

 

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