European Explorers Unit Plan

Big Idea: Explorers unintentionally found the new world but once they did the
competition to conquer land, fame, and fortune became the driving force behind their
exploration.

Graphic Organizer
I.

Countries: The geography of the countries is really important because

they are all surrounded by bodies of water, that provided these explorers
with access to get to the new world.
A.European countries as a whole
1. Why they came to the new world?
a) In search of the Northwest Passage
(1) 1a shortcut from Europe to Asia through North
America.
(2) Conquer land throughout the
Caribbean/Americas
2. How their arrival affected the native peoples?
a) Contagious diseases spread
b) Killed/ hanged/ burned natives that opposed them
3. Age of Exploration
a) The Renaissance led to this time period
4. Searched for trade routes, overseas wealth, and adventuring
a) gold and silver is what made nations wealthy
5. Treaty of Tordesillas
a) Divided all future discoveries between Spain and
Portugal
b) Both were able to lead the exploration of the New
World

6. Natives died
a) Diseases
(1) Smallpox most effect on the natives
(2) Carried by the Europeans affected them harder
than ones carried by the natives
b) Malnutrition
c) Fatigue
7. Disastrous effect on the natives
a) War, slavery, starvation
8. Envied Venetians and Genoese in their trade with the East
9. Had higher end technology
a) Weapons
b) Tactics
c) Maneuverability
d) Helped small populations of Europeans defeat large
native groups
10. Colonization did not end till last few countries in Africa
gained independence from European powers in 1960s
B. England
1. Late start
2. Became concerned with domestic issues
a) Ceased exploring
3. Sixteenth century had no presence in New World

a) Renewed interest in New World in second half

4. Religious groups saw New World as opportunity to practice
their religions freely
5. Monarchy was intrigued by riches
a) To Spain from Mexico, South America, West Indies
6. Struggle between Britain and Spain prolonged through the
end of the 16th century
a) By 1600s, English crown Parliament were resistant to
spend money
7. Keen
a) Financed several expeditions to New World
b) Trade missions to Russia
c) Together because of setting up stock companies
8. Set up colonies in Caribbean and North America
a) Plymouth, New English
b) Jamestown, Virginia
c) As well as India
9. Stayed close to coastlines
C. France
1. Mainly explored North America
2. Led the exploration of the Northwest Passage
3. Fur trade and fishing

4. Set up trading posts throughout Newfoundland and farther

west
5. Had control over
a) St. Lawrence River
b) Mississippi River
c) The Great Lakes
d) Most of the land in the heart of the continent
6. Best relationship with the Native Americans
a) Got along with population
7. Champlain constructed colony in present day Canada, called
New France
a) Champlain was an able administrator and diplomat
8. Slow to develop interest in New World
a) After French privateer captured a Spanish ship with
Mexican gold and silver
b) Attention was then directed westward
9. Excelled exploring new areas
a) Deep into interior regions
10.
D. Spain
1. Began Age of Exploration
2. Put efforts on expedition and colonization

3. Send a mass wave after wave of explorers to the New

World
a) searching for gold, slaves, trade routes and fame
4. Created a huge empire
5. First successful settlement
6. Provided Native Americans with horses
7. Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon
a) Marriage and policy
b) Determined to re-conquer territories from Muslim
expansion
c) Reluctant to send out Columbus on voyage
8. Wars became known as Reconquista
a) absorbed significant resources from Spain
9. Calculated sending three ships on voyage would equal cost
entertaining a foreign dignitary for a few weeks
10. Had lead on exploration exploration rates
a) Leading European power in the early imperial rivalry
for control on North America
(1) Dominated Southeastern and Southwestern of
what was later the USA
11. At first, expedition did not show much profit
a) Later, silver mines were discovered

b) Gold began to pour in from Mexico City and the

conquered Inca Empire
12. Focus on gold and silver ended up allowing their empire to
stagnate and then erode
13. Colonized less fruitful regions than England and France
14. Three motives for colonization
a) To locate mineral wealth
b) Convert Indians to Christianity
c) Counter French and English efforts
15. Two decades after first voyage of Columbus
a) navigators began to realize how remarkable his find
was
E. Holland
1. Bought Manhattan Island from Natives
a) Established (founded) settlement of New Amsterdam
at opening Hudson River
b) Later taken by English to become New York
2. Did little to expand their land holdings
a) Beyond their domain around Hudson
Chapter 4: Why Europeans Left for the New World
I.

Introduction: 4.1

A. Age of Exploration:
1. Search for lands that were unfamiliar

B. The New World:

1. New to the Europeans but not the natives.
C. Explorers:
1. Sailed on small ships across rocky waters.
2. Ships often sank.
a. Contained artifacts
b. Revealed why explorers sailed to new lands.
II.

Underwater Archeology: 4.2

A. Archeologists
1. Scientists who study human artifacts to learn about past cultures.
2. Look at sunken ships to understand the Europeans who first explored the
Americas
3. Sonar
a. Uses sound waves to locate sunken objects
4. Use a grid system to identify and record where different objects were located.
a. Use of cables/plastic tube system
5. Artifacts are heavily documented and eventually provide a lot of information
about
the ship that is being looked at.
III.

Bible: 4.3

A. Sacred book of Christians

1. Old Testament: Writings from Jewish religion
2. New Testament: Writings of followers of Jesus Christ

B. Christianity
1. Began in the middle east 2,000 years ago
2. Europeans spread Christianity to many other parts of the world
a. Roman Catholic or Protestant
b. Believed everyone in the world should be Christian
c. Taught/forced other people into Christianity
d. Had the bible because it contained stories and teachings of the
Christian
faith.
IV.

Flag: 4.4

A. Invented in China and India and brought to Europe by traders

B. 15th/16th Century
a. Symbols of power of countries and rulers.
b. Explorers carried flags in honor of their royalty that allowed them to
explore
c. Proud signal to people on land and those at sea.
V.

Gold and Silver: 4.5

A. Late 1400s:
1. Spain was in an expensive war
2. Wanted to build up their treasury (gold and silver owned by a country.)
B. Mexico/South America
1. Found gold and silver.
2. Forced natives to work in mines to obtain these metals

C. These goods were shipped back to Spain

VI.

Food: 4.6
A. Each continent has its own native plants
B. Natives were growing corn and using it in different ways
C. Spanish explorers brought back tomatoes
D. The Spanish also discovered pineapple

VII.

Tobacco: 4.7

A. A tall leafy plant.

B. Native use
1. Dried and smoked in pipes or cigars
2. Chewed or inhaled as powder
3. In every tribe men were addicted to tobacco
4. Believed it was good for their health and made it a part of
religious/peacemaking ceremonies
C. Explorers believed it to be a medicine and took it back to Europe, they too
became
addicted
D. Grew better in the new world. American colonists grew it and then sold it to
Europeans
E. Cash Crop
1. A crop that is grown in large quantities for sale to other people.
VIII.

Astrolabe: 4.8

A. Allowed explorers to identify their location at sea.

B. Circular piece of metal with marks around its edges. A bar attached to it could be
rotated around the center pointer. Tilt the bar so that it pointed at the sun or the
north star. Could measure latitude of the ship by measuring the angle of the star
above the horizon. The angle would tell how how north or south the ship was
from the equator.
IX.

Compass: 4.9
A. Magnetic needle that spins freely that is attracted by the powerful magnetic field
that lines up close to the North Pole. (The compass needle always points north.)
B. Showed which direction they were heading
C. Can alert the navigator of other directions.

X.

Maps: 4.10
A. Drawings of shapes of bodies of land and water.
B. Also show the locations of important physical features.
C. Where the wind blows and ocean currents.
D. Maps were consistently updated as more and more people explored new places.

Chapter 5: Routes of Exploration to the New World:

I.

Introduction: 5.1

A. Eight European Explorers

1. Why they came to the new world.
a. In search of the Northwest Passage
1. a shortcut from Europe to Asia through North America.
b. Conquer land throughout the Caribbean/Americas

2. How their arrival affected the native peoples.

a. Contagious diseases spread
b. Killed/ hanged/ burned natives that opposed them
II.

Christopher Columbus: 5.2

A. Conquistador
1. Spanish explorers
B. Columbus Life/ Significance:
1.Born: 1451 in Genoa, Italy
2.Childhood:Interest in Marco Polos expeditions
3. Sailor: Age 15. (1466)
4. August 3, 1942:
a. Columbus sailed with three ships (Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria) and
90
men.
b. Trip was funded by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella (denied by the
royalty of England, Holland, and France because they believed the route
they
were currently using to journey around Africa was much quicker.)
C. Routes to Asia
1. Portuguese travel south and around the most southern point of Africa.
2. Columbus approach was to travel straight west and wind up in Asia.
a. Unaware of the Americas.
D. The New World:

1. Indians (Native Peoples)

2. San Salvador Holy Savior
3. Believed that he had reached the East Indies
4. End Result (1493)
a.Native prisoners and a few gold ornaments.
b. Columbus went on three more journeys
5. Others
a.Discovered crops could be grown here (tobacco/sugar cane) - Perfect
climate
III.

John Cabot: 5.3

A. Cabots Significance:
1.Young merchant (shoekeeper)
2.From Venice, Italy
3.Skilled Navigator
a.Believed the fastest route to Asia was west as well.
b.Interested in spices and silks being traded.
4.1496: Merchants in England/ King Henry VII
a.Payed for his trip
b. Departed Bristol, England May 1497
c.One ship and 17 men
d.June 24:Reached the eastern coast of Canada
1.He believed that he had reached Asia.
5.Second Voyage

a. Sailed back to North America

b. Explored the Chesapeake Area
c. His ship sank and never returned to England
IV.

Juan Ponce de Leon: 5.4

A. Ponce de Leons Significance

1. Came over with Columbus on his second voyage.
2. Young Soldier
3. Settled on Caribbean Island (Hispaniola)
a. Became military commander under the governor.
4. 1506: Explored present day Puerto Rico
a. Killed may natives
b. Named the governor of the island by King Ferdinand
5. 1513: sailed from Puerto Rico
a. Reached present day Florida.
1. Feast day of the Easter of Flowers (Pascua Florida)
b. Believed it to be an island.
c. Sailed up and down the coast in search of the fountain of youth, never
found
6. Returned to Puerto Rico
7. Made trip back to Florida
a. Start a settlement
b. 200 men with horses,cattle, and seeds.
c. Natives rebelled and attacked.

d. Ponce de Leon was killed in battle.

V.

Hernan Cortes: 5.5

A. Cortes Significance
1. Spanish Nobleman living in Cuba
2. Sailed to Mexico
a. For gold,silver, and adventure
b. Aztecs gave Cortes gold to make him leave
c. This only made him more determined to conquer their land.
d. Cortes took the emperor prisoner in his own city for six months
e. Short trip away:
1. Aztecs fought against Cortes when he returned
2. Forced the Spaniards to leave the city.
f. Spaniards came back and surrounded the city for a year.
1. Aztecs weakened/killed.
2. Smallpox
g. Aztecs finally defeated (1521)
1. Spaniards now ruled all of Mexico
B. 1521: Spain reached Asia by sailing around the southern tip of South America.
Explorers now realized that the americas lay between Europe and Asia.

VI.

Jacques Cartier: 5.6

A. Cartiers Significance:
1. Experienced Sailor
2. 1534: French King sent Cartier to find the Northwest Passage

a. Made it to Canada and claimed territory for France.

b. Needed to return to france because his ship was low on food.
3. 1535: French King sent Cartier on voyage #2
a. To map waterway.
b. Sailed with Indian guides, 1,000 miles up the river
c. Visited Indian village, brought the chief back to France to meet the king.
4. 1541: Third voyage
a. To set up a French empire in North America
b. 100 settlers.
c. After two harsh winters they gave up and returned to France.
VII.

Francisco Vasquez de Coronado: 5.7

A. Coronados Significance
1. Nobleman by Birth
2. 1540: Hundreds of spanish conquistadors marched north from Mexico under
the
command of Coronado.
3. Paid for his own expedition with money from his wife.
4. Searched vigorously for gold.
a. Found the grand canyon area and the great plains but discovered no
gold.
5. Was considered by the king of Spain to have shown poor leadership and to
have
been a bad explorer. Also charged for Indian cruelty.

6. Missionaries considered him to be a great explorer because it gave them a

chance
to convert indians in the Southwestern part of North America to Christianity.
VIII.

Henry Hudson: 5.8

A. Hudsons Significance:
1. English Sea Captain, hired by Holland
2. Goal:
a. To find a passage to Asia by traveling west but north of the Americas.
3. Crew rebelled and Hudson took a different route (south and wound up in
Maine and
then the Chesapeake area.)
a. Stumbled upon a river.
b. Believed it to be the Northwest Passage.
c. Later named the Hudson river
4. His voyage gave Holland a claim to North America
5. 1610: Hudson made another journey and reached Canada.
a. The crew rebelled again because of the cold and lack of food. (Poor
conditions.)
b. He mapped out different bodies of water that he discovered.
6. 1624: The Dutch settled in the Hudson Valley
IX.

Robert de La Salle: 5.9

A. La Salles Significance

1. A french nobleman sailed to New France

2. Explored the Ohio River
3. Dreamed of personal wealth and a French Empire within
a. Posts, forts, and settlements.
4. 1681: Set out to travel the Mississippi River.
5. Was expected to pay for the journey himself. Others helped him financially.
6. Named vast region at the mouth of the Mississippi River Louisiana after the
king.
7. Planned to establish a sea route from the Mississippi river to France.
8. 1684: Sailed with 200 settlers but missed the mouth of the Mississippi river.
a. Wound up in Texas
b. Unsuccessful, everyone soon started to starve.
c. La Salle was murdered by his own men.
d. Most of the colonists died.
9. Gave France claims to the entire Mississippi Valley.
X.

Summary: 5.10
A. Europeans wanted a shortcut to the riches of Asia
B. Columbus success inspired others to explore
C. The land was not Asia but the Americas
D. Killed off Natives and spread disease to them.

Summary: Explorers

The Europeans were a vast group of individuals among the European countries,
including Spain, England, France, and Holland. All of these countries had an interest in
leaving their home lands and exploring other areas of the world in hopes of spreading
different religions, obtaining riches, and claiming new land for their own countries.
Thus began the Age of Exploration in which explorers searched for new and
unknown lands. One place that explorers discovered was the New World, which was
new to the explorers but there were Natives already living on the new land that the
Europeans discovered. These europeans were known as Explorers, who sailed across
dangerous waters which sometimes resulted in an accident in which the ship would
sink. The sunken ship, also known as a shipwreck, would make its way down to the
bottom of the ocean along with different personal belongings and items of the explorers
on the ship. These personal items when later discovered are known as Artifacts.
Archeologists, which are scientists that study items from the past to learn about people
and/or a culture from a different time period, go deep down into the ocean to explore
shipwrecks and to collect artifacts. Archeologists can use this by using technology
known as Sonar, which sends sound waves deep into the ocean to locate ships and
other items at the bottom of the ocean. Once a sunken ship is located scuba divers dive
down to the shipwreck and lay out a grid composed of plastic or cables to help keep
track of where different artifacts were found within the ship. These artifacts are heavily
documented by the archeologists as they try to learn as much as they can about the
items which help piece together information about the ship.
Popular artifacts discovered at shipwreck sites from this time period include:
Bible

 Flag
Food
Tobacco
Astrolabe
Compass
Map
Gold and Silver
One reason that explorers set out to find new land was so that they could obtain
new riches such as precious metals like gold and silver. In the late 1400s Spain had
fought in a very expensive war and the country of Spain was looking to build up their
treasury. Word that other places in the world possessed many riches helped push the
Spanish into exploration. Some of the Spanish explorers stumbled upon the land that is
known today as Mexico and parts of South America, where the Aztec people lived.
Once they arrived here the Spaniards found gold and silver and forced the natives into
slavery to work in mines to retrieve more precious metals for the Spaniards to bring
back to Spain.
Another reason explorers travelled to new lands was so that they could convert
natives and other people to be Christians. Christianity began in the Middle East about
2,000 years ago. The spread of religion was very prominent during the Age of
Exploration especially Christianity because Christians believed that everyone in the
world should be Christian, particularly Roman Catholic and Protestant ways were being
taught and/or forced upon by these explorers. In order to help successfully spread
religion, explorers travelled with Bibles which is the sacred book of Christians that

consists of the old testament (writings of the Jewish religion) and the new testament
(writings of the followers of Jesus Christ). The bible was a useful tool to explorers
because it contained written stories and teachings of the Christian faith.
While voyaging to many new places it was essential that ships possessed
different equipment to help assure the crew that they could properly navigate the sea.
Prior to exploration, explorers could hoist Flags of the country they were exploring for
so that the ship could be identified as belonging to a certain country. Flags were also
important because if explorers successfully made it to new land they could fly the flag
proudly on their newly discovered land and claim it for themself and their country. Other
important equipment that ships possessed include Astrolabes, which allowed explorers
to identify their location at sea. These instruments consisted of a circular piece of metal
with marks around the edges with a bar located in the middle which could rotate around
the center pointer. Explorers then would tilt the bar so that it pointed at the sun or the
north star which allowed explorers to use this instrument to identify their latitude on the
ship by measuring the angle of the star or the sun above the horizon. This allowed
explorers to figure out how far north or south they were from the equator. Another
instrument that allowed explorers on their journey over to the New World were
Compasses. These tools consist of a magnetic needle that spins freely and is attracted
to the magnetic force of the North Pole so that even as the compass turns or moves
around the needle always points north. This instrument was important to explorers as
they navigated the sea because they could more easily travel to a location or avoid a
location based on prior knowledge from previous explorers unless of course they were
some of the first explorers. As more and more explorers set out, documentation of new

land that was discovered became more prominent. Explorers made Maps which
consisted of drawings of shapes of bodies of land and water and the location of
important physical features. While sailing maps were of importance as they indicated
where different wind currents and ocean currents were located which could impact the
journeys that the explorers went on. These important documents were constantly
updated as more and more people explored new places.
Once Europeans arrived to the new world, they discovered many new things and
people. The explorers discovered some new plants on the new land that they had
arrived at. On this new land they discovered the Native people were growing Corn and
using it in different ways. One way that corn was being used was as Food. Explorers
also stumbled across some new fruits in the new world such as Pineapple and
Tomatoes. It became apparent that every continent had different climates which
impacted what type of crops could grow in each location (even though the first explorers
did not know that they had arrived at a new continent.) One crop in particular that grew
really well in the new world was Tobacco, which is a tall leafy plant that the Native
Americans used for a lot of different purposes. The natives took this plant and died and
smoked it because they believed that it was good for their health. When the explorers
came over and saw the natives using the plant, they too believed that it could be used
for their health and brought it back to Europe to be used as medicine. With a growing
demand for tobacco in Europe, those who settled down in the new world began to grow
tobacco in large quantities, thus it became a Cash Crop, which is a crop that is grown
in large quantities and then sold to people or countries.

There were many reasons why explorers came to the new world, but who were
the people that came to the new world? The first explorer to go to the new world was
Christopher Columbus. Columbus was born in 1451 in Genoa, Italy which was a city
surrounded by many ports. Growing up Columbus was fascinated by the explorer Marco
Polo and his expeditions which intrigued Columbus quite significantly into wanting to
become an explorer himself. By the age of 15 Columbus became a sailor and traveled
to different lands such as Ireland and other places that were relatively close to Italy.
After many years of experience sailing, Columbus wanted to find new and quicker ways
to Asia. Instead of traveling south around the southern tip of Africa and then back north
up to Asia, Columbus decided to try travelling west with the assumption that eventually
the ship would land on the continent of Asia. So Columbus talked to several different
kings and queens throughout Europe, hoping that someone would give him money,
ships, and a crew to sail west to discover a new way to Asia. After many years and
several failed attempts, Christopher Columbus finally convinced King Ferdinand and
Queen Isabella to give him what he needed. Columbus and other Conquistadors, also
known as Spanish explorers were able to set sail in 1942. Columbus set sail west with
his crew to find a new route to Asia but what Columbus didnt realize though was that
between Europe and Asia going west, were the two continents of North America and
South America. Columbus set sail with three small ships, the Nina, the Pinta, and the
Santa Maria, and 90 men and they all sailed west. Eventually Columbus reached the
new world though it was not so new, because there were other people already there.
These people were known as the Natives. Columbus was unaware that he had reached
the new world though because he believed that he had reached the West Indies. After

his long journey Columbus returned to Europe with some Native prisoners and a few
gold ornaments. Columbus never knew that he had discovered a new continent.
Another famous explorer of the time was John Cabot. Cabot was a young
Merchant from Venice, Italy. He was a skilled navigator and believed like Columbus,
that the quickest way to reach Asia where he could obtain spices and silk was to travel
west. In 1496 merchants in England and King Henry VII, agreed to pay for his trip.
Cabot was supplied with one ship and 17 crewmembers as they departed from Bristol,
England in May of 1497. Cabot and his crew sailed further north than Columbus did in
order to avoid arriving at land claimed by the Spanish. On June 24th, Cabot and his
men landed on the coast of Canada but he believed it to be Asia. After this voyage
Cabot returned to Europe and then made a second journey to North America which
resulted in him and his crew to explore the Chesapeake area. While on this voyage
Cabots ship sank and he never returned to England.
Juan Ponce de Leon was another explorer of the times. He was a young soldier
that came over to the new world with Christopher Columbus on his second voyage and
settled on a Caribbean Island known as Hispaniola. While on this island Ponce de Leon
was appointed military commander under the new governor. In 1506 Ponce de Leon
explored present day Puerto Rico which resulted in the killings of many natives.
Conditions became worse when Ponce de Leon became governor. Eventually Ponce de
Leon made his way on a voyage to a new land which he landed in present day Florida
which he discovered on the day of the Feast of the Easter Flowers, also known as
Pascua Florida, which resulted in the later name of the state. Upon his arrival to Florida,
Ponce de Leon believed that he had arrived at another island when in fact this body of

land was a Peninsula. He sailed up and down the coast looking for the fountain of
youth but he never found it so he returned to Puerto Rico for a short amount of time.
Soon after he made another trip to Florida with 200 men, horses, cattle, and seed, but
upon their arrival the natives attacked their settlement and he was killed in battle.
Hernan Cortes was another famous explorer who went exploring with the hope
of stumbling upon some wealth. Cortes was a nobleman living in Cuba and while there
he had heard stories from a slave about gold and other riches in a land not too far away.
As a result Cortes sailed to Mexico where he was greeted by the Aztec people. Cortes
had found gold but then he started to exploit the Aztec people for his own selfish gain.
After a short time the Aztecs believed that if they gave Cortes some more gold and
riches that he would depart and never return. Unfortunately for them this made him
more determined to conquer the land and eventually he took the emperor hostage while
he enslaved the Aztec people. For six months the aztecs were subjected to horrible
conditions and treatment until Cortes decided to take a short trip. For the duration of his
absence the Aztec people organized a rebellion and fought against Cortes upon his
arrival. Unfortunately the Aztecs were unable to prevail. Cortes brought back with him
other Spaniards to help gain back control. Eventually the Aztecs were defeated as a
result of Smallpox which the Europeans brought with them to the new world, and the
fact that Cortes and his men were ruthless and killed off many Aztecs.
By 1534, France began to get involved in the exploration of the world. The
French king at the time sent Jacques Cartier an experienced sailor to find the
Northwest Passage. On Cartiers first voyage in 1534, he journeyed to Canada and
claimed French territory but he needed to return to France because his ship was low on

supplies. On Cartiers second Expedition, in 1535, it was requested of Cartier that he

make his way back to the new world and map some waterways. With the help of some
Indian guides he was able to do so. Finally in 1541, Cartier made his final journey
across the Atlantic Ocean, to set up a French Empire with 100 settlers. After two very
harsh winters the settlers gave up and made their way back to France but Cartier
provided France with the opportunity to explore and settle in the new world.
Many explorers came to the new world with the hope of finding wealth and
riches. Others came to the new world to spread their religion in the hopes that everyone
in the world would one day be Christian. Regardless of the reason why different
explorers made their way over to the new world, they all left their mark on it. For many
their cruel and unkind ways were seen in regard to the natives and the competition
amongst the different countries became more aggressive through the years. In the end
though these were the men who stumbled upon the new world.

Resources:
http://europeanexplorers.weebly.com/
Amolo, S. (2009). European Explorers. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
http://www.sparknotes.com/testprep/books/sat2/history/chapter5section2.rhtml
The Age of Exploration. (2011, January 1). Retrieved October 24, 2014.
http://www.indepthinfo.com/history/age-of-exploration.htm
The Age of Exploration. (2014, January 1). Retrieved October 24, 2014.
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/ah-spanishexplorers.html
The Spanish Explore America. (2003, January 1). Retrieved October 24, 2014.
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1127.html
France and the Age of Exploration. (n.d.). Retrieved October 26, 2014.
http://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/pds/amerbegin/exploration/text2/text2read.htm
History Alive! Americas Past

Objectives

Students will explain how different artifacts were important to the explorers.

Students will examine the motives of exploration.

Students will construct a map of Europe and the identify which countries were
involved during the Age of Exploration.

Students will construct a timeline and illustration time frames of exploration of

each explorer.

Students will analyze the impact that explorers had on the Native Americans

Students will examine challenges that explorers encountered.

Students will identify and compare/contrast the different explorers.

Students will illustrate the time frame of countries sending out explorers.

Students will distinguish areas in North America that were claimed by explorers.

Students will identify and evaluate the impact of exploration for European
countries.

Guided Questions

How were the locations of the countries significant to the start of Exploration?

Why were new products found in the New World important to the explorers?

How were the new technologies important for navigation to the New World and
upon arrival to the New World?

Explorers travelled to the new world with a few different motives. What were
these motives of explorers coming to the New World? If you were an explorer
coming to the new world what important tools would you bring with you to
accomplish these motives?

What were challenges the Columbus faced before and during his exploration of
the New World?

As a Native American during the time of exploration, what impacts would you
expect to see within your tribe as a result of the Europeans arriving to North
America?

Imagine you are an explorer. What areas in North America would you claim for
your country? Why?

Why do you think Columbus had such a difficult time finding a sponsor and was
continuously denied by multiple countries?

Why do you think different countries started exploration at different points in

time?

In what ways did the explorers positively impact the New World?

Books

Explorers Who Got Lost by Diane Sansevere-Dreher

o

Everyone knows the explorer Christopher Columbus. He is a name that

student became very familiar with. Along with him, there are other
explorers who sailed across the sea for a purpose. They ventured out to
find land and different artifacts that their country told them to find.
Students are taught the many accomplishments about each explorer and
what they came across on their journeys. But besides all the
accomplishments, each explorer has some struggles on their expeditions.
Explorers Who Got Lost is a useful book for help students learn about
explorers who had struggles. This book explains different explorers and

their trips to the New World. It also mentions had some explorers actually
got lost on the voyages across the sea.This book can be used as a
reference for students when they are learning about certain explorers.
They are many explorers that are mentioned in the book so different
students can use this book depending on their explorers. It also provides a
background section about how exploration began, which students can use
as an introduction to the unit. Overall, this book is helpful for students to
use because it gives them a different perspective of the explorers.

Early Exploration of North America by Frederick King Poole

o

When learning about the explorers, students should not only know about
specific explorers but also about the country that they are sponsoring.
Early Exploration of North America explains different countries and their
role in the exploration of North America. It also mentions a few explorers
that were apart of the exploration. This book would be a useful tool in the
classroom. Teachers can use this book as a read aloud during the unit.
The book can be used in the beginning of the unit as an introduction
Students would receive a brief idea of what they will be learning for the
next few weeks. This can also be used at the end of the unit for a
summarization of what they learned. Students can get a brief summary of
what they have been learning over the last few weeks. This book can also
be used through out the unit. When teaching about different explorers, the
teacher can read the different chapters about the explorers so students
learn more information. The teacher can also read the different sections

about the countries when learning about the explorers. Overall, this book
can be used in many different ways when learning about the explorers and
their countries that they are sponsoring.

Exploring the World by Fiona Macdonald

o

This book is perfect for teaching students about explorers during the Age
of Exploration. This book contains a wide range of exploration topics but it
covers the important parts of the Age of Exploration. There are sections
that provide information on sailing to America, navigation, and a couple of
explorers that are well known for exploration. These sections of the book
alone capture everything that can be taught in a lesson unit but the book
expands on exploration and goes more in depth, talking about ships,
sailors, and places that were discovered. This book is full of good and
useful text there are illustrations that help demonstrate and explain the
text. This book could be used in the classroom as a book used throughout
a lesson unit. As the lesson unit progresses there is new information
within the book that can be useful to students. One important reason is
there are some vocabulary words within this unit that will be new to
students and this book provides images of these vocab words and a clear
explanation of why they are significant to explorers. This will help students
to make connections between vocabulary words and their significance for
this unit.

Cartier: Jacques Cartier in Search of the Northwest Passage by Jean F. Blashfield

When students think of explorers the very first one that comes to mind is
Christopher Columbus. There are many other explorers who made an
impact on exploration and one of those men was Jacques Cartier. This
book examines the life and time of Cartier and his days as an explorer in
more detail than a standard textbook, which can be useful in the
classroom for students to use. This book is also a great book to use in the
classroom because it offers a different perspective than that of other
books as it addresses the exploration of the Northwest Passage instead of
the Caribbean Islands where Columbus had landed.This book can be
used in the classroom for a project in which students are assigned to learn
specifically about a single explorer. Vocabulary words, a timeline, and a
list of important people at the end of the book are useful tools that can be
used to piece together information about Cartier as well as other explorers
and exploration as a whole.

Additional Activities

Ship Activity
o

The room will be arranged with eight desks in the middle of the classroom.
Students will be arranged on the outside of the desk. On each desk, they
will be a letter and number (A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2, D1, D2) as well as
pictures of different artifacts that were used by explorers. Some of the
artifacts that may be shown are flag, food, compass and gold. Students
will receive a paper with a ship that has blanks on the page for each

artifact on the desk. They will be paired with a partner to work on this
activity. Students will have to go to the desk and pick up a picture and find
the corresponding letter and number to the spot on their paper. Students
have to read about their artifact in their desk book and write down two
facts about why this artifact was important to explorers. There is also a
spot for students to draw a brief picture of what the artifact looks like.
Once students are finished with that specific artifact, they will put it back
on the desk, and take a different picture. They will keep doing this until
they have looked at all the pictures and wrote about each artifact. As a
class, the teacher will go over the activity and each artifact. She will
provide the students with what facts they should have under each artifact.
This activity will be useful for the students because they can use it to study
for a future test.

Booklet of Specific Explorer

o

Students will receive three pages of handouts, which they will cut in half
along the dotted lines, then put the pages in order to form a booklet.
Within the booklet, students will complete a series of activities to help
teach each group about the explorer they were assigned. Each group will
identify within this booklet the personal background of their assigned
explorer. They will also identify the sponsor of their assigned explorer. The
sponsor is one of the European countries involved in the Age of
Exploration. The students will not only need to know the countrys name
but they will need to be able to identify the country on a map and shade it

in. On the next page of the booklet, students will need to circle one of the
three motives to identify which motive was responsible for their explorer
going out to explore. Students then will have to shade in bars that make
up a timeline to show that they know which years their explorer was
actively exploring, which will allow students to identify whether their
explorer was an earlier explorer or a later one during the Age of
Exploration. Students then will draw the routes of exploration that their
explorer took in the New World and finally students will identify impacts
that the explorers made on their home countries as well as the New
World. After completing this small packet students will have a deeper
understanding about the meaning of exploration and greater knowledge
about a specific explorer.

KWL Chart
What I know

What I Want To Know

What I Learned

-Christopher Columbus
sailed the ocean in 1492.

-Who were the other

explorers?

-The different countries

that sent out explorers
were Spain, England,
Holland, and France.

-Columbus was out to

claim more territory for
spain for King Ferdinand
and Queen Isabella.

-How the different

explorers explorations
impacted their countries as
well as the new world.

-Natives were forced into

slavery and brought some
back to Europe.

-Native Americans were in

the new world before
Columbus.

-The different routes of

explorations that each
explorer sailed.

-Explorers used different

instruments to help them
navigate the ocean.

-Columbus had three ships

that traveled with him;
Nina, Pinta, and Santa
Maria.

-The different countries

and their purpose of
sending out each explorer.

-There were some

explorers who got lost at
sea

-Columbus was trying to

reach the West Indies for
riches.

-The time periods that

each explorer sailed.

-Columbus had a hard time

finding a country to
sponsor him on his voyage

-Columbus ended up
sailing to the Caribbean.

-What were some

difficulties that the
explorers experienced?

-Some explorers were in

search of the Northern
Passage route toward Asia

-The explorers were

-What territories were
interested in obtaining
discovered by the
riches, claiming new
explorers?
territories for their country,
and to spread their religion.

-What was taking place in

the countries when they
became interested in
exploration?

-Some other explorers

were John Cabot, Juan
Ponce de Leon, Hernan
Cortes, Jacques Cartier,
Francisco Vasquez de
Coronado, Henry Hudson,
and Robert de La Salle
-The time periods that
explorers were sailing out
into the New World were
between late 1400s 1700s

Project Description
Students will be assigned an explorer for them to research. They will use their
social students textbook and other resources such as books and websites what will be
provided to them to complete the research portion of their project. Students should feel
free to obtain outside sources as well that are not listed but they need to be credible
sources, which will be discussed prior to the project. Students will be asked to write a
letter as if they were the explorer. They will need to include specific information in the
letter, for example what country sponsored him, dates of exploration, motives for
exploration, etc. A list will be given to the students of the information that is needed to
be included. Students will have 4 days to gather information and complete their letter.
Once students have completed their letter, they will be asked to do a
presentation on their explorer. Students will be divided in groups of 2-3, depending on
their explorer. They are going to have to create a poster that will have all the information
that they found. Students will have to use their creativity to present their information to
the class. They will be provided a rubric for the poster and what should be included.
Students will have 3-4 days to work on this section of the project.
After all the projects are completed, students will take turns to present their
posters. Before the presentation, students will be asked to put themselves in order by
the dates of the explorers exploration. One student from each group will hold the
poster, while the other students work together as a class to figure out the order of each
explorer. The presentations will occur by the dates of the explorer. These presentations
should not take more than two days. During the presentations, students will be given a
chart. This chart will contain topics related to each explorer including, the motives,
impacts, dates of exploration, personal background, and routes of exploration.
After all the groups have presented, the teacher will go over the chart and make
sure that students have it completed with the correct information. Students will use this
chart as a study tool for a future test.

Objectives

Students will examine the motives of exploration for each explorer.

Students will research and identify important information about the explorers
during the Age of Exploration.
Students will construct a timeline that illustrates the time frame of exploration of
each explorer.
Students will identify the impact that each explorer had, both positive and
negative.

Project Timeline and Description:

Day 1: Introduction of the project

o We will be doing a project about the European Explorers. You will be
assigned a specific explorer to research about. Multiple students will have
the same explorer and thats fine. Your job for this section of the project is
to find information about your specific explorer. You will be given a
checklist of what information you are looking for. Once all the information
is gathered, you need to write a letter as if you were that explorer. You
may choose who ever you like to address the letter but it needs to be
realistic. Use your creativity when writing the letter and have fun!
Day 2: Research Day
o Today you will be researching information on your explorer. You are
allowed to use your textbook, library books, and websites that we have
provided for you to obtain your information. A checklist of the necessary
information that you will need to research will be provided to you. Dont
just research what you are asked to research, you should also research
some fun facts and other interesting information about your explorer to
help expand your knowledge of your explorer. Please write that
information down in your notes.
Day 3: Research Day/ Begin to Write Letter
o At this point you should have a decent amount of research about your
explorer. If you need more time to gather more research than you may
continue to do so. If you have completed all of your research you may now
work on the next activity of this project by writing a letter.
Day 4: Write a Letter:
o Now that you have completed all of your research, you may work on the
next part of the project by writing a letter about your explorer but with a
twist. We would like you write a letter as if you are the explorer that you
have been researching. Really take a few minutes to think about your
explorer and all of the information you have obtained and learned about
him. Write a letter to who ever you would like (it could be an old friend,
royalty, or anyone else you would address about your time exploring.)
Your letter you should include ALL of the information on your checklist.
Your letter should be at least 300 words.
Day 4: Introduction of poster project
o We will now start the second section of this project. You will be divided
into groups of 2-3 based on your explorer. You need to work together in
the group and create a poster on that explorer. Everyone must be

participating and providing ideas. You will be graded on how well you work
together in the group as well as the information you added to the poster.
The information that is needed to be in the poster is the same information
that you used to write your letters. I suggest that you do everything is
pencil first and worry about coloring after all the information is on the
poster. Be creative!
Day 5: Work day
o Continue working on your posters!
Day 6: Work day
o Continue working on your posters!
Day 7: Poster Presentation/Completion of Chart:
o Today we will begin our poster presentations. I hope you are all excited to
present your hard work. To allow the presentations to go smoothly and to
allow the flow of presentations to be consistent throughout, your
presentations will be presented in the order of your explorers exploration
dates. Each group will assign a group captain. All of the group captains
will line up at the front of the classroom, and the rest of the class it will be
your job to put the posters and their captains in order by the explorers
first date of exploration. This will allow you as a class to form one big
timeline of our explorers. After this mini activity, presentations will begin
and you will receive a chart, which consists of all of the explorers that will
be presented to you by your classmates. Under each explorers name
there will be topics including personal background, sponsor, motives,
dates of exploration, route of exploration, and impact. You will need to pay
attention to each presentation in order to complete the necessary
information to complete your chart.
Day 8: Poster Presentation/Completion of Chart
o This day is used to continue presentations if needed. If all the groups have
presented their poster, we will use this day to go over the chart. As a
class, we will walk through each explorer and the information on the chart.
I will project the chart on the board so that everyone will have the same
material. This chart is a tool that you can use when studying for your test.
An extra day will be given if needed to complete the chart.

Explorer

Personal
Background

Sponsor

Motives

Dates of
Exploration

Route of
Exploration

Impacts

Christopher
Columbus

John Cabot

Juan Ponce
de Leon

Hernan Cortes

Jacques Cartier
Explorer

Personal
Background

Sponsor

Motives

Dates of
Exploration

Route of
Exploration

Impacts

Francisco
Coronado

Henry
Hudson

Robert de La
Salle

Expectations Not
Met

Expectations are
Met

Exceeds Expectation

Total

/5

Personal
Informatio
n About
the
Explorer

No name of the explorer

is present or the name is
not clearly seen on the
poster. No occupation is
listed or occupation is
listed but no description is
provided.

Name of explorer is
clearly seen on the
poster. The occupation
of the explorer is
present along with a
description of the
occupation.

Name, occupation, and description

of occupation meet expectations.
(See expectations met box.)
Additional information about the
explorer provided.

Who,
When,
Where,
and Why:
Sponsor,
Dates of
Exploratio
n, Routes,
and
Motives

No country of sponsor is
present. Dates of
exploration are not told or
shown. Routes of
exploration not present or
misrepresented. No
motives or inaccurate
motives of exploration are
present.

Country of Sponsor is
present. Dates of
exploration are shown.
Routes of exploration
are present and
accurate. Motives for
exploration are present
and accurate.

Country of sponsor is present in a

unique way. Dates of exploration
are creatively shown. Route of
exploration is present. Motives are
shown and explained.

Impacts of
Exploratio
n (Positive
and
Negative)

No impacts are listed.

Impacts are listed but they
do not pertain to the
exploration of the
explorer.

At least one positive

and negative impact is
present on the poster.
They are accurate and
articulate the impact of
the explorers
exploration not the
explorer himself.

Multiple impacts of exploration are

present and students explain the
impacts and why they are positive
or negative. Impacts are not just
stated.

/10

Collaborat
ive Work

Not every member took

part in creating the poster.
A lot of arguments
occurred during the
process.

Group members
worked together to
design the poster.
Each group member
did the same amount
of work as the others.

Group members worked

exceptionally well. There were no
disagreements throughout the
entire process.

/10

Material on the poster is

not neat. There is no
organization shown
through the poster.

Poster is neatly
created. Everything is
legible. The material is
organized and shown
in a creative way

Poster is neat and legible. The

material is presented in a unique
way. (Thinking outside the box is
evident.)

/10

Not every group member

participated in the
presentation. There was
spelling, grammar errors
throughout the poster.

All group members

participated in the
presentation. The
poster has only a few
grammar, spelling
errors.

Each group member participated in

the presentation with enthusiasm.
No grammar or spelling errors
present.

Neatness/
Creativity

Overall
Presentati
on

/10

/10

Resources

Books
o Explorers Who Got Lost by Diane Sansevere-Dreher
Early Exploration of North America by Frederick King Poole
Exploring the World by Fiona Macdonald
Cartier: Jacques Cartier in Search of the Northwest Passage by Jean F.
Blashfield
A Picture Book of Christopher Columbus by David A Adler
History Alive! By Bert Bower
Websites
o Hernan Cortes:
http://www.aztec-history.com/hernan-cortez-biography.html
http://www.pbs.org/kpbs/theborder/history/timeline/1.html
http://www.wlcsd.org/Loonlake.cfm?subpage=1471242
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/aztecs1.asp
o Christopher Columbus:
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/all-about-christophercolumbus-1451-1506
http://www.wlcsd.org/Loonlake.cfm?subpage=1432757
http://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-byera/exploration/resources/columbus-reports-his-first-voyage-1493
o John Cabot:
http://www.wlcsd.org/Loonlake.cfm?subpage=1487752
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1497cabot-3docs.asp
http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/john-cabot.htm
o Juan Ponce de Leon:
http://fcit.usf.edu/florida/lessons/de_leon/de_leon1.htm
http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/juan-ponce-de-leon.htm
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/ponce-de-leon-neversearched-for-the-fountain-of-youth-72629888/?no-ist
o Jacques Cartier:
http://www.wlcsd.org/loonlake.cfm?subpage=1489762
http://famous-explorers.org/jacques-cartier/
http://www.clccharter.org/elana1/Oceanography/jacquescartier/jacq
uescartier.html
o Henry Hudson:
http://www.wlcsd.org/Loonlake.cfm?subpage=1491151
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/colonial/jb_colonial_hudson_1.ht
ml
http://www.pbs.org/empireofthebay/profiles/hudson.html

o Robert de la Salle:
http://www.historymuseum.ca/virtual-museum-of-new-france/theexplorers/rene-robert-cavelier-de-la-salle-1670-1687/
o Francisco Coronado:
http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/people/a_c/coronado.htm
http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/francisco-vasquez-decoronado.htm
http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/C/CO062.html