This page contains the books and materials (plus reviews) used in our American history curriculum topic 12. This topic in our curriculum will explore colonial America, Pocahontas, Jamestown and more.

Books and Materials for Topic 12

Icon Key and Explanations

Colonial America (Easy Make & Learn Projects)

This book is for grades 3-5. It has a variety of activities, models and crafts that add depth to the study of the colonial time period. It also covers a lot of information in the read-aloud sections. Each section contains background information, instructions for making the model or completing the activity, teaching with the model notes (with questions to ask your student), and “do more” suggestions if you want to extend the learning.

Activities include: map of the 13 colonies, Croatan mystery tree model, Roanoke mini-scroll book, 3-D Jamestown map, map of old Boston, Boston town meeting pop-up book, Dutch step house model, Dutch windmill model, Maryland coin code activity, New England seaport diorama, Pequot Indian double diorama, candle making slider, candleholder folds, look-inside log cabin, rolling coach model, spinning wheel model, connect-the-dots spinning wheel, peek-inside Philadelphia and a lift-and-look plantation.

Our son loved this book's activities and the crafts really helped cement information for him.

Topics 12, 14, 15, 25, 27

If You Lived In Colonial Times (by Ann Mcgovern)
We love this series of books. They really help a child get a "feel" for the time discussed. There are 52 questions asked about the years 1650-1730. Some of the questions are as follows:

• What did people eat?
• What did people do on Sunday?
• How did they wear their hair?
• What laws did the people have to obey?
• What games did boys like to play?
• What did girls like to do?

The illustrations are fun and engaging and my kids LOVED it. They all retained quite a bit of the information and it provided a good foundation for the weeks of study to come.

Jamestown, New World Adventure (Adventures in Colonial America) (James E. Knight)
"Through dramatic depictions of significant moments in American history, this informative series gives young readers a vivid sense of Colonial American life -- its farms and villages, cities and ports, and the struggles and dreams of its inhabitants."

We enjoyed this book and it helped us get a feel for what life in Jamestown was like (pretty rough).

Pocahontas (Ingri & Edgar Parin d’ Aulaire) This is such a beautifully illustrated book! It is the story of Pocohantas, from the time she was a girl interacting with the colony of Jamestown, to her marriage to John Rolfe and finally her voyage to England. We own all of the d'Aulaire books because we love the stories so much as well as the engaging, wonderful pictures.

Pocahontas and the Strangers (by Clyde. R Bulla)
Clyde Bulla does a good job in writing easy to read and understand books about history. Kids get caught up in the story and learn a little history too. If you can't get the D'Aulaire book, this is a good 2nd choice.

Surviving Jamestown - The Adventures of Young Sam Collier (by Gail Karwoski)
I don't think this book would be a hit with most girls, but my son really enjoyed it. I personally couldn't stand it, LOL! I guess it's all about personal preference. It is a book that will help give a lot more depth and "stickiness" to the Jamestown colony. It's written from the perspectvie of a boy named Sam Collier, Captain John Smith's page/apprentice and follows along from the time the ship sets sail in 1606 to 1609 when Smith returns to England. I found the dialogue to be a bit trite and the characters to lack depth. I've changed the icon from a read-aloud (as I first intended it) to a reader since I quit about a third of the way through. It's quite a long book for a reader though (198 pages). You might want to consider it for your book basket.

This Country of Ours Selections 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16
*This is an optional read-aloud from a free online text.
11. THE ADVENTURES OF SIR HUMPHREY GILBERT
12. ABOUT SIR WALTER RALEIGH'S ADVENTURES IN THE GOLDEN WEST
13. THE ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH
14. MORE ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH
15. HOW THE COLONY WAS SAVED
16. HOW POCAHONTAS TOOK A JOURNEY OVER THE SEAS

Where America Began : [videorecording] : Jamestown, Yorktown, colonial Williamsburg / produced by Finley Holiday Films.
An 85 minute tour of three historic restorations.

Topic 12

Jamestown [videorecording] / Summer Productions ; director, Jeanine Isabel Butler ; producers, Lara Andre, Jonathan Lawhead ; writer, Shirley Robson. Wynnewood, PA : Schlessinger Media, c1998.  “Students explore the settlement of Jamestown through realistic reenactments filmed at actual historic locations.”

Topic 12

American Kids in History –Colonial Days Discover the Past with Fun Projects, Games, Activities, and Recipes (David C. King)

You will want to choose the activities that best suit you and schedule them through the mentioned topics.

This book has a variety of projects for different seasons. Choose activities (crafts, recipes, math, science, games, etc.) that suit your family and spread them out over several topics. If you want more things to do (or if you are not using History Pockets).

Here is a list of the activities:
Model weather vane, sundial, dandelion salad, indoor herb garden, Jack Wax, maple cream, growing a pineapple, measuring tree height, dyeing wool, weaving a pot holder, potpourri, sachet, playing jacks, quoits (game), blueberry slump, cranberry ice, berry syllabub, marbled paper, quill pen, indigo blue ink, berry red ink, baking bread, churning butter, making jam, Algonquin drum and drumstick, Native American headband, corncob doll, blind man’s bluff, bubble blowers, stick toss game, storm watch, dipping candles, clay candlestick, jackstraws, snow goggles, snow snakes, stenciled note cards, appliqué picture, pomander ball, necklace

Topic 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 (*optional)

History Pockets: Colonial America
(4-6)
Although this History Pockets book says it's for 4th-6th grade, it's easily adapted for grades 3-8.
There are lots of activities in this book to help make your study of the colonies more memorable: maps, a timeline, writing projects, crafts, booklets, a model, cut & paste, wooden jacob's ladder toy project, feather quill and cursive activity, make a horn book, trade cards, and more. There is also a section that focuses on memorable people such as John Smith, Pocahontas, Squanto, William Bradford, Roger Williams and William Penn. You do not need to start this book during this topic and you can skip it if you'd rather be doing the items in the American Kids in History book (a lot of hands-on activities) or the Colonial America book (cut & paste crafts, dioramas, models and more.

We actually prefer a combination of the American Kids book and the Colonial America book mentioned above. History Pockets is listed for those of you who'd like another option or would prefer to just stick to the History Pockets line of materials.

Click here to view this entire history pockets book, page-by-page, at Evan-Moor.

Topics 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18

PLUS:

History Pockets: Explorers of North America

Wee Sing America Book and CD

The Story of the U.S.A. Book 1

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