Unit Essential Question: How did New Hampshire's geography affect its economy?

Activity Essential Question: How did the layout of an average New Hampshire change during the 18th and 19th centuries?

Grade: 6, 7, 8

Discipline: History, Geography, Art

MI Foci: Spatial
Linguistic
Intrapersonal

Rationale: As resident of New Hampshire, the students live in towns that were affected by changes in settlement patterns during the 18th and 19th centuries. This lesson will enable the students to figure out for themselves how a town would be first settled and change over the course of just 50 years (1780 to 1830). They will take the role of a town planner and design a town of their own that would make sense with what really happened. Since the town in question is a real town, they can then be given a 'right answer' and think about if their town or the real town would make the most economical sense.

Background Information: Towns being settled in the 1700s were usually situated on high ground near the center of the township. In the early years, the higher ground server as protection and provided an early warning against raiding Indian parties. Later, towns continued to be situated on hills because of the protection from flooding. Most importantly, high ground was less swampy, and served as excellent farmland and pasture land, as agriculture was the predominant economic force during this time period. The town center, with stores and a church, and houses, were surrounded by farmhouses, fields, and pastures.
Towns centers began to shift as the Industrial Revolution took place. Mills, and later factories, were built along rivers and waterfalls. Houses would be built around the mills to house the workers, and soon churches, stores, and schools were constructed. A new town center was often formed.
This occurred in many New Hampshire towns. One of these was Jaffrey. The 'town' hat the students will be given mirror the changes in Jaffrey over the 50 year span from 1780 to 1830.


Objectives: Using knowledge already learned in previous lessons, and having been given two maps of 'Starksville,' students will be able to place several structures on the map to 'build' town and village centers. They will also be able to justify the placement of such structures.

Skills/Knowledge: Geography
Map Reading
Art skills
History


Assessment: The students' maps and worksheets will be collected and assessed. The thought behind placement and the justification behind it should be assessed, not whether or not the structures were placed in the exact locations as on the answer sheet. An A maps and worksheet may not have the buildings in the same locations as they actually were in, but placement should be strongly justified and defended.

Activity Procedure:
Introduction:
1. As an introduction, the teacher should ask the students what they have learned about the way New Hampshire towns were settled during the 18th and 19th centuries. The teacher should go around the room and ask for one main 'learning' from each student.
2. The teacher should ask the students to imagine if they were in charge of building a town during these time periods. What would they do? How would they build a town? What would be necessary for a successful, prosperous town?
Body:
3. The teacher will pass out two maps (one from 1780, one from 1830) and a worksheet to each student.
4. Students will work on the worksheets and maps individually, but discussion should be encouraged between students. The teacher should wander around the room helping students and encouraging their careful, thoughtful work.
5. As students finish making their maps and filling out their worksheets, they should be allowed to color their maps while other students finish.
Conclusion:
6. The teacher should ask students to volunteer to show their map of 1780 and justify the placement of the different buildings.
7. After volunteers have shown their maps, the teacher should show the 'real' map of Jaffrey in 1780, showing the 'true' locations of structures. If students have questions or comments, they would be appropriate.
8. Steps 6 and 7 should be repeated for the map of 1830.
9. Maps and worksheets should be passed in for assessment.



Anticipated Length of Activity:

Introduction: 15 minutes
Map work: 30 minutes *
Follow-up, Student Sharing: 30 minutes
TOTAL: 75 minutes
* Time may be longer is students are allowed to color in their maps.

Class Grouping:
Students will create maps individually, discussion will be in he class as a whole.

Materials Needed:
For teacher:
Overhead projector
Overheads of Jaffrey Maps of 1780, 1830

For student:
Maps of Starksville
Pens, pencils
colored pencils, crayons, art supplies
worksheet

Resources:
For Teacher:

1. Annett, Albert (1936) The history of Jaffrey, New Hampshire. Jaffrey, NH. Published by Town of Jaffrey, NH.
2. Hunt, Elmer Munson (1970) New Hampshire town names. Peterborough, NH, Noone House.

For student:

1.Squires, J. Duane (1964). The story of New Hampshire. Princeton, New Jersey: D. Van Nostrand Co.

2. Bailey, Lillian (1960). Up and down New Hampshire. Orford, NH, Equity Publishing.

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