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Unit Essential Question: How did New Hampshire's economy affect
its population in 1600-1799?
Activity Essential Question: When and why were New Hampshire's
towns founded?
Grade: 6-8
Discipline: Social Studies
MI Foci: Linguistic
Interpersonal
Spatial
Logical/Mathematical
Rationale: There are more than 200 towns and cities in
New Hampshire. They were all incorporated over a more than 300
year period, and each was founded for different reasons. However,
certain patterns can be found. This activity will allow students
to not only learn location of New Hampshire towns and other useful
map reading skills, but will make them use critical thinking to
determine why each town was founded when it was and for different
reasons. It will also enable them to cooperate with each other
and work successfully in groups.
Background: Generally, New Hampshire towns were incorporated
as soon as they had a large enough population, something that
only happens when a town has a prospering economy. This allows
for jobs in a variety of different areas, including farming, mills
and factories, or other enterprises. By examining when a town
was founded, a person can use logic and reason to understand why.
Generally, towns along the seacoast were founded early on, and
flourished by building ships and by fishing. Town in the interior
founded before 1740 prospered during the lumber/mast trade area.
Towns founded in the interior between 1740 and 1899 were generally
farming communities. Town that were incorporated after 1800 and
found along rivers were mill towns, and those not along rivers
were lumbering towns.
Objectives: After working with a blank map of New Hampshire
towns, worksheets with years that they were founded, students
will be able to determine why several towns in New Hampshire were
founded, and what the economy was in the different New Hampshire
regions.
Knowledge/Skills:
Map reading
Critical Thinking
Group Collaboration
Knowledge of New Hampshire towns and economy
Assessment: At the end of the activity, students will have
a colored map of New Hampshire showing different towns and when
they were founded. An 'A' map will accurately and neatly be colored.
Students will be allowed to incorrectly color in a few towns (exact
number is up to the teacher's discretion) before points are deducted.
Student will also be assessed on their analysis of the map's details.
Activity Procedure:
Introduction:
1. As an introduction to he activity, students will be asked what
information they already know about several New Hampshire towns
that may be familiar to them, such as Portsmouth, Manchester,
and their own town. They will be asked if they know why those
towns were founded, and how they prospered economically.
2. When the students have finished responding, the teacher will
ask the students to form, on their own, groups of four or five
students each.
Body:
3. The teacher will pass out the blank maps of New Hampshire and
the lists of New Hampshire towns ( one map and list for each group)
4. The teacher will instruct the students to color in the towns
in relation to when they were founded in the following groupings:
1600-1640; 1641-1700; 1700-1730; 1731-1760; 1761-1776; 1776-1800;
1800-1860; 1860-1900; 1900-2000 with each year grouping having
a different color.
NOTE: If the teacher feels that this is too advanced for the class,
an already colored map can be handed out to the students instead,
then proceed directly to step 5.
Conclusion:
5. When all groups are finished coloring in the map, a class discussion
will follow as to conclusions that can be drawn. They will notice
that towns along the seacoast and Merrimack Valley regions were
founded in the early years, with the White Mountains and Monadnock
regions founded last.
6. Students will be asked why certain towns, such as Franklin,
Sugar Hill, and North Hampton were founded in different time periods.
They will discover that Franklin was a mill town that gained prominence
in later years.
Anticipated length of activity:
Preliminary discussion: 5 minutes
Groupings: 5 minutes
Map Work 30 minutes
Discussion: 10 minutes
TOTAL: 55 minutes
Student Grouping: Student determined groups of 4 or 5
Materials needed:
Teacher: List of towns
Large, pre-colored map
Students: List of towns
Blank maps
Colored pencils or crayons
Resources:
For Teacher:
1. Hunt, Elmer (1970); New Hampshire town names and whence
they came, Peterborough, NH: Noone House
2. The town history of the town that the school is located in,
or a town history of a neighboring town. A good example is:
Annett, Albert (1934); History of Jaffrey, New Hampshire;
Jaffrey, NH; pub. by Town of of Jaffrey
For Student:
1. Hill, Ralph Nading (1960) Yankee kingdom: Vermont and New
Hampshire; New York, Harper Brothers
2. Yates, Elizabeth (1950) Amos Fortune, free man; New
York, Puffin Books.