Thirteen Colonies

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Barbara J. Feldman

The American colonial period began in 1607 with the arrival of settlers in Jamestown, Virginia and ended in 1775 when the Revolutionary War began. Although the English were not the first Europeans to arrive in the New World, they eventually outnumbered other Europeans. And by 1733 they formed thirteen English colonies that later became thirteen American states. They were, in order of settlement, Virginia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Connecticut, Maryland, Rhode Island, Delaware, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, New Jersey, South Carolina and Georgia.

Polytechnic: American Colonies

4 stars

This one-page American Colonies chart from the Polytechnic School (Pasadena, CA) has lots of what students will need to know for tests, or will want to include in school reports. Each of the thirteen colonies is listed with columns for Year Founded, Region, Founder, Religion, Government, Original Purpose, Economics and a short Note. For example, Georgia was a "buffer for Spanish colonies. Originally outlawed slavery and restricted size of land grants to 500 acres."

Colonial Era Webquest

4 stars

Elementary school teacher Deborah Tewhey, from Scarborough, ME, created this Colonial Era Webquest around a seven-page printable packet (in Word format) with thirteen mini-assignments. "What were the names of the three ships that brought the first colonists to Jamestown in 1607?" Although a few of the resource links are no longer valid, the quality of the rest of the materials earns this site its stars. Best clicks include Colonial Era Timeline and 13 Original Colonies.

Mr. Nussbaum: Interactive 13 Colonies

5 stars

Mr. Nussbaum's Interactive 13 Colonies is my multimedia pick-of-the-day. First must-see activity is the interactive thirteen colonies map. Click on any of the colonies or cities to view the annotation. For quizzes, crosswords, scavenger hunts, and fill-in-the-blank cloze exercises, look in the left-hand menu under Integration. "The thirteen colonies were British colonies ________ between 1607 and 1732." Related topics, such as biographies of the founding fathers, can also be found in the left-hand menu.

PBS: Colonial House

5 stars

It's reality TV meets Colonial America when two dozen "modern-day time travelers find out the hard way what early American colonial life was really like when they take up residence" in Colonial House for public television's history series of the same name. Best clicks are the ten interactive activities (filed under Interactive History), such as Dress Me Up and �Tis a Very Dirty Manner of Life. For Lesson Plans and classroom activities, follow the For Teachers link at the bottom of the page.

Social Studies for Kids: 13 American Colonies

3 stars

Dave White is an "an education professional with a lifelong passion for social studies." His Social Studies for Kids site covers the American colonies in three pages with embedded links to more articles about related topics such as pilgrims and the Revolutionary War. My favorite clicks (listed under On This Site on the right-hand side) are Daily Life in the Thirteen Colonies, Clickable Map of the Thirteen Colonies, and Colonial Times (an index of more colonial resources from Social Studies for Kids.)