Work in Colonial Times

 

Work in Colonial Times

Objectives
Previewing Activities
Post-viewing Activities
Vocabulary
Places to Visit
Web Resources

View Video

SUMMARY

Blacksmith This dramatized story of a colonial boy, Nathan, and of his trip to the city of Portsmouth, gives a picture of everyday life in a colonial home and a look at the various kinds of work done by the people of that period.

Nathan must go to town to purchase some items that cannot be produced on his father's farm. He goes off on his journey by foot, carrying some animal pelts which he must use to barter for the goods he plans to obtain in Portsmouth.

Nathan is going to Portsmouth for another reason--because he is twelve years old, he must consider his future. What will he do to support himself when he is old enough to leave home? He will be apprenticed for about five years to a tradesman or a craftsman. In Portsmouth, he will be able to learn what kinds of apprenticeship will be available to him.

Along the way to Portsmouth, Nathan passes a crew of men cutting trees to be used as masts on sailing ships. After two and a half hours, Nathan arrives in the busy market section of Portsmouth, where he trades his pelts for molasses and cloth at the general store. When he finishes his errands, he is then free to visit some of the tradesmen in search of an apprenticeship. He visits men in various crafts: a potter, a chairmaker, a boatbuilder. These interest him and give him much to think about in the future.

OBJECTIVES

1. To describe everyday life in colonial times.

2. To show the various kinds of work done in colonial times.

3. To point out what life was like for a colonial youngster.

PRE-VIEWING ACTIVITIES

1. What differences in shopping are there between the colonial days and today?

2. What do you think you would be doing differently (work, play, school) if you lived in colonial times instead of now? Make a list.

3. Do you have any idea what kind of job you want when you grow up? Discuss the meaning of apprenticeship. How would you feel about being apprenticed when you were twelve or thirteen?
Overview of Colonial Apprenticeships
Life as an Apprentice

4. Share pictures of actual tools used in colonial homes and on jobs. Ask the students what modern tools or equipment replace these early tools.
Video Demonstrations of Colonial Tools
Overview of Colonial Tools
Images and Descriptions of Some Colonial Tools

POST-VIEWING ACTIVITIES

1. Pretend you live in colonial times and are looking for a trade to be apprenticed to. Find a trade that interests you. Explain to your classmates what the trade is and what a person does in this trade. Find out if there are any trades which still have apprenticeship programs.

2. What changes have come about in the role of girls in society since colonial times? Why did Charity have to stay home? What kind of future awaited her? Is it different for a girl today?

3. Find out what your town was like in colonial days. Was it a farming community? a marketplace? a small village? What kinds of stores were there? What if your town didn't exist in colonial times? When was it settled?

4. Nathan took pelts with him to Portsmouth to barter for goods. There are still people today who trap animals for their furs. What do you think happened to the pelts in colonial times? Today?

5. Do an experiment in class for a week: if students want to exchange something, have them use the barter system. What do they think about bartering instead of using money? Is it a fair means of exchange?

6. Have the students calculate how fast Nathan traveled (the number of miles to Portsmouth and the amount of time it took). What means of transportation would the students use today? How long would it take to travel the same distance now? How many miles per hour could they go now? How many miles per hour faster is traveling today than it was in Nathan's day?

7. Draw or paint a picture of what impressed you the most on the colonial farm or in the marketplace.

8. Colonials used English currency as their means of exchange, as pointed out by one of the signs outside the shop. Teach the children the comparison of modern American currency to English currency. Have them select certain items and determine how much these items would cost in British currency.

9. Construct a colonial village (milk cartons may quickly and easily be converted into colonial houses by covering them with construction paper).

10. Draw a picture of a colonial craftsman at work.

11. Make a list of tools found in your father's workshop. Indicate whether they would or would not have existed during colonial days.

12. Find pictures of colonial houses and furniture. Use these pictures to make a scrapbook about colonial life in New England.

13. Make a corn cob or corn husk doll.

14. Make a list of items used by your mother to cook and clean house. Compare these with items used by colonial women.

15. Do students know about the calendar change of 1752? It was only then that January 1 became New Year's Day (replacing March 25). Also, 11 days were added. For example, George Washington was born (old style) on February 11, 1731; after 1752, his birthdate was February 22, 1732 (new style). Can students translate their own birthdays into "old style?" (Subtract 11 days in all cases; then subtract a year if the birthday is from January 1 to March 25 inclusive). Why did it make sense for an agricultural society to celebrate a new year beginning in March?
Calendar Reform

British Calendar Act of 1751
What Day is is Really? The Jullian and Gregorian Calendars - Middle School Lesson Plan

VOCABULARY
  • blacksmith
  • barter
  • spinning
  • blacksmith
  • barter
  • spinning
  • apprentice
  • pelts
  • potter
  • skiff
  • dory

 

PLACES TO VISIT
 
WEB RESOURCES
  • Colonial America
    Discover some of the history of Colonial America from 1492-1763 at this site for kids from the Library of Congress.

  • Colonial House
    Learn more about the Colonial Period at this companion site to the PBS series Colonial House . Take a quiz and see if you would have survived in the Colonial Period, learn about what was happening in North America in the 17th century, or see if you can dress a colonist in the right clothing.

  • Colonial Williamsburg: Explore and Learn
    You can learn all about the people, lifestyle, and work of people who live in the Colonial Era.

  • Our America: Colonial Period
    Read diary entries, write your own journal entry, decorate a period room or read about the period at this site for kids from Scholastic.

  • Colonial Occupations
    From Acater to Yeoman, this site has a list of Colonial occupations.

  • New Hampshire in the Colonial Era
    An overview of the state during the Colonial Period from Seacoast NH.

  • Colonial Soap Making
    Grab some potash and learn how to make soap like the colonists did.

  • A Study of the Colonial Economy from 1600-1750
    Fifth Grade Unit of Study from the Schools of California Online Resources for Education site.

  • Liberty's Kids
    This companion site to the children's series features a segment called Now and Then which looks at life in the Colonial Period and compares it to life today.

  • National Gallery of Art: Costumes
    Learn more about the clothing worn in Colonial America.