Social Studies 4-1.3 Explain the political, economic, and technological factors that led to the New World exploration.
Essential Question What effect did exploration have on the New World?
Learning Tasks/Activities:
Ø Students will read closely the Compass Odyssey passages “Europe and Exploration” and “Age of Exploration.” They will ask and answer questions about the text using the Exploration KWL chart. (DOK 2-3) Ø Students will view the Discovery Education video clips “The Invention of the Sail and Exploration” and "The Age of Exploration Begins: The European Race for Riches.” They will analyze the video clips using the video analysis sheet. (DOK 2-3) Ø Students will read closely Chapter 1 of the ABDO eBook Colonization and Settlement in the New World: 1585-1763 and complete a 3-2-1 Strategy Chart about the English Settlement. (DOK 1-3) Ø Students will read closely Chapter 2 (pages 12-18) of the ABDO eBook Worlds Collide in Early America: Beginnings through 1620 and create a poster displaying reasons for exploration of the new world. (DOK 3)
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It is essential for students to know:
Economic factors motivated Europeans to explore the world. The expansion of international trade was both a cause and a result of the Age of Exploration. Merchants brought spices from the Far East to Europe to trade for a profit. Other Europeans wanted more goods from the East without the added expense charge by these middle men. Because of the leadership of Prince Henry and their geographic location on the Atlantic Ocean, Portugal was the first to seek a water route to Asia. Economic competition with Portugal influenced Spain to sponsor Columbus and others to explore the unmapped lands in the New World that were found by various explorers. Political factors included competition between nations. England and other countries in Europe became interested in the New World, especially since the Spanish found gold and silver that made them the most powerful nation in Europe. The English monarchs began to send explorers to the New World and in the next few centuries they would become the dominant country in the settlement of North America. Technological factors helped the explorers. Advancements in shipbuilding included the construction of the caravel, which was a smaller and faster ship with triangular sails that could sail into the wind. Many improvements in the navigational skills allowed sailors to venture further out to sea. The astrolabe, [which measures the height of the sun above the horizon], the compass, and the reading of the celestial stars aided sailors in plotting their location and course. Cartography, map making skills, helped them to share their knowledge with others and was taught at the Portuguese School of Navigation. |